Boracay closure

[Snowy79]

I'll be on Boracay in the next few hours and shall try to get as good an answer as possible as to what's happening. At a rough educated guess the wetlands will be reclaimed regardless who or what is built on it. Over 1000 migrant workers homes built illegaly will also be torn down. The White beach area will also be tackled to ensure nothing encroaches within 30m of high tide and a new wider road will be ploughed through the island with a new sewage system going in at a similar time. After this I can see individual properties tackled on a case by case svenario. 

Some of the major resorts contravene building rules but I think tackling them just now would open a can of worms in the Government. 

[Snowy79]

Well first impressions there's going to be thousands of properties affected just on the new road. Currently a two lane road runs the length of the island and it's getting widened to 4 lanes. All the length there's red spray paint on building listing how much of the building they'll lose. It averages between one and just over 2m. For some this pretty much means total destruction. 

[stevewool]

3 hours ago, Snowy79 said:

Well first impressions there's going to be thousands of properties affected just on the new road. Currently a two lane road runs the length of the island and it's getting widened to 4 lanes. All the length there's red spray paint on building listing how much of the building they'll lose. It averages between one and just over 2m. For some this pretty much means total destruction. 

4 lanes wow , there will be some nice sea views when traveling instead of just buildings then, well that was like it was over 7 years ago.

[Snowy79]

8 hours ago, stevewool said:

4 lanes wow , there will be some nice sea views when traveling instead of just buildings then, well that was like it was over 7 years ago.

The only sea views will be a stretch near station one down towards Diniwid. This area you can see the beach through the open doors of a few restaurants. They are only about 5m deep. They will be losing 2m from the road side and depending if the beach side is 30m from high tide they may also lose some from the beach side. 

One scary thing for buyers is you have no protection even if you buy from a major developer. I've got a meeting with the Director of my apartment complex this morning. I've been assured that as the resort had been titled about 10 years I'm safe but there's a large complex by Movenpick nearby that has just been completed and it may get a demolition order. One Ocean View a massive hotel complex at Puka beach which is half finished has been told to stop building. Interesting times ahead. 

Edited April 15, 2018 by Snowy79

[sonjack2847]

2 hours ago, Snowy79 said:

The only sea views will be a stretch near station one down towards Diniwid. This area you can see the beach through the open doors of a few restaurants. They are only about 5m deep. They will be losing 2m from the road side and depending if the beach side is 30m from high tide they may also lose some from the beach side. 

One scary thing for buyers is you have no protection even if you buy from a major developer. I've got a meeting with the Director of my apartment complex this morning. I've been assured that as the resort had been titled about 10 years I'm safe but there's a large complex by Movenpick nearby that has just been completed and it may get a demolition order. One Ocean View a massive hotel complex at Puka beach which is half finished has been told to stop building. Interesting times ahead. 

I hope it works out for you , I feel sorry for the people who will be affected by a corrupt planning department who never enforced the rules.When will their heads roll?

[Snowy79]

30 minutes ago, sonjack2847 said:

I hope it works out for you , I feel sorry for the people who will be affected by a corrupt planning department who never enforced the rules.When will their heads roll?

Some have been sent on unpaid leave for between 3 and 6 months. That'll teach them. 

[i am bob]

It's interesting to get our information via the various news media available here.  It's already been shown that several media groups are posting or making suggestions in their posts erroneous information.  Particularly about the President.  For example; many believe President Duterte approved the casino bid due to the reporting that was presented by these media.  He did not.  The approval came from a much lower level and he was pissed off about it.  Some blame the President about having to close the place down.  The people who were representing the government were being told to F.O. when they appeared at the larger establishments.  I wish I had the Facebook video of the resort manager sending his dogs after the government group.  These government groups were the ones tasked by the President to get things fixed.  So...  If they weren't going to listen and do what was required?  Hmm... 

There are lots more things that require fixing there.  If I was the guy in charge?  I'd have done the same thing.  Shut it down, get the work done and reopen as soon as possible.  And, most importantly?  Make sure nobody tried to skirt around the proper channels again.  As for the media?  I don't bother listening to most of them anymore.

[Snowy79]

The information released via any media in the Philippines is only as accurate as the second it's published as things change in seconds here. I've been doing my fare share of investigating as I've a vested interest in what is going on as far as Boracay is concerned and so far there's 3 different scenarios and you can't even use common sense to calculate what route the Government will take.

One thing they have got correct so far is they have dug holes at 5m intervals all the way along the current government rain drainage systems. At this time of the year the drains should be dry but so far they've found over 150 outlets from hotels etc plumbed into the rain water drainage system. This is sewage water and as such those hotels have been issued prohibition orders.

[Dave Hounddriver]

LOOK: Boracay mountain flattened, forest cleared

 (I will copy and paste the text of the article in case the link gets taken down)

Quote

 

BORACAY, Aklan - Almost three weeks since the closure of Boracay island, some residents of Barangay Yapak who have been passing near the Eco-village Multi-Purpose Gym are wondering why a forest in the area is being cleared and a mountain is being flattened by construction workers.

A security guard in the area, who declined to to be named, claimed that the forest-clearing and mountain-leveling work took place before the closure of Boracay, and was stopped April 26.

However, a video clip of a backhoe doing excavation work on the leveled mountain was posted by a netizen on Facebook on Monday, saying the footage was taken only last May 11.

The area, according to the netizen, is a forestland and close to the roosting site of flying foxes, a bat species that is vital to the ecology of Boracay.

A local tricycle driver, who also declined to be identified, alleged that a politician owns the flattened mountain area.

It will be reportedly used for a swimming pool and other amenities.

The entire mountain was once covered with trees, but now, almost half of all the trees in the area are gone.

A road network going to Costa Vista Boracay is currently being built. It covers parts of the mountain. 

According to workers at the site, construction activities go on day and night.

Richard Fabila, chief of the Community Environment and Natural Resources Office-Boracay, said he is looking into the matter.

However, he said the construction work already ceased a month ago. He refused to give further details due to an ongoing investigation.

The environment and interior and local government departments earlier agreed that construction activities would be suspended during the six-month closure of the island. 

They, however, will allow minor renovation and upgrading of existing structures.

 

Smells like the sewage is not getting cleaned up after all.  Or maybe it is, while "other stuff" is going on at the same time.

[Rooster]

Puerto Galera was the place to go in the 80's, then in 1987 The soap opera "Boracay" started on TV here. After that everyone wanted to go there. I have video from when I went there in 1988 & clipped these 4 photos from that video. I've been there many times over the years. Was there a few months ago. It's amazing to see how it transformed over the years.

Edited May 16, 2018 by Rooster