WITH the construction of the Operation Kahusay Og Kalinaw (OKK) Center set anytime soon, the 20th City Council may have to revisit an old ordinance limiting the height of buildings in the Divisoria area by two stories or 18 to 20 feet.

“Why not revisit that ordinance (limiting the height of buildings by two stories)? I talked to my fellow councilors about this. If I were an investor, that height ceiling won’t be profitable to me. The value of land in the Divisoria area is P60,000 per square meter. Can’t we increase that height ceiling even a little?,” said Councilor Edgar Cabanlas last Friday.

During last Friday’s program, ‘Ang Inyong Alagad: Mayor Klarex Uy’, Councilor Cabanlas said he and other administration councilors will propose the amendment on the height ceiling for buildings in the Divisoria area.

“In order to entice investors in the Divisoria area while retaining its historical and cultural value (as a recreational site and center of commerce in Cagayan de Oro City),” Cabanlas said in Visayan.

In last Thursday’s groundbreaking of the OKK Center at Magsaysay Park, Mayor Rolando Uy said he hopes the center will usher in the construction of newer buildings in the Divisoria area.

NEW OKK. Mayor Rolando Uy says he hopes the new OKK Center will usher in the construction of new buildings in the Divisoria area. CIO Photo by Stephen Capillas

“We‘ve seen how Divisoria had been left behind by the development of the city’s uptown area. I hope that our efforts here won’t be wasted,” Mayor Uy said in Visayan.

The OKK center to be also known as the resiliency center will initially house some personnel of the city police, the City Social Welfare Development Office (CSWDO), the City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Department (CDRRMD), the Roads and Traffic Administration (RTA) and the Bureau of Fire Protection.

Mayor Uy also said he hopes the second and third phases of the Divisoria redevelopment will commence sooner than later.

“I hope Duaw Park will also (be redeveloped soon). I’m hoping that we can move those flower vendors near the (St. Augustine Cathedral) a little so we can have a full (unobstructed) view of the cathedral at least from the Capistrano Street area. I also hope the redevelopment of Gaston Park will also follow soon,” Mayor Uy said in Visayan. (Stephen Capillas of City Information Office)