DUMAGUETE CITY, Negros Oriental — Dumaguete City's proposed ₱1.948-billion public market in Barangay Poblacion 3 would rank among the highest publicly identified loan-financed public market projects undertaken by a local government unit in the Philippines, based on a review of reported borrowings backed by the Development Bank of the Philippines, Land Bank of the Philippines, and Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas Monetary Board opinions.
The proposed market is part of a larger ₱2.185-billion borrowing package, which also includes a separate ₱237-million City Hall expansion and parking project. The market component, described in city documents as a four-storey facility in Barangay Poblacion 3, is proposed to be funded entirely through local government borrowing — a financing model that places the full repayment obligation on the city and its public revenues.
The scale of the proposed project, and the financing structure behind it, has raised questions about cost justification, transparency, and how the figure compares to similar public market projects funded by LGU loans elsewhere in the country.
How Dumaguete's Figure Compares to Other LGU-Financed Markets
A review of publicly reported LGU loan-financed public market projects shows Dumaguete's ₱1.948-billion figure standing well above comparable undertakings across the Visayas, Mindanao, and other Philippine cities.
Bacolod City's Burgos Public Market was allocated ₱525 million as part of the city's ₱4.4-billion approved DBP loan intended for its renovation. The plan was later opposed by vendors, and the funds were reportedly realigned to other city projects including the Legislative Building, Old City Hall, the City Health Complex, and a tree park.
Tacurong City in Sultan Kudarat secured a ₱500-million DBP term loan package covering public terminals, public markets, solar streetlights, a city government computerization system, and the purchase of heavy equipment — making it a mixed-purpose loan rather than a market-exclusive borrowing.
Mandaue City in Cebu secured a ₱400-million DBP loan for the construction of its new public market following the 2013 earthquake. The municipality of Moalboal, also in Cebu, negotiated with Land Bank for a ₱400-million public market featuring 91 stalls and over 2,500 square meters of leasable space. Talisay City in Cebu secured a loan offer from both DBP and Land Bank for its four-storey Tabunok Public Market at ₱387 million.
The Cost Gap: Dumaguete at Roughly Four to Five Times Comparable Projects
Based on these publicly reported figures, Dumaguete's proposed ₱1.948-billion market is approximately 3.7 times Bacolod's ₱525-million Burgos market allocation, approximately 3.9 times Tacurong's ₱500-million mixed infrastructure package, and nearly 4.9 times the ₱400-million-class market projects in Mandaue and Moalboal.
The figure is approximately five times the ₱387-million four-storey Tabunok Public Market in Talisay City — a project that shares the same structural typology of a four-storey public market funded through LGU borrowing.
In numerical terms, the gap between Dumaguete's proposal and the next highest comparable figure — Bacolod's Burgos allocation — is approximately ₱1.423 billion.
Why the Comparison Does Not Automatically Mean Overpricing
A direct comparison of headline loan figures does not automatically establish that the Dumaguete project is overpriced. Public market construction costs vary based on a range of technical and site-specific factors, including total floor area and stall count, structural design and foundation requirements, mechanical and electrical systems, fire safety compliance, wastewater facilities, parking and circulation design, temporary vendor relocation arrangements during construction, contingency provisions, and inflation-adjusted construction costs at the time of project design.
The projects listed for comparison also differ in scope, date of approval, and local cost conditions. A ₱400-million market approved several years ago would not reflect current construction price indices, which have risen significantly in recent years across the Philippines.
Without a publicly disclosed cost breakdown and floor area data for each project, a cost-per-square-meter comparison — which would be the most technically valid comparison — cannot be made from the available public information.
Bigger Market Projects Exist, but Under Different Financing Models
Dumaguete's proposed market is not the most expensive public market project in the Philippines in absolute terms. Several larger redevelopment projects have been undertaken in major cities — but under public-private partnership or joint venture arrangements rather than direct LGU borrowing.
In January 2021, Cebu City signed a ₱5.5-billion joint venture agreement with Megawide Construction Corp., through its subsidiary Cebu2World Development Inc., for the modernization of the Carbon Public Market complex.
In August 2022, Iloilo City signed a 25-year lease agreement with SM Prime Holdings Inc. for the redevelopment of its Central Market and Terminal Market, with nearly ₱3 billion invested across both facilities. The redeveloped markets soft-opened in November 2025 at no direct cost to the city government.
In February 2026, General Santos City signed a ₱2.33-billion public-private partnership agreement with Robinsons Land Corp. for the redevelopment of the city's central public market. Under the arrangement, Robinsons Land will finance, build, and manage the facility for a 25-year lease period before turning the upgraded market over to the city.
These projects are larger in total value than Dumaguete's proposal, but the financing model is fundamentally different. In PPP and joint venture arrangements, the private developer carries the upfront capital burden, and the city government does not incur direct debt service obligations of the same character. In Dumaguete's proposed model, the ₱1.948-billion obligation would be carried by the city government and repaid from public revenues.
Why the Financing Model Raises the Scrutiny Bar
Because the Dumaguete project is proposed as a fully LGU-financed undertaking through borrowing, the financial risk profile is substantially different from a PPP or joint venture. The city government, and by extension Dumaguete taxpayers, would bear the full debt service cost of the loan over its repayment period.
This distinction is central to why the project's cost scale draws scrutiny. The question is not simply whether the city can build a modern public market — it is whether the proposed ₱1.948-billion loan-financed cost is justified by the facility's scope, design specifications, and projected revenue, and whether the city has made available sufficient engineering, financial, and feasibility data to support a figure that is roughly four to five times higher than comparable LGU-financed public market projects, including a similarly four-storey market in Talisay City.
Transparency and Disclosure Before Final Approval
For Dumaguete residents, market vendors, and other stakeholders, the core issue raised by this comparison is one of public transparency before the borrowing package receives final approval.
Before a ₱1.948-billion public loan commitment is finalized, standard fiscal accountability expectations for Philippine LGU borrowings would call for the public release of the project's detailed cost breakdown, cost per square meter, feasibility study findings, projected market income and occupancy rates, vendor rental and fee assumptions, debt service schedule, repayment sources, and documentation of whether phased construction or alternative financing approaches were evaluated.
The city government has described the project as a four-storey public market in Barangay Poblacion 3, but detailed project documents do not appear to have been made publicly available as of the time this review was conducted.
Without that level of disclosure, the ₱1.948-billion Mercado proposal — as the project has been referred to in city discussions — remains difficult to assess against other LGU-financed public markets, and difficult for the public to evaluate on its merits.
The proposed borrowing package, totaling ₱2.185 billion, remains under deliberation as of May 2026.
Photo credit: Photo from Breaking News Negros Oriental / Kenneth