Palafox apologizes to 5 government officials linked to Subic mess

RENOWNED architect and urban planner Felino Palafox Jr. has apologized to five government officials he earlier implicated in alleged anomalies at the Subic Bay Free Port.
“It can be hearsay, or maybe factual. I’m very sorry if it created a lot of trouble,” he told legislators during the resumption of the hearing being conducted by the the House Committee on Bases Conversion.

The congressional investigation was prompted by a resolution seeking an investigation on the environment issues surrounding the construction of Ocean 9 Hotel-Casino and Golf Course, particularly the cutting of 366 trees.

Since then alleged anomalies, such as extortion attempts related to bidding for the revision of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Master Development Plan and grand profiteering, cropped up.

Members of the committee, headed by Lakas Rep. Edwin Uy of Isabela, agreed to conduct separate investigations on the matter, as manifested by Party-list Rep. Carissa Coscoluella of Buhay.

Palafox issued the apology after failing to substantiate claims of protectionism and corruption against Sen. Richard Gordon, Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) Chairman Ephraim Genuino, former congressman Prospero Pichay, Representative Coscolluela and SBMA Director Ricardo Coscolluela.

Palafox said earlier the five names he mentioned were being brought up constantly by “hundreds of people” as protectors of SBMA Administrator Armand Arreza, and involved in some anomalies in the free port.

But members of the committee began to intensely grill Palafox upon realizing the architect cannot substantiate his charges with solid evidence.

“We cannot just allow anybody, even us legislators, to accuse anyone without reasonable basis,” said Lakas Rep. Maria Rachel Arenas of Pangasinan.

Arenas’s party-mate, Lakas Rep. Philip Pichay of Surigao del Sur, told Palafox during the hearing that he has caused pain not only to his brother Prospero, but also their mother and other people close to the family.

Pichay said he is wondering why his brother, now in the water-utility sector, got entangled in the issue.

He then demanded a public apology from Palafox, specifying that it must be printed and aired in the media to clear the names of those he has “smeared.”

Palafox said, in defense, that he has “never accused anyone” and that he was merely relaying information he has received.

“I must apologize for the pain it might have caused,” said Palafox. “I am just a taxpayer. I don’t have the resources to investigate, so maybe these should be referred to the NBI [National Bureau of investigation], the Ombudsman or to other agencies.

This further irked Pichay, who asserted that Palafox should have held on to evidence before making accusations.

He added that the committee hearing is not the proper venue to disclose hearsays.

Arreza, meanwhile, expressed relief over the course of the investigation.

“The committee, I believe, is now realizing that all Palafox has got from the beginning was blank ammunition. He’s just making noise,” said Arreza.

During last week’s hearing, Palafox disproved the accusation Coscolluela that the motive behind his exposé is to try to cash in on the real-estate project.

Coscolluela tried to pin down Palafox, accusing the architect of grand profiteering for trying to lure Gran Utopia to relocate its project to Moonbay Marina, of which Palafox is a stockholder.

According to Coscolluela, Subic Coastal Development Corp. (SCDC), operator of Moonbay Marina, stands to earn no less than $40 million should Gran Utopia relocate to its site, with 10 percent, or $4 million, going to the SBMA.

Palafox, however, told the panel his shares in Moonbay were payment for his professional fee for the project, as attested in a letter written by SCDC president Marianito Fernandez.

“The shares attributed to me were payment for my professional fee, which I have almost forgotten. And even if I am a shareholder in Moonbay, I am not part of the company’s operation, so I am not aware whether SCDC asked Gran Utopia to relocate its project to Moonbay,” Palafox said.

Palafox, who exposed irregularities and extortion in SBMA bidding, last year backed out of the $120-million Gran Utopia—in effect losing $1 million (P48 million) in professional fees—after learning that the project would involve clearing 366 endangered trees in Subic’s Central Business District. Written by Fernan Marasigan /Business Mirror

Palafox accused of breach of confidentiality

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT – An official of the Korean firm planning to build a $120-million casino-hotel here assailed architect and urban planner Felino Palafox Jr. for breaking their agreement’s confidentiality.

“We are deeply disappointed that our former architect, Felino Palafox Jr., began criticizing our Subic project in the media and using documents of our company,” Eric Ghi-Buhm Park, executive manager of Grand Utopia, said in a statement.

