Urban Slum Areas

[Sou-jiro]

for that price ok na sya regardless of the location....but if in makati e di lalo na ok...is this an actual project bustero?

[bustero]

Yes, we're trying to make some inexpensive flats for the everyday salaryman. We're trying to have an affordable livable product near the cbd so people will have a choice or else they will have to commute a great distance.

We used HK standards so while we deliver a 3 x 3.7 loft , that allows the occupant to have a standard 2 x 3 m bedroom and 1.7 x 2.4 m 2nd bedroom on the loft. Kung pang dorm you can have 3 small rooms upstairs you can see in the isometric!

What do you think the 26sq.m. one will be worth if it's in taguig (other side of C5 from the fort ) or Pasig?

[renell]

Hmmm.... I don't mind living in that, considering the location.

[Sou-jiro]

ok sya bustero......but im thinking if it will be on other side of c5...mejo high ang price kasi it is a booming area diba? sa fort? but aroung P1m to P1.5m ok price...i think many potential first time investors will be interested..26sqm for around P1m to P1.5 m
is fine you get what you pay for..but the depending on the location ...syempre added bonus pa yun....ok ok na rin...but if these are so called low cost?...will they have flexible payment scheme for an average person?

[Lili]

Originally Posted by bustero

Yes, we're trying to make some inexpensive flats for the everyday salaryman. We're trying to have an affordable livable product near the cbd so people will have a choice or else they will have to commute a great distance.

We used HK standards so while we deliver a 3 x 3.7 loft , that allows the occupant to have a standard 2 x 3 m bedroom and 1.7 x 2.4 m 2nd bedroom on the loft. Kung pang dorm you can have 3 small rooms upstairs you can see in the isometric!

What do you think the 26sq.m. one will be worth if it's in taguig (other side of C5 from the fort ) or Pasig?

I'm assuming that the everyday salaryman that you are talking about is the single guy or gal working in that area -- not the everyday family man. For a single person with means or a couple without children, it will be good for a start-up, especially for that area.

I wonder how much is the salary range of an everyday salaryman? What are the terms of payment? How much is the mortgage rate in the Philippines? When you sell these units, will there be a salary cap for applicants?

[Lili]

BTW Bustero,

I'm really impressed with the way you utilized the space. I was looking at the sketch again and realized that it can accommodate 3 small bedrooms all with closet space. So, I'm revising my initial comment about the space being good only for a single person or a couple with no children. The plan actually has a small family in mind. I applaud this concept of making low cost flats in the city available to the everyday salary man.

[Sou-jiro]

I think this is more suitable for the active, young working single individuals...convinient from workplace depending on its location

[bustero]

There are two Juan de la Cruzes we have in mind. Depending on location since we can change the finish and flavor to conform to who will buy it and the like.

1) Urban yuppies, late 20's to early thirties, call center guys and the like.
2) Dual income min wage earners as a starter unit.

Min wage in MM is close to 9k with take home of nearly 8k. Housing as a general rule is 1/3 to 1/4 of disposable income. Dual Income earners can plunk down up to 5k on rent and if buying their own home up to 7k this allows them to acquire mortaged units of up to 1m, of course there will be a min 20% - 30% equity so that's the hard part for many folk. This where creative equity financing comes in ! From Several months up to a year to pay. Anyway the unit itself is supposed to be flexible to accomodate either of the Juan de la Cruzes.

We won't be putting a salary cap though my idea really is to have as many people buy it otherwise there may be some people who will buy and sell the units as I think they're quite cheap too. There are few projects like these so our mission is to house people or at least give them the choice of a house in the burbs or a flat in the city.

Thanks for your feedback. Any more is always appreciated.

[Sou-jiro]

edit

[Sou-jiro]

will they have view view of any part of the skyline?...la lang....i think that would be great...keep us updated on this bustero....its quite interesting...are u in the earlystages of planning pa ba?...btw if these are design for the Juan De La Cruz's then will the payment scheme be design for the Juan De La Cruz's?

[bustero]

Some of the projects will have skyline views but when you're in Makati you're probably up against another building so baka wala ka nang makita!

Yup payment schemes are what works here,specially the equity, most people can pay the monthly amortization, very realistic for them, so their only limitation is the big equity so you have to make it reasonable for them as well.

[the edge]

wow! where is this in makati?

[bustero]

The first ones are actually going up in Pasig. Kahit sa Marikina naghahanap kami ng project doon, we want to do it all over the city.

We have a bit nicer and bigger ones for makati.

[mnbc]

GIS to help eradicate Metro Manila slums
As part of its Metro Manila Urban Services for the Poor (MMUSP) project, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) yesterday donated a geographical information system (GIS) to the Housing and Urban Development and Coordinating Council (HUDCC), and to the cities of Mandaluyong and Muntinlupa in central Metro Manila which will pilot-test the system.

The donation is covered by a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed yesterday at the RCBC plaza in Makati City, central Metro Manila.

The MMUSP project is designed to help the Philippine government draft a phased, metropolitan-wide 15-year strategy covering this year to 2017 for slum eradication and urban upgrading in Metro Manila.

The GIS is a computer system that will:

identify socialized housing sites;
help facilitate shelter planning for informal settlers;
enable data integration and policy making;
monitor the location and growth of informal settlers;
facilitate data collection and integration, map presentation and report generation; as well as
enable rapid land assessment for:
pilot project identification in Metro Manila;
site analysis of the pilot project area;
conceptual planning of the pilot project area; and
thematic mapping of the pilot project area.
Using the Arc View 3.2 software, an urban planner can input data like population size which will then be superimposed on the satellite or aerial photograph of the area concerned.


NEED TO VALIDATE

"With the GIS, you get a terrain map and a 3D kind of terrain. Then with that you...validate (from the ground) to see that the lands in the aerial photos are really there and that the houses are there...and what you see from the sky is accurate," said Mr. Matthew Westfall, who is an ADB senior urban development specialist.

"And when you validate everything you find in the urban poor households, you can conduct a household survey of where the poor resides, ask their income, make expenditure profiles and so forth, and then you will have a comprehensive database. The GIS work is the first step of mapping where the poor resides," he added.

Furthermore, the MMUSP project briefing noted that the advent of GIS capability should allow cities to calculate demand and supply in their areas, and conduct planning more accurately.

"With the GIS, we can move forward at a faster pace in our socialized housing projects," said HUDCC head Armando De Castro.

Mr. Westfall said that part of the criteria for the selection of the pilot cities is their record in implementing GIS projects funded by ADB.

EYEING OTHER AREAS

Mr. Westfall also said that Caloocan in northern Metro Manila already has and existing GIS. He also added that Muntinlupa has 50 hectares of land set aside for socialized housing that can make good use of GIS.

"This is just the first phase of the project. As there is still no comprehensive GIS system in the metro level, we can start city by city and develop it over time, and that is our intention," he said.

Commenting on the 15-year slum eradication plan, Mr. Westfall said further: "There is rapid urban growth in the metropolis; we need a large program and we need all the donors need to come together. Will we achieve this in 15 years? I don't know. Is it worthwhile setting a vision for? Absolutely. Is it critical? Yes. We have to set some targets."

"And the first thing to do is get the information and find cities to invest in housing projects and eventually we hope to see Muntinlupa and other parts of the metropolis are slum free. Hopefully, this will get a reaction...with...the other LGUs (local government units) realizing that it can be done," he added. -- Alab Andres D. Vitug
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------Just wondering would that 17 year plan for slum eradication still be in affect? the article is quite dated, july 26 2002 to be precise.

[bustero]

Yup it is. Housing has been a top priority for all administrations because it obviously affects the voter base directly. One problem really is that it's a moving target, of the 4 million informal dwellers , they may be integrated into formal housing at maybe 100t households per year but the total figure also grows from population growth and rural urban migration, so even with a 100t integrated households the actual improvement might be small.

[bustero]

Vol. XIX, No. 17
Thursday, August 18, 2005 | MANILA, PHILIPPINES
Property & Infrastructure

BY DARWIN T. WEE, Correspondent
Wholistic housing program for the urban poor

ZAMBOANGA CITY -- A community of urban poor workers here was one step closer to achieving economic self-reliance with the inauguration on Aug. 14 of their Katilingban Livelihood Training and Production Center in Barangay Sinunuc.

Uplifting urban poor plight

Angel Calvo, president of the nonprofit group Katilingban para sa Kalamboan, Inc. (KKI), said the newly completed facility will provide training programs to members of the Katilingban para sa Kalamboan, Inc., especially among women, in small-scale income-generating enterprises like the production of herbal medicines, processed food, handicraft, bakery items, and other dry goods production.

Mr. Calvo said the center will initially provide the livelihood needs of the women members of the Katilingban Homeowners Association in Sinunuc, and will later on expand the services to the city’s different urban poor groups.

"The livelihood skills will help the housewives in the community to become more productive as this will give their families additional income," Mr. Calvo said.

The production center is within the community, which hosts 200 residential houses built three years ago with funding from the Spanish government. The fund was lent to selected urban poor families.

A second socialized housing community of 98 residential units adjacent to the housing site is nearing completion.

Mr. Calvo said during the inauguration that the housing program is part of a wholistic community development approach based on personal and family empowerment, with the women taking critical or major roles.

The construction of the training center was funded by a grant from the Japanese government under its Grant Grassroots Human Security program.

In a message during the inaugural, Japanese Ambassador Ryuichiro Yamazaki said the project is among the total 100 undertakings funded through the grass-roots program in Mindanao since 1989.

"This project is a manifestation of our strong support to the efforts at the grass-roots sector in promoting human security in Mindanao. As enhancing knowledge and skills primarily facilitate and improve human productivity, we hope this training center will contribute to further empower the urban poor communities in Zamboanga City towards their self-reliance," he added.

The conduct of training and provision of other support service will be an interagency effort of the Department of Labor and Employment, city government, and the extension services of the Western Mindanao State University.

The city’s business organizations have been tapped to lend entrepreneurial expertise, particularly in marketing.

During the inauguration, Edgar Lim, president of the Industrial Group of Zamboanga, Inc. and the operations manager of Permex, a company that exports tuna and sardines, pledged to develop a business plan for the center’s women.

"The dreams of housewives residing here to finally manage their own business is coming to reality with the launching of the livelihood programs and the construction of the livelihood production and training center," Katilingban Working Women’s Association president Arlene Damian said during the inaugural.

She said the production facility will enable the women to augment their husband’s income and to sustain viable income-generating livelihood activities.

More than 70 women beneficiaries will undergo further livelihood training "Š but the number of beneficiaries will eventually increase later on because the program is open to other urban poor groups in the city," Ms. Damian said.

She noted that some 30 long-time members of the women’s association are experts in making herbal medicines, especially their successful cough and anti-asthma syrup made from lagundi, sampaloc and ginger.

They also produce nutritional juice powder out of malunggay, avocado and other vegetables and fruits, and they are also into preserving foods such as papaya pickles, which are ordered by well-known local seafood restaurants.

Elsa Manabat, KKI executive director, said the livelihood program is part of her group’s five thrusts -- housing, health, education, paralegal, and women’s welfare.

The housing program provides members with uniform 80 square-meter lots and a loan for the purchase of construction materials. All units are built by the borrowers according to uniformly design facilities.

The monthly amortization is about P300 for 20 years. The two housing areas in Sinunuc are provided with built-up road networks, water distribution and drainage systems, multipurpose centers, chapels and recreational areas -- all at no cost to the homeowners.

While majority of the occupants are Christians, a few families are Muslim, Ms. Manabat said.

She added that the beneficiaries are required to undergo extensive and comprehensive social preparations for the peaceful and orderly transfer of the families.

The social preparation seminars delve on basic carpentry and construction, gender sensitivity, understanding human behavior, and the culture of peace.

[amigo32]

Originally Posted by bustero

The first ones are actually going up in Pasig. Kahit sa Marikina naghahanap kami ng project doon, we want to do it all over the city.

We have a bit nicer and bigger ones for makati.

Meron ba kayo sa alabang/sucat areas?

[Dvorak]

if you look at the units at GA Tower, it's pretty much the same as the design that Bustero posted. The units at GA Tower is just a little bit bigger at 33sqm to 39+sqm

[bustero]

Originally Posted by amigo32

Meron ba kayo sa alabang/sucat areas?

Ah sorry none, I would not be surprised if someone was already doing something like this though!

Dvorak the funny thing with GA is that they placed the cathedral ceiling on the interior and not on exterior part of the building! Most lofts have it the other way around Anyway works either way according to one's personal taste.

[Skyblade]

Might as well bump up this thread with an article on the progress of GK.

Gawad Kalinga provides homes to 120 families of street kids

SOME 120 families of street children in Iloilo City will be provided with homes by Gawad Kalinga 777 (GK 777).

Some 32 homes are eyed for construction in a 1.2-hectare lot in the So-oc, Arevalo relocation site before the year ends, said GK 777 National Director Luis Oquiñena Thursday.

Together with Iloilo City Government headed by Mayor Jerry P Trenas, the land development will jumpstart October.

Helping hand

The city government provided the 1.2 hectare of land while Senator Francisco Pangilinan donated P500, 000; City Vice Mayor, P50,000; and City Councilor Eduardo Peñaredondo will provide materials for one house.

GK 777 eyes 10 houses finished this year while Taytay Sang Kauswagan Inc. (TSKI) promised to provide 10 more.

Oquiñena said materials for construction of one house costs P50,000.

Besides providing home for the poor, GK 777 will also be constructing a health clinic, grade school, and playgrounds.

"Livelihood programs and training will also be conducted within the Gawad Kalinga Village," he said.

GK 777 is composed of Couples for Christ (CFC) members who envision to build 700,000 homes in 7,000 communities in seven years from the time it was launched on October 4, 2003.

The GK 777 movement has for its pillars a host of partners from different sectors of society, local government units, civic organizations, schools and parishes, professionals and the simply concerned. (LABB)