THE Cebu City government is scheduling to bid out 30 hectares of its prime 240-hectare reclaimed South Road Properties (SRP) by the end of the year to raise money for the cash-strapped city.

Mayor Tomas Osmeña said priority of the city government is to use the SRP to balance the city’s books as biannual amortizations for the SRP continue to be at their highest.

“The city’s priority now is to raise money so we don’t go bankrupt. After this [30-hectare auction] we can start to be choosy,” Osmeña said.

The SRP, completed in 2001, was built through a 25-year, ¥6.7-billion loan with the Japan Bank of International Cooperation. The loan is payable until 2020.

The Cebu City Council had granted the mayor authority to bid out a 30-hectare portion of SRP to raise cash for the city. The council, likewise, authorized the mayor to negotiate with any prospective locator.

Osmeña, however, said negotiations are still ongoing for several proposals for other areas at the SRP.

“We are not going to limit ourselves in one area of the SRP. We are talking with many people who want different areas and who are planning to do different things,” he said.

The city is also talking to the Commission on Audit on various possible deals the city could get into.

Osmeña said the city will prioritize developers who would employ the most number of people while introducing new industries and technology to Cebu, as well as those who could raise the image of the SRP for marketing abroad.

The city is also willing to give concessions, such as exemptions to local parking ordinances, to the first developer who could build a high-rise building in the property.

He said the city is also looking for landmark at the SRP, saying at least two major developers have expressed interest in building a coliseum at the SRP.

“We need a center of attraction at the SRP, maybe a coliseum that will sit 20,000 people. I think that is what Cebu needs to invite the big entertainers to come here,” he said.

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THE Cebu City government is scheduling to bid out 30 hectares of its prime 240-hectare reclaimed South Road Properties (SRP) by the end of the year to raise money for the cash-strapped city.