“By coming out in the media and speaking before various public gatherings (while) criticizing our Subic project, the architect has committed a breach not only of the provisions of the subcontract agreement but also of professional ethics,” Park said.

He issued the statement after the special House committee on bases conversion opened last week its initial hearing on two resolutions seeking to look into allegations that some 300 trees would be cut to make way for the casino project, and that members of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority’s bids and awards committee had asked for kickbacks in the bidding for the freeport’s master development plan project.

Palafox denied Park’s allegations.

“What [Park] said was all wrong. If there was breach of contract here, then it happened on their side. A 20-person team from our firm worked from July to November last year without pay. When we billed them for the down payment and mobilization fund, a couple of times I might add, they asked me to sign on their designs. They wanted my signature before they would release the payments. We did not get a single centavo from them despite our work,” Palafox said.

Palafox’s campaign to save hundreds of trees in the hotel-casino project site has stirred controversy, forcing the SBMA to issue repeated assurances that not one tree would be cut or removed from the site.

Park said Yamasaki, architect of Grand Utopia, tapped Palafox’s firm, Palafox Associates, for the Subic project because the Filipino architect committed “to take charge of the environmental compliance certificate (ECC) and the environmental impact study (EIS).”

Park said Palafox signed the subcontract with Yamasaki on Sept. 22, 2008, two months before the groundbreaking for the project was held. By Robert Gonzaga - Philippine Daily Inquirer

366 trees to be incorporated in the hotel-casino project in SBMA

The 366 centuries-old trees that were originally set to be felled to give way to a proposed casino-hotel and golf course at Subic Freeport will be spared by the South Korean developer commissioned to implement the project.

At a congressional hearing yesterday, Eric Park, manager of Gran Utopia Corporation, assured the Lower House members that he will alter the development plan of the project to incorporate trees into the structures his firm will put up.

Park appeared at the hearing conducted by the House Committee on Bases Conversion to clarify accusations that the proposed project, to be financed by the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), would include the cutting of 366 trees, most of which are endangered species.

The SBMA, headed by administrator Armand Arreza, reportedly did not object to the original plan, although Park admitted that it may still be revised to save the trees.

Park categorically said their company would be amenable to the proposal of Cavite Rep. Elpidio Barzaga to incorporate the 366 endangered trees in its development plan rather than cutting them.

“We could alter the development plan as long as we are allowed to pursue this project,” Park told the panel.

Architect Felino Palafox Jr., the urban planner who exposed SBMA’s consent to the tree cutting, insisted earlier that the idea is highly feasible, as his architectural firm had designed in several of its projects. Manila Bulletin

Palafox seeks probe of Subic bidding

THE Korean developer that planned to put up Ocean 9 hotel-casino and a golf course agreed to alter its development plan to incorporate the trees into the structures it would put up in Subic, as environment issues were raised that prompted Congress to conduct an investigation on the matter.

At the continuation of the hearing being conducted by the House Committee on Bases Conversion, it was found out that the 366 centuries old endangered trees, the bone of contention, were not actually cut as earlier reported.

Eric Park, manager of Gran Utopia Corp., categorically said the Korean company is amenable to the proposal of Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (Kampi) Rep. Elpidio Barzaga of Cavite to incorporate the 366 endangered trees in its development plan rather than cutting them.

“Yes, your honor, we could alter the development plan as long as we are allowed to pursue this project,” Park told the panel.

In the same hearing, Felino Palafox Jr., the architect who exposed that the hotel developer was planning to cut the trees to pave way for its hotel and golf course with the consent of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA), disproved the accusation of Party-list Rep. Carissa Coscolluela of Buhay that the motive behind his exposé is to try to cash in on the real- estate project.

Coscolluela tried to pin down Palafox, accusing the architect of grand profiteering for trying to lure Gran Utopia to relocate its project to Moonbay Marina, of which Palafox is a stockholder.

According to Coscolluela, Subic Coastal Development Corp. (SCDC), operator of Moonbay Marina, stands to earn no less than $40 million should Gran Utopia relocate to its site with 10 percent, or $4 million, going to the SBMA.

Palafox, however, told the panel his shares in Moonbay were payment for his professional fee for the project, as attested in a letter written by SCDC president Marianito Fernandez.

“The shares attributed to me were payment for my professional fee, which I have almost forgotten. And even if I am a shareholder in Moonbay, I am not part of the company’s operation, so I am not aware whether SCDC asked Gran Utopia to relocate its project to Moonbay,” Palafox said.

Palafox, who exposed irregularities and extortion in SBMA bidding, last year backed out of the $120-million Gran Utopia—in effect losing $1 million (P48 million) in professional fees—after learning that the project would involve clearing 366 endangered trees in Subic’s Central Business District.

Palafox also asked the ethics committees of the Senate and the House to investigate the alleged graft involving a senator and a congresswoman to clear their names and to stop alleged bidding irregularities at the SBMA.

Palafox said he is seeking the investigation in reaction to increasing pressure for him to prove his allegations.

“I have already given you the names of people whom my sources said are backers of SBMA Administrator Armand Arreza, who is strongly supporting the construction of the controversial casino and hotel project of Gran Utopia. It is up to both houses of Congress and antigraft bodies concerned to look into the allegations,” he said.

Palafox earlier named Sen. Richard Gordon, Rep. Carissa Coscolluela and her father SBMA board member Ricardo Coscolluela, Chairman Ephraim Genuino of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. and former Lakas Rep. Prospero Pichay of Surigao del Sur as among those having knowledge of alleged irregularities in the SBMA.

The architect, who is ranked 94th among the world’s top 200 architects and who has projects in 32 countries, also earlier complained to Arreza that an SBMA official allegedly tried to extort 18 percent from his firm in order to approve the bid of the Palafox Associates in October 2007.

“I know my revelations against top government officials allegedly involved in irregularities will put me in hot water. Instead of earning praises, I’ve been getting brickbats and death threats from those challenging me to prove my allegations,’’ he said.

“I really hope it is in my power to substantiate my claim, but I don’t have the capability to investigate graft and only key government agencies have the mandate and resources to do so. I hope that in fairness to the people I named, in fairness to me and the public, the Ombudsman, the Presidential Antigraft Commission, Commission on Audit, the National Bureau of Investigation and even the ethics committees of Congress will closely look into this matter,’’ he said.

According to him, he was not accusing directly any of those named of wrong-doing but that he was only stating what others related to him. Business Mirror

Grand Utopia official lashes back at Palafox

SUBIC BAY Freeport: A top official of the controversial $120-million hotel and casino that has become the subject of environmental concern has finally lashed back at its former architect who turned into the project’s No. 1 critic after being sidelined from the project.

In a statement, Executive Manager Eric Ghi-Buhm Park said that Grand Utopia Inc. is deeply disappointed that their former architect Felino Palafox Jr. began criticizing their Subic Project in the media using documents of their company.

“By coming out in the media and speaking before various public gatherings [while] criticizing our Subic project, the architect has committed a breach not only of the provisions of the subcontract agreement but also of professional ethics,” Park added.

Environment Secretary Lito Atienza also inspected the project site last January and confirmed that the trees remained intact at the project site.

“If architect Palafox, as our professional local architect, was sincerely concerned about the trees from the very beginning, wasn’t it his responsibility to advise his client Grand Utopia of an alternative solution instead of publicly criticizing his client’s project in an unethical way with all exaggerations?” Park rued.

Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Administrator Armand Arreza in a separate statement is urging the critics of the project to be objective and stop sensationalizing the issue that has only delayed the project.

“We still think that this project would be beneficial to the Subic Bay Freeport, especially with the projected manpower hiring of about 5,000. It’s a project proposal that we have to evaluate objectively,” Arreza said.

Arreza made the appeal after the Special Committee on Bases Conversion of the House of Representatives on Tuesday conducted its initial hearing on two resolutions seeking to investigate claims made by noted architect Palafox.

The project remained on hold since November last year after Palafox’s claims triggered protests from environmental groups concerned about trees at the project site.

The SBMA official also bared project proponent Grand Utopia Inc. has already asked the SBMA to give them an alternate location since the allegations have caused the project much delay.--Anthony Bayarong - Manila Times

Palafox on a witch hunt

Gordon, others linked to alleged Subic anomaly
An architect on Tuesday implicated five former and incumbent government officials, including Senator Richard Gordon, in alleged bribery and protectionism in the construction of a $120-million hotel-casino project in Subic.

During the hearing of the House Committee on Bases Conversion, architect Felino "Jun" Palafox Jr. named Gordon, Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) Board of Directors member Ricardo Coscolluela and his daughter Buhay party-list Rep. Ma. Carissa Coscolluela, Pagcor Chairman Ephraim Genuino, and former Surigao del Sur Rep. Prospero Pichay as the "backers" of SBMA Administrator Armando Arreza in supporting the project.

He said he initially did not want to disclose the names of the officials allegedly involved in the corruption but was compelled to do so because of death and legal threats he has been receiving and the "black propaganda" being hurled against him.

"I'm doing this for God, for country and for planet earth," Palafox said.

Palafox however admitted that he did not have direct knowledge of the alleged corruption. He also refused to disclose his sources during the House hearing, saying he had a "personal and professional commitment" to them.

The younger Coscolluela denied the allegation and challenged Palafox to substantiate his claims during the next hearing. "You had better be able to substantiate your claims against me or I will see you in court," she said, adding that all the accusers and accused must likewise appear in the next hearing.

Earlier in the hearing, Palafox alleged that there was bribery and protectionism in the process of the approval of the $120-million project.

Palafox said he backed out from the deal with Korean Firm Gran Utopia Inc. because the project's design entailed the cutting of 366 trees in the supposed construction site in Subic's Central Business District.

He however said that despite the SBMA's stance that it does not want trees cut for the project, the SBMA signed a contract with the Korean firm allowing the construction.

But Arreza said during the hearing that there was a provision in the contract that says its execution was subject to laws and to the issuance of an environmental compliance certificate by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

"We don't know why we are being subjected when there are no trees cut," said Arreza.

He also maintained that the SBMA's stance "has always been to preserve the trees."

Even as he said that the area where the hotel-casino was supposed to be built was not a protected area, Arreza said the SBMA is now helping Gran Utopia Inc. find another site for the project.

For his part, Oscar Cabayanan of the DENR said they would not likely issue an ECC to Gran Utopia if the construction of the project entails the cutting of trees. "No trees should be cut," he said. - JOHANNA CAMILLE SISANTE, GMANews.TV

SBMA: DENR to decide Subic casino’s fate

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT – The fate of a Korean casino-hotel project here now lies in the hands of the environment department, after it revoked the power of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority to issue environmental clearances for projects in this free port, an SBMA official said.

SBMA Administrator Armand Arreza said the SBMA was reviewing the application for an environmental compliance certificate of Grand Utopia Inc. for its $120-million casino-hotel.

“The ECC for Grand Utopia is still under review. [On Thursday], we submitted their applications to the [Department of Environment and Natural Resources], the agency that will decide whether to issue the ECC,” Arreza told the Inquirer.

Earlier, architect and urban planner Felino Palafox Jr. revealed that he backed out of the project after he learned that more than 300 trees would be cut to give way to the project.

But Arreza said no tree would be cut in the project site, contrary to Palafox’s revelation. However, a report from a survey team commissioned by Grand Utopia showed that at least 161 trees would have to be replaced.

Arreza said the SBMA is “not concerned about Palafox’s allegations at all.”

“Now that the DENR is part of the process, people will know whether we are correct or not,” he said. By Robert Gonzaga - Inquirer Central Luzon Desk

NGO backs $120-million hotel-casino in Subic

SUBIC BAY Freeport: Out of 282 trees at the site where the $120-million casino-hotel will be located there is one Narra tree, said Kanlungan, a nongovernment organization based in Los Baños.

Kanlungan composed of professors from University of the Philippines-Los Baños (UPLB) was tapped by Grand Utopia to conduct an initial environmental examination report for the casino hotel project in Subic.

“In our report we only found 282 trees most of them fruit bearing trees which are common,” Professor Pastor Malabrigo told The Manila Times in an interview during the site visit with media.

Contrary to the claims of Urban Planner Felino Palafox that century old trees would be cut to make way for casino-hotel project, Malabrigo said that “mahirap masabi na century old tree dahil wala tayo basihan [it would be difficult to say century old trees since there is no basis for the statement].”

He added that in their recommendation to the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) ecology center, 51 trees would be retained, 70 trees would be bowled and 161 would be replaced or cut.

He said that their decision to cut the trees is based on their health.

“Eight hectares of reforestation against the area is definitely much better,” Malabrigo said.

“Only one Narra would be bowled and the rest are mostly common trees, it would cost around P100, 000.00 to P200, 000.00 depending on the size of the tree,” he added.

He explained that they have identified an area in Pastolan for the location of the reforestation; the ratio according to Malabrigo is 50 seedlings for each tree that would be cut.

“We have already submitted the report to the ecology center for their review,” Malabrigo said.

Grand Utopia Inc., Executive Managing Director Louis Jong-Moon Choi in an interview with The Manila Times said that they are still waiting for the recommendation from the ecology center of SBMA before they can move and start operation on the site.

“We will follow the decision of the Ecology Center, we don’t want to destroy the environment and we will follow Philippine laws,” Choi said.

“I consider Palafox as one of the best architect in the Philippines and that is why we are surprise and curious why he is making such statements,” he added.--Anthony Bayarong - Manila Times

Palafox sheds light on SBMA controversy

By Neal Cruz, As I See It - Philippine Daily Inquirer
Last Dec. 8, we had Administrator Armand Arreza of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) at the Kapihan sa Manila media forum to shed light on the alleged extortion and plans to cut trees for a casino-hotel inside the Subic Bay Freeport. The light he shed was still hazy, so last Monday we had architect Felino Palafox Jr., the man who exposed the attempts at extortion and tree cutting, to shed more light.

Arreza had said that he asked Palafox for the name of the person who delivered the extortion message but that Palafox refused identify the person. As for the trees, Arreza said the SBMA had made an inventory of the trees on the project site and that there were 366 trees, most of which were small. There were only seven trees with girths beyond one meter, he said, adding that there could not be “centuries-old” trees as the area was reclaimed from swampland by the US Navy only in the 1950s and 1960s. He further said that the Palafox firm was not “disqualified” but lost in the bidding.

Last Monday, Palafox opened the discussion by showing an aerial photograph of the waterfront of the SBMA where the casino-hotel is to be located. The two-hectare site is the only spot with a thick grove of trees. The trees occupy about two-thirds of the site.

“Those are the trees that were planned to be removed,” Palafox said. As you can see, there are plenty of spaces elsewhere where the casino-hotel can be constructed, he said. The wonder is, why relocate the trees and not the project?

Meanwhile, Amethya D.L. Koval, manager of the SBMS Ecology Center, told Eric Park, manager of Grand Utopia, developer of the project site, to “save the trees and incorporate them in the development plan.” The Koreans, however, insist on digging up the place, Palafox said. The question is why. It is as if a treasure hoard is buried there somewhere and they want to dig it up. Is the Yamashita Treasure perchance buried there?

In the letter to Park, Koval said that there were 366 live trees and palms in the project site which used to be a mini-golf course and that the “densely-stocked area is already considered an urban forest.” Thirty-six of the trees were considered “critically endangered.”

In his own letter to Tae Sung Hong, chief executive officer of Yamasaki Korea, architects for the casino-hotel, Palafox called attention to the agreement that “we preserve and protect the trees on site per instructions of SBMA Administrator Arreza.” He also informed the Korean of what happened in Intramuros. “The administrator of Intramuros,” he said, “is being brought to court … for allowing trees to be cut.”

“If trees are to be cut, we may have to respectfully beg off from the above project,” Palafox wrote.

Furthermore, it was neither he nor Palafox Associates who started referring to the trees as “century-old trees,” Palafox said. The term came from “concerned SBMA employees who requested Palafox Associates to help protect the Urban Forest Park and the 366 trees including ‘century-old’ trees.”

In an open letter to the public, the SBMA employees said the SBMS board “should be careful in deciding what areas to be given out and what should be preserved. The board should also take into consideration the environmental and landmark worth of the land. Environmental study should first be done before it was awarded, like how much oxygen is generated by the 366 old-growth trees, the cost of air pollution control and peso worth of recycled water. Moreover, to keep the area intact as a park or picnic grounds that will be enjoyed by many….”

To Arreza’s credit, Palafox said that from September to October this year, the SBMA administrator “kept instructing me and Palafox Associates to preserve the trees on site especially the endangered species like the narra trees. He assured me every now and then that he would return the down payment of the Koreans if they do not follow my recommendations.”

But Palafox denied that his firm was “removed” from the project. “We were the ones who chose to drop the project,” he said. “I am not exposing the trees issue because we gave up a $1-million fee or lost in the bidding….”

He disclosed text messages from Arreza to him regarding the trees. One said: “Achitect, as I understand, Palafox was appointed by Yamasaki as environmental consultant. Can you please look at the possibility of saving narra trees in and around the site? Thanks.”

In another text message to Secretary Cerge Remonde which the latter forwarded to Palafox, Arreza said: “Sec, I have a meeting with the chairman of the group this morning to resolve the matter. We will not compromise our stand in preserving the trees as Arch. Palafox indicated in his text. We have proposed to allow them to realign the surrounding roads to accommodate their development plan. Failing that, we will refund their down payment and look for an alternative site.”

Palafox said, however, that “we found out that Arreza has been lying to us and the Filipino people. While he was instructing me and Palafox Associates to preserve the trees on site, he already agreed and assured the Koreans that they can uproot, ball, and transfer the trees elsewhere.”

He added: “It appears that after Palafox Associates gave up the project, Arreza changed his instructions to preserve the trees on site. 286 trees disappeared from the August 2008 inventory of trees by SBMA Ecology Center… Arreza instead became a champion for the Grand Utopia Casino Hotel project, and at the expense of the Urban Forest, Arreza abandoned his earlier instructions to Palafox Associates to preserve the trees on site.”

The extortion attempt next . . .

No ‘development vs environment’ case in Subic resort project–SBMA

SUBIC BAY FREE PORT—The classic dilemma of development versus environment will not be the case in the now controversial $120-million hotel-casino resort project of a Korean company here, a top official of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) clarified over the weekend.

Disputing claims that over 300 trees will be destroyed in building the Ocean 9 Casino and Hotel Resort in Subic, SBMA administrator Armand Arreza said the issue raised by architect and urban planner Felino Palafox Jr. was way off-mark.

“He’s barking up the wrong tree,” Arreza said, in a statement, issued over the weekend. “This story about cutting century-old trees is simply a non-issue because it isn’t true,” he added, pointing out that developer of Grand Utopia has already applied for a permit to ball trees for relocation.

Arreza reiterated that the SBMA will not allow the cutting of trees in the two-hectare project site, and has directed Grand Utopia to exhaust all means possible to save the trees.

“The SBMA directive to Grand Utopia is clear—either they incorporate the trees in their development plan, or ball them and relocate them to another place,” he said.

“And as far as we can tell they’re complying, because they have applied for a permit to ball the trees,” Arreza also said.

“So I don’t know why some quarters are bitching about this supposed issue, when not one twig has been cut off and the trees are still there,” he added.

In several media reports, Palafox has said more than 300 trees would be destroyed by the hotel-casino project. He also claimed recently that 37 of the affected trees are centuries-old. The architect also claimed he broke ties with Grand Utopia, which he said had initially tapped him to design the project.

He also said he would have been paid $1 million for the design, but he learned later that the developer had tapped a Japanese designer and that he will simply be asked “to sign on other people’s work.”

The resort project, proponents said, will employ more than 5,000 once completed, and open up Subic to more international tourists, including those on cruises and junkets.

Arreza said, however, the issue about Palafox’s aborted deal with Grand Utopia “should be treated separately from the yarn about cutting trees in Subic.”

He added that the SBMA has inventoried a total of 366 live trees in the area, which are mostly clustered in a now abandoned mini golf course built by the US Navy. The inventory indicated that only seven trees in the area had a diameter of more than one meter. The rest have girths ranging from one to 95 centimeters.

A total of 36 trees, meanwhile, fall under the classification “endangered” and “critically endangered” species. These are 21 Manila palms, which are considered endangered; two ipil trees, also endangered; and 13 narra trees, which are critically endangered.

“The narra trees, which are found along the perimeter of the area will be retained, while the Manila palms can easily be balled and transferred,” Arreza said.

Arreza clarified, however, that while the project site is densely stocked with trees in the golf course area, the SBMA master plan dated October 1996 has classified the same as designated for resort development.

He added that experts from the University of the Philippines in Los Baños doubted whether there are century-old trees in the area, because geological studies of the project site indicated that the area was reclaimed by the US Navy.

“That being the case, the UP group said that the so-called urban jungle in the project site couldn’t be a natural-growth forest. Ergo, the possibility that there are century-old trees present is quite nil,” Arreza explained.

Meanwhile, an SBMA official who asked not to be identified because he was not authorized to speak on the matter, commented that Palafox “should not hide behind the skirt of environmentalism when his issue is really about his failed consultancy (with Grand Utopia).”

The official recalled that Palafox himself had allowed the paving of a turtle-nesting site in this free port when he designed a hotel and entertainment district along Subic’s waterfront in 2004.

“That was the first time when the SBMA Ecology Center issued a cease and desist order against a project because of environmental concerns,” the official said.

The official added that the sprawling entertainment complex that Palafox designed eventually resulted in the cutting down of more than 100 camachile trees in the project site. Written by Henry Empeño / Business Mirror Correspondent

Architect gives up $1M in protest

SUBIC BAY FREEPORT, Philippines—For his belief in protecting the environment, architect and urban planner Felino Palafox Jr. lost what could have been six months of payroll worth $1 million (P48.8 million).

Palafox said he had broken ties with a Korean-backed project in this free port after he learned that more than 300 trees would be destroyed to give way to a casino and hotel resort.

“There are 366 trees there, and 37 of them are century-old, so they are heritage trees already. The reason why I broke with that group (Grand Utopia Inc.) is because I refuse to compromise myself and the environment,” Palafox told the Inquirer by interview on Friday.

“I would have gotten $1 million—six months worth of payroll. But that’s rape of the environment,” he said.

“Frankly, in Korea, a project like this will never be allowed. Their government and people will not allow it. But here, government officials let it happen and we are treated like second class citizens,” he said.

Not his work

Palafox said a foreign architectural firm tapped him to design Grand Utopia’s casino hotel but in the end, he noted, it all amounted to being asked to sign on other people’s work.

“They wanted my name and license, asked me to put my name on the work of others. They have to be investigated for that. No foreign architect can practice in another country without a license,” he said.

Palafox said the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority is “trying to get away from the issue.”

“They said in their letter to Eric Park of Grand Utopia that the area was classified as an urban jungle zone. How can they build several levels of basement garages there if they won’t get rid of the trees?” he asked.

SBMA Administrator Armand Arreza, however, said the agency would protect trees inside the free port and would exert all efforts to save these amid the development of the $120-million Ocean 9 Casino and Hotel Resort.

SBMA promise

“We won’t stand for the cutting of trees. Definitely, we won’t allow it,” said Arreza.

Amethya dela Llana-Koval, head of the SBMA Ecology Center, said the project site is within the central business district of the free port zone that is not classified as a protected area.

“We only characterized that area as an urban jungle because it was densely populated by trees. But the zoning of that area is commercial, so there should really be no objection to establishments being built there,” Koval said.

‘Green spaces’

She said no trees would be cut in that area, a former mini golf course established by the United States Navy here.

“No trees will be cut. That’s our policy. What we’re going to do is ball the trees, nurture them, and place them in ’green spaces’ within the free port. Some of them will even be left in the area, around the perimeter of the proposed establishment,” she said.

The relocated trees, Koval said, would be taken to the “green spaces” or areas where no or minimal development are allowed.

She said the SBMA has given Grand Utopia a demolition permit and a temporary fencing permit. The firm does not have any authority to touch any of the trees in the area, she said.

“They have applied for permits to ball (transplant) the trees, but they have yet to submit the balling plan. The relocation areas are already identified and by the time the environmental compliance certificate has been issued to Grand Utopia—probably by December this year if they comply with all requirements —then the relocation of the trees can begin,” she said.

Koval said the casino and hotel resort project is considered by the SBMA as “non-critical,” which means that the ecology center can issue an ECC to Grand Utopia without the need of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources to approve it.

“It is within the jurisdiction of the SBMA, but we will coordinate with the DENR,” she said. By Robert Gonzaga - Inquirer Central Luzon Desk