By Anthony Giron
IMUS CITY, Cavite — The opening of the P200 million multi-elevated parking areas at the Imus public market was moved from December to February this year.
Imus City Engineer Christian Mervin S. Sarno confirmed this as he revealed that a P100 million three-story commercial building was also lanned to be built this year in the three-hectare market area.
The decades-old market was having a major face lift in the last few years. With the construction of the market’s covered concrete stalls in 2018, the elevated car park and the new building will be added features in the market area.
Imus has two public markets, one is at Bahayang Pag-asa. The city has also small “talipapa” (flee markets) in some city’s barangays (villages).
The new parking levels, each about 1,470 square meters or a total 5,880 square meters, is at the right wing of the market which has been operating for about four decades.
Officials said that the elevated parking area, which construction started in mid-2018, was deemed as a must considering the number of vehicles that parked every day within the market area and nearby roads.
The vehicles, mostly cars, jeeps and delivery trucks, have been using the roads and other spaces at the front and side of the market as parking areas for years.
The elevated parking areas will help boost the local government’s ongoing road clearing operations against obstructions within the market area.
Sarno said that only a minimal fee will be charged for owners of vehicles once the market vehicle parking levels are operational.
The market’s elevated parking areas can accommodate about 140 vehicles.
The two floor areas has a drive-through lane and wide spaces for parking. The first and second floor areas were built with side concrete stalls for business. The top floor will be the open rooftop.
The elevated lane entrance leading to the second and upper parking levels is at the market’s right corner portion beside a mall fronting Nueno Avenue.
The market’s planned building may start construction in mid-2020 and was targeted to be finished by 2021, according to Sarno.
The new building will be put up at the market front, replacing the old, one to two story row that houses the city fire station, city market administration office and other commercial establishments.
“The old building fronting the market and near the elevated parking areas would have to be demolished for the building to be constructed. The fire station and others that will be affected will have to be transferred to another site,” Sarno told this reporter.