Thursday, January 8, 2009
[ sunstar.com.ph ]
By Rimaliza Opiña
IN AN effort to continue enticing tourists to visit Baguio, the tourism sector is pushing for the development of Burnham Park into a theme park.
Officials of the City Government are not open to the idea but Baguio Tourism Council (BTC) chairman Anthony de Leon said innovations have to be made in order to promote Baguio as a destination.
This includes continuous upgrading of services and facilities that would cater to the needs and demands of tourists.
Last December when an upsurge in the number of tourists was seen, de Leon said many complained about the large volume of vehicles which ultimately affected traffic movement.
A theme park, he said, would cater to children and young adults.
"Our parks are in bad shape and in need of rehabilitation," de Leon said.
Burnham was suggested as a suitable site for a theme park because it is large enough to accommodate equipment used in theme parks.
To preserve the aesthetic value of Burnham, construction of vertical structures and establishment of businesses inside are regulated by the Burnham Park Management Authority, a division of the City Parks Management Office (CPMO).
However, with the competition between tourist destinations in the country, de Leon said it is time to "think out-of-the-box and accept that changes have to be made for Baguio to be more competitive."
He said the city may impose parameters to interested developers to ensure the area's aesthetic and historical values are preserved. Five developers are reportedly interested in putting-up a theme park, at no cost to the City Government. One of them is the developer of Enchanted Kingdom in Sta. Rosa, Laguna.
Directors Juan Ngalob and Purificacion Molintas of the National Economic and Development Authority (Neda) and the Department of Tourism (DOT) agreed there should be a theme park but this should be constructed in Baguio's outskirts or the La Trinidad-Itogon-Sablan-Tuba (List) areas.
Ngalob said even the European experts who formulated the Blist concept in 1992 said a theme park could be established outside Baguio.
He recalled a "West Itogon Country Park", with the Ambuklao and Binga dams as main attractions, was suggested then.
With the near completion of the circumferential road, Ngalob said BTC's suggestion is possible. He said this in keeping with the Blist concept, where resources and development are shared among the member local governments.
Molintas said among major destinations, only Baguio does not have a theme park. Hence, one should be built but also within the List area.
Asked if establishing a theme park in the List area is possible, de Leon said Baguio does not have the same situation as Sta. Rosa. While Sta. Rosa previously was not a destination, de Leon said the area is near an access road.
Aside from the infrastructure, de Leon said the mindset of the public should change first. "The people and the city should accept the idea first," he stressed.
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