ESPLANADE EXODUS: Settlers to be relocated before 2027 for gov’t complex

Iloilo City’s housing czar said on Monday, May 25, that informal settlers living beside the Iloilo River Esplanade 2 in Barangay San Pedro in the Molo district will be relocated before 2027 to give way to a planned government complex in the area.

Iloilo City Local Housing Office (ICLHO) head Peter Jason Millare said more than 200 households are currently occupying the area, although only 115 households were officially listed during the citywide census conducted in 2024 and 2025.

Millare said the settlers are occupying a 6-hectare city-owned property that already hosts the Commission on Elections Region 6 integrated office and the ongoing construction of the Iloilo City Hospital.

He added that part of the property has also been identified as the proposed site of the Iloilo Justice Complex, which will house the offices of the regional, city, and provincial prosecutors.

Millare said portions of the land near the existing perimeter fence between the hospital and the future government complex are densely occupied and will require urgent relocation before project implementation.

Construction of the justice complex is expected to begin in 2027.

“Their budget is for 2027, but in short, we need to remove them before the implementation of the project para ready na,” Millare said.

He added that a memorandum of agreement for the relocation is currently being drafted.

Millare said priority will be given to families directly affected by the government projects, with the initial relocation expected to cover more than 100 households.

“We will have an initial 100 because it is not realistic that we relocate all of them right away and to ensure that our relocation [site] will not be critically low,” he said.

Millare said the final relocation site will still depend on approval from the Local Housing Board.

He said validation is ongoing through cross-referencing of structures against the ICLHO master list to eliminate nonresident and speculative claimants.

The master list will then be submitted to the Beneficiary Selection Arbitration Committee and the Local Housing Board for resolution and approval of relocation beneficiaries.

Millare said some structures within the illegally occupied property are being used as boarding houses, with owners renting units to tenants.

While relocation plans are underway, Millare said the city government is prioritizing families living in danger zones, project-affected areas, and critical waterways.

Areas currently covered by relocation initiatives include settlements along Dungon Creek, near Jaro Big Market, Bakhaw in Mandurriao, Desamparados and Calubihan in Jaro, and Sta. Rosa in Mandurriao.

Millare said households situated between two intersecting roads in Sambag, Jaro, near Asia Pacific Medical Center are also among the next priorities for relocation.

Residents living along Rizal Creek are likewise being prioritized because flooding in the area has worsened due to blocked outfalls linked to informal settlements.

Millare stressed that barangays play a key role in preventing the expansion of informal settlements during the early stages of illegal construction.

“In informal settlements, once posts are already being built, barangays should have the authority to act and protect their jurisdiction,” he said.

He called for stronger coordination between barangays and the city government, including the creation of a dedicated monitoring unit for informal settlement hotspots across Iloilo City.

“We appeal to barangays to help each other. Once squatting activity is monitored, report it immediately,” Millare said.