Manila Mayor Honey Lacuna-Pangan led the groundbreaking rites for a 10-storey social services hub to be called the Kalinga sa Maynila Center located in Paco, Manila.
The Kalinga Center has a total project cost of P973.3 million, with Phase 1 amounting to P400 million and Phase 2 to P573.3 million, both funded through the city budget.
Phase 1 is targeted for completion by December 2025, while the bidding for Phase 2 is scheduled for February 2025.
"We did not incur any debt for this. We did not enter into any bank loans to finance this Kalinga Center. This is your taxes flowing back to you as services and infrastructure," Lacuna-Pangan declared.
"With these groundbreaking rites for the Kalinga Center, we also set in motion the modernization of the social services that will take place in its modern facilities," she added.
She said the hub is envisioned as the Manileños "safe space and happy place."
The services that happen weekly during the Kalinga services fair will soon happen at the hub on weekdays and weekends.
"Bale, sa center na ito, magiging araw-araw na ang Kalinga sa Maynila (In this center, the services of Kalinga in Manila will be rendered on a daily basis)," she also said.
The 10-storey building will also house the new Senior Citizens Affairs Office, a Youth Center, a Crisis Center for Women and Children, a Trabaho center, a modern public library, a Bahay ng Barangayan Center, and a multipurpose convention center and a performance art theatre.
The mayor also stated that the architects carefully studied the Kalinga Center and decided to make it a mid-rise building to accommodate more seniors, youth, job seekers, and women experiencing crises.
"Nakita kasi naming dapat mas marami pang mapagsilbihang Manileño sa mga Kalinga sa Maynila. Magagawa natin yan dito sa itatayong Kalinga Center. Habang ginagawa ito, patuloy pa ring iikot ang Kalinga sa Maynila service fair sa mga distrito (We saw the need for more Manileños to be served by Kalinga sa Maynila. We can achieve this here at the Kalinga Center that will be established. While this is being built, the Kalinga sa Maynila service fair will continue to tour the districts)," she said.