Barangay Rizal, Makati City

INTRODUCTION

Barangay Rizal belongs to the Second District of Makati. It is part of Cluster 5 or the Eastside Cluster along with barangays Comembo, East Rembo and Pembo. The barangay is third to the largest in the district in terms of population. Based on the 2010 Census of Population conducted by the National Statistics Office, Rizal has a total of 41,959 population and percentage share of 2.17% versus the city’s population with an estimate of at least 8,392 households. By population density on the other hand, considering  its land area and population count, the barangay has 71 residents per 1,000 square meters.

 

Barangay Rizal, being purely a residential area, does not have big commercial establishments. Since it is just starting to modernize the community, it can only boast of concrete houses booming in the area. Barangay Rizal is named after the country’s national hero, Dr. Jose P. Rizal, because its declaration as an independent barangay coincided with his Centennial Death Celebration. The Makati Rizal Pabahay of the City Government of Makati lies in this barangay as its well known landmark. 

 

HISTORY

Barangay Rizal was proclaimed by COMELEC after winning an overwhelming  “YES” vote in a referendum that was held at Barangay Pembo Elementary School last June 29, 1996. It was a dream of then Makati Mayor Jejomar C. Binay to divide Pembo into two (2) separate barangays for the comfort of it’s residents, who are often inconvenienced by the distance it entails before services can be served to them.

 

The idea of dividing Pembo into two (2) barangays through a City Ordinance authored by Councilor Astolfo C. Pimentel and sponsored by all members of the Sangguniang Panlungsod No. 96 – 010 entitled “AN ORDINANCE CREATING A NEW BARANGAY TO BE SEGREGATED FROM BARANGAY PEMBO TO BE NAMED AS BARANGAY RIZAL, SUBJECT TO ALL LEGAL AND EXISTING LAWS AND REGULATIONS”.            

 

Barangay Rizal came to be named so because its declaration coincided with the Centennial Death Celebration of our National Hero, Dr. Jose P. Rizal. Consequently, Barangay Rizal means a clean, green, beautiful, festive and disciplined barangay.

Barangay Poblacion, Makati City

INTRODUCTION

Barangay Poblacion belongs to Makati City's first district and a member of the Northwest Cluster or Cluster 3 of Makati. Poblacion has a total land area of 1,034,200 sq.m., that is 3.80% of the total land area of Makati. 3.20% or 17,120 of Makati residents live in Poblacion, or 17 residents per 1,000 square meters.

 

Barangay Poblacion is the first settlement of the City of Makati.  In fact, when one mentions San Pedro Makati during the pre-war period, it indicated Barangay Poblacion.  Since it was the original community of the town, it became the center of the local government and has remained as such, today.

 

Barangay Poblacion is also known as Makati’s Heritage District.  In 2006 and 2007, local and foreign urban planning consultants and other public and private sector partners conducted a Cultural Mapping Report of the Heritage of Poblacion last, through the grant of Instituto Cervantes Spanish Program for Cultural Cooperation.

 

However, based on its existing land use, Poblacion is still predominantly a commercial area. It houses the upscale mixed-use development - Rockwell Center and A. Venue Event Mall. 

HISTORY

Barangay Poblacion is the first settlement of the City of Makati.  In fact, when you mentioned San Pedro Makati during the pre-war period, it indicated Barangay Poblacion.  Since it was the original community of the town, it became the center of the local government and has remained as such today. 

 

In 1620 the San Pedro Church was built by the Jesuits as the center of the Catholic Faith of then San Pedro Macati.  The residents corrupted this name to “Sampiro” and used this moniker to refer to both the church and the town.  When the Jesuits were expelled from all Spanish territories in the 18th Century, the Spanish government confiscated all their properties which included San Pedro Macati.  This began the turnover of the land from one owner to another until the Zobel de Ayala-Roxas family began its modern development during the latter part of the 19th Century. 

 

Official records show that the first Municipal President of Makati was its illustrious son who hails from Poblacion, Marcelino Magsaysay.  Most of the succeeding Municipal Presidents or Mayors were likewise bonafide constituents of Poblacion namely: Eusebio Arpilleda, Hermogenes Santos, Urbano Navarro, Jose Magsaysay, Pedro Domingo, Ricardo Arpilleda, Nicanor Garcia, Jose Villena and Maximo Estrella.

 

The first Municipal Builiding called the Presidencia was built in 1918 in the middle of Poblacion at Plaza Trece de Agosto, now J.P. Rizal Street.  It is now occupied by the Museo ng Makati.  In 1961, then Mayor Estrella ordered the construction of a new municipal building in its present site which was donated by the Ayala Land, Inc.  In the early years of the 21st Century, Mayor Jejomar Binay instituted the high-rise 22-storey City Hall of Makati, making Poblacion as the center of Makati’s government then and now. 

 

Although Poblacion has kept its old-world charm, it has also embraced modernity and economic development with the presence of a number of commercial establishments in the area, specifically along the main thoroughfares of J.P. Rizal, Makati Ave., P. Burgos and Kalayaan, the Rockwell Center, the A. Venue Mall and Suites and the upcoming development by Century Properties in the old site of the International School called the Century City.

Barangay Pinagkaisahan, Makati City

INTRODUCTION

Pinagkaisahan is characterized as gradually sloping downwards from the west towards the northeast, where a creek (Balisampan) cuts across the barangay. Inner parts of the barangay are mostly residential while alongside EDSA are classified commercial. Pinagkaisahan, by clustering, is in District II under the North Central Cluster along with Guadalupe Nuevo, South Cembo, Post Proper Southside, and Pitogo. Also, the barangay boasts its proximity in two (2) Central Business Districts – Ayala and the Bonifacio Global City.

 

The population count as per 2010 Census of Population is 5,804, with approximately 1,161 households at 5 household size. The average population density of the barangay is estimated at 36 per 1,000 square meters considering a land area of 0.1603 square kilometers.

 

 

HISTORY

In 1916, the Jesuit Fathers who owned the Guadalupe Estate raised the rental of their property so much that most of the tenants made a decision to leave the place and settle in the nearby hilly region beyond the streetcar's (tranvia) makeshift bridge. The region which was largely uninhabited was owned by the Ayala y Cia. By bayanihan the unified move was effected, thus the named PINAGKAISAHAN. It was the decision of families, the first wave of settlers which included the ancestors of the Payongayongs, Legardas, Angeleses, Castros, Santa Anas, Pimentels, Bandillas, Sacapinis, Baldues and Perezes. Waves of other settlers followed, many coming from families of enlisted men from the nearby military camp, Fort William McKinley.

The Ayala y Cia paid a little attention to the newly settled hacienda that the settler fenced as much as he wanted for his home lot, as long as he paid the monthly rental set by the Ayala collector. As a result, Pinagkaisahan was a jigsaw of fenced lots of varying dimensions.

The original settlers informally designated the tranvia's bridge between the military reservation and Pinagkaisahan as the barrio's eastern boundary. The southern boundary was the Pasay McKinley Road. On the west, it was the street car's twin sliding while the stream going into the kaingin region now Estrella St. of Guadalupe Viejo was the northern boundary. By 1940, the Ayala y Cia has completed its cadastral survey of its property and executed Plan B of Pinagkaisahan which in effect extended the barrio northward. It was at about the time that the national government made its plans known for a major road which will cut through the forest and cogon grass fields west of the settlement, said road to be known later as Highway 54.

The Barrio survived