Ruffy Magbanua  AT the rate Cagayan de Oro is changing its skyline, would it catch up with leading growth centers like Cebu, Davao  or even Metro Manila? With its phenomenal growth, Cagayan de Oro is now ranked fourth among the leading metropolitan areas in the country. And the good news is that a grand design making Cagayan de Oro as the next metropolitan center by 2025 is in the offing. But whether this economic forecast will come or not, this city of more than a million people has to address, first and foremost, two of its primary headaches:  the horrendous traffic and the swelling garbage problem. If left unchecked, these domestic concerns could falter the city’s unprecedented growth despite its steady climb toward a vibrant economy. Case in point: the city’s landfill is still there. Despite stern warnings to locate the dump site to safer grounds, city hall continues to play politics on the garbage issue making Cagayan de Oro as the only city perhaps to operate a dump site situated right smack at the very heart of the population center. The Oro Chamber, no less, had to repeatedly express dismay as it raised fears the city may lose its prospective investments if the garbage problem remains unsolved. Sans disasters, natural or otherwise, the rise of Cagayan Oro as one of the country’s rising business hubs seems unstoppable. And already a development roadmap has been laid out to push the city as one of the country’s formidable growth centers. Poised to become the newest metropolis,  Cagayan de Oro is gunning for more investments this year and beyond. More players in the real estate, BPOs and retail business are setting up, Cagayan de Oro being the logistics hub and education center of Northern Mindanao. The declaration of Cagayan de Oro as the next metropolitan center is part of the government grand plan to spread resources to the countryside by empowering local governments under a proposed federal system of government that will replace the current centralized setup. Undoubtedly, Cagayan de Oro has outpaced other cities  in Northern Mindanao.  With an average population growth rate of 2.23 percent, Cagayan de Oro is the region’s melting pot – a favored haven of people in search of opportunities. Known to be the center of business and commercial hub in the region, Cagayan de Oro’s population rose from 602,088 in 2010 to 675,950 last year, surpassing the population count of Misamis Occidental and Camiguin provinces. Known as the “City of Golden Friendship,” Cagayan de Oro is home to shopping malls, high rise condominiums and business process outsourcing hubs, among others. Cagayan  de Oro: rock bottom or rock star? E-mail: ruffy44_ph2000@yahoo.com