AFTER the Brian Lim administration initially spent P60 million for the first phase of the construction of the planned two-storey new city hall in front of the old building, there’s still nothing to show for what it spent, and work already stopped.

This was the status of the stalled construction bared by Mayor Belen Fernandez for the new city hall that can only accommodate eight offices of the total of 46 offices of the city government.

It will be recalled that the past Lim administration immediately started the construction after Fernandez already won the election in 2022.

Judging from the unfinished work, Fernandez estimated it will cost P200 million to finish it compared to the P180 million four-storey new city hall that Fernandez intended to build during her previous administration on the Jose de Venecia Expressway in Barangay Pantal, that could accommodate all 46 offices of the city government with allocation for national government offices.

She said she consulted with the National Historical Commission (NHC) on what the government should do to the now dilapidated city hall since this is already a national heritage site being more than 50 years old.

Depending on the decision of NHC, the two-storey old city hall will be demolished or reconstructed. And if demolished, the new city hall must retain its old historical features, particularly the facade of the old city hall to remind memories of the old Dagupan past.

Meanwhile, Mayor Fernandez continues to hold office in the old city hall that requires her to wade on knee-deep flood water in order to reach her office during the rainy season. (Leonardo Micua)

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