The Night Market extension

November 11, 2017 Opinion Sideglance

The Baguio City Market Authority (BCMA) recently approved a plan for the extension of the night market operation at Perfecto Street located between the Ganza Parking area and the Rose Garden.

The plan if it will push through will finally allow walk in vendors who had been waiting for available slots at Harrison Road to be provided with the opportunity to sell their products and wares.

However, also recently, the jeepney drivers and operators who park their vehicles along Perfecto Street waiting for passengers went to the City Council to express their opposition to the plan for the night market extension considering that it would affect their operations particularly at night.

To emphasize their opposition to the plan a petition has already been submitted to the city government officials coming from concerned oppositors who believe that a night market along Perfecto Street will only cause problems to the commuting public who ride the public utility vehicles in the area at night.

For his part the City Mayor is scheduled to meet with the concerned jeepney operators and drivers in an attempt to resolve the issue and perhaps reach a compromise on the matter.

Perhaps in that meeting the parties involved might consider some suggestions that can be translated as a compromise given that Perfecto Street, even during at night, is a very busy place for the reason that it is being used by several jeepney groups plying various routes and a very convenient area where commuters hurrying to get home wait patiently in line to ride the available PUVs.

This is the situation along Perfecto Street even at night time.

The suggestion is this, why not put up the night market extension along the area within Burnham Park in that road where bicycles are being rented out to the public. This stretch of road which does not seem to have even a proper name (check Google maps) but merely called a biking area is a commercialized portion of Burnham Park where locals and visitors alike enjoy riding different kinds of bicycles for a certain price and for certain duration.

At night time this area, just beside the Ibaloi park and the childrens playground area, could very well become a convenient and suitable place for these walk in vendors to display and vend their products.

No commuter or jeepney, or any taxi for that matter, will be disturbed, affected, relocated or transferred just to extend the night market.

In fact the said biking area is already a tourist attraction and the city government would be merely expanding its tourism potential way into the night.

These so called walk in vendors will greatly benefit from the area because not only is it being constantly patrolled by Burnham Park Security guards but also it is just a stone’s throw away from a nearby police detachment for tourists.

These walk in vendors might complain that they will be located far away from the main night market along Harrison Road, if they will be placed at the said biking area, and that their income might be adversely affected for that reason, but would it not be better if they can have their own exclusive area to sell instead of being jostled by other competitors nearby who have been already there for several years selling at the night market along Harrison road?

Burnham Park is a tourist site and it will be to their advantage to be part of the extension of the night market within the said park.

This is of course only a suggestion.