Savannah went through the process, say Oton execs
Ma. Ami Rodrigo, municipal planning and development coordinator of Oton, Iloilo, clarified that Savannah Subdivision of the Camella Communities has complied with all the requirements prior to its establishment in their town. She stressed that the subdivision sits on 135 hectares property which is classified as residential/commercial area under the Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP) of the municipality.
Rodrigo made the clarification to dispel rumors spread by certain groups that Savannah committed irregularities when it entered Oton town a few years back.
Rodrigo said the Sangguniang Bayan of Oton approved the town’s CLUP through a zoning ordinance sometime in 1995.
Based on Oton’s CLUP, the area (135.8317 hectares) where Savannah is situated belongs to the built-up area which means the area was classified as commercial or residential.
Rodrigo said the CLUP was formulated following a series of consultations by the Sangguniang Bayan and the Provincial Land Use Committee which approved it.
She recalled that during the hearings there was no complaint or objection whatsoever with regard to the reclassification of the area where Savannah was to be developed.
“As far as I can recall there was no complaint or objection. Savannah has complied with all the requirements for preliminary approval and with the development permits as well,” Rodrigo said.
“There was also no objection from the municipal agrarian reform officer,” she added.
Rodrigo’s statement was confirmed by former Mayor Felix “Totik” Flores who was the town’s chief executive during the time.
“It went through the process,” Flores said referring to the entry of Savannah subdivision in Oton.
Flores even proudly said that Savannah has helped improve the economic activities in their town.
Flores cited that he was instrumental in the creation of their town’s CLUP. In fact, he became the first town mayor in the province to create a CLUP for their town after the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB) issued the mandate in 1995.
“My outlook for Oton that time was for the town to become a dormitory town reason why we have paved way for the reclassification of some properties into commercial/residential areas,” Flores said.
The former mayor said that he was surprised that Savannah subdivision in Bgry. Abilay, Oton has been dragged into several issues by certain groups since they have not received even a single complaint from the residents concerned.
“If there are complainants, they should have come out long before,” Flores said.
Savannah is a first class subdivision covering more or less 200 hectares of properties in the towns of Oton and Pavia.
