CEBU CITY, PHILIPPINES — The Office of the Building Official (OBO) and the Cebu City Environment and Natural Resources Office (CCENRO) have identified potential violations of city ordinances at Monterrazas de Cebu in Barangay Guadalupe. These violations include unpermitted earth-moving activities, hauling of materials, and the lack of tree-cutting permits.
The inspection report submitted to the Sangguniang Panlungsod Secretariat highlights failures in complying with the law, which could increase environmental risks associated with upland development.
On January 12, 2026, an inspection in response to Sangguniang Panlungsod Resolution No. 17-1557-2025 found that construction of a multi-story residential building had been suspended since November due to a Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) stoppage order.
Despite this, heavy equipment was still on site, and earth-moving activities continued for a retention pond.
The DENR’s suspension of Monterrazas operations in November 2025 was triggered by massive unauthorized tree-cutting—734 trees felled without permits—and at least 10 violations of the project’s Environmental Compliance Certificate (ECC).
These included failures to secure water discharge permits and lapses in managing upland runoff.
The stoppage order followed Typhoon Tino’s floods, which inundated parts of Cebu City and drew public attention to hillside developments.
Drone footage later confirmed traces of excavation across hectares of land, raising concerns that materials may have been hauled out without the required Special Hauling Permit from the Cebu City Mining Regulatory Board.
CCENRO further noted that the developer, Genvi Development Corporation, had not applied for a tree-cutting permit under City Ordinance No. 2623, which regulates earth-balling and removal of trees.
The absence of such permits, coupled with extensive excavation, was flagged as a potential cause of increased rainwater runoff and erosion.
The Cebu City Council’s recent decision to consider stronger enforcement measures represents a crucial development in the Monterrazas de Cebu issue. Environmental planner Augusto B. Agosto stated that environmental enforcement must be thorough enough to serve as an effective deterrent and to adequately address the scale of the associated risks.
“These developments validate a concern that has been consistently raised from the outset: that, while cases have already been filed, the enforcement response has been too narrowly framed to serve as an effective deterrent, given the scale and environmental sensitivity of the issues involved,” Agosto explained.
“From a policy and governance perspective, the cases filed by the DENR were legally valid but weak as deterrence because they were under-scoped,” he added. “They did not fully reflect the broader environmental, land-use, and cumulative risk concerns associated with large-scale upland development.”
Recently, Barangay Tisa made a direct appeal to Mayor Nestor Archival, urging for the protection of Cebu’s iconic hiking trails.
Barangay Captain Bernardo “Ada” Lapina Jr. expressed concerns that the expansion of Monterrazas could potentially eliminate public pathways and displace vendors at the popular Starbuks location, which is a well-known landmark for Cebu’s hiking community.
“Mayor Archival, we at Barangay Tisa are supportive of your plans to implement a roadmap to transform the city into a more livable, sustainable, and inclusive urban center. Thus, we have faith that you will support us on this endeavor,” Lapina wrote.
The barangay’s letter called for a multi-sectoral dialogue involving developers, property owners, and barangay leaders from Tisa, Buhisan, Sapangdaku, Guadalupe, and Pamutan.
It stressed that the hiking trails are used weekly by hundreds of Cebuanos for recreation, fitness, and well-being, and must be safeguarded as shared spaces of resilience, community, and identity.
| Written by Caecent No-ot Magsumbol
