ILIGAN CITY = The mayor and the regional director of the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD), both deeply rooted in this city, are in step with each other in acknowledging the significance of a landmark pioneering housing project in the resource-rich upland community here called “Ditucalan”.
Mayor Frederick Siao finds the project dubbed Sofia Village as the first of its kind in the Ditucalan community, while DHSUD Northern Mindanao Regional Director Ariel Abragan sees it as how the long arm of the government can reach out to the homeless even in the highlands.
The mostly elevated Ditucalan area of some 5.102 square kilometers has remained in its pristine condition primarily to preserve its vast water resources while providing a secure environment to the country’s major power grid in Northern Mindanao.
Unfortunately, its resulting sparse population of only 4,000 has prevented then Congressman Siao from getting it proclaimed as a barangay with the appropriate budgetary entitlements and other privileges.
But now as mayor since 2022, Siao is taking every opportunity to support the Ditucalan community, including the endorsement of Sofia Village as a housing project that can also generate jobs and livelihood.
So does Abragan, whose official mission of addressing the housing backlog in Northern Mindanao is naturally focused on his home city of Iligan.
No wonder Siao and Abragan find themselves seated together as guests of honor at the recent launch of the Sofia Village by the partnership among private developer GGG Property Ventures Inc., the Mindanao business development department of the Pag-IBIG Fund, and landowner and veteran broadcaster Joy Gador.
To Abragan, the Sofia Village project may seem like the soft launch of President Marcos’ Pambansang Pabahay Para sa Pilipino (4PH) program in Iligan City.
The 4PH was conceived to address the estimated backlog of some 6.5 million housing units for informal settler families and low-income earners across the country.
Of the 6.5-million national backlog, Iligan City accounts for more than 26,000 but some 14,000 of which are targeted for completion over a 10-year plan ending in 2025, according to Ray Roque of the city government’s housing development office.
“But by end-2030, our target of more than 20,000 housing units for Iligan City alone shall have been completed,” Abragan stressed.
A glimpse of what is envisioned to rise at the Sofia Village within the scenic
and pristine highlands of Ditucalan, Iligan City.
“This (intensified development thrust by the DHSUD) should start immediately within the year or soon after the mid-term elections,” Abragan added.
Such target appears attainable as the housing projects of GGG Property Ventures Inc. in Iligan City at present and in the immediate future are already hovering at around 4,400 units.
Constituting that number are the 250 housing units of the ongoing Sofia Village in Ditucalan and the 1,150 of Georgia Villas in Barangay Abuno, and the 3,000 of another Iligan City project in the pipeline
Featured in the Sofia Village project is the light gauge steel (LGS) framing technology, which saves construction time while creating light but sturdy concrete structures with integrated thermal and sound insulation, according to GGG Property Ventures chairman/president and chief executive officer Engr. George Richard F. Siton.
“The project is also environment-focused and nature-inspired as 4.6 percent of the entire 3.6-hectare development is devoted to open greeneries,” Siton explained in an interview at the sidelines of the launching ceremony.
“The pervading architectural design is modern and energy efficient while featuring safety, comfort and convenience that perfectly match the peaceful and scenic verdant environment,” Siton added.
Primarily constituting the project are 250 2-storey residential buildings, with 50 of them row houses and 200 single attached.
The entire project can accommodate 1,250 residents at five persons per household and whose entirety is described by Mayor Siao as a model of safety, convenience and affordability.
Siao also hinted on the project generating the impetus and the momentum for the increase in the population of Ditucalan to warrant its official proclamation as a barangay in the near future, with the Sofia Village as its pioneering residential landmark and community center. Groundwork for the project is scheduled to start within the year and the completion of the entire housing development in early 2026.
The project is essentially a socialized housing endeavor of GGG Property Ventures Inc. in partnership with the Pag-IBIG Fund under its Countryside Housing Initiative, according to company corporate secretary Atty. George David D. Siton.
Pag-IBIG Mindanao business development head Alymore Atienza cited the initiative’s P5-billion budget for all the six regions in the South, including Iligan City, for 2024 alone.
