San Juan mayor says only way to go is up

FOR San Juan Mayor Francis Zamora, the only way for his city to go is up.

In an exclusive interview with The Manila Times, Zamora said that as his city develops rapidly, he is looking to expand business and residential areas vertically.

At the moment, he said, they are expecting to complete a 22-story residential building that will be finished by 2025.

Some 500 families stand to benefit from it, as each floor area consists of 28 square meters. Each unit is payable in 25 to 30 years.

He added that they had coordinated with the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development.

San Juan is the smallest city in the Philippines, with a total area of just 595 hectares (2.30 sq mi). It is bounded by Quezon City in the north and east, Mandaluyong in the south, and the City of Manila in the west.

“San Juan is just small; we cannot expand horizontally. The only way to do it is going vertically,” he said in Filipino.

“In San Juan, there is no more room for horizontal. So, we just went vertical, like what Singapore and Hong Kong did,” he said.

“We are now changing the zoning regulations to allow more high-rise buildings,” he added.

“I'm really hands-on with this in the next four years. Many high-rise buildings will be made. I want this to be my legacy for San Juan that they may have a decent living area where they can live and call their own,” he added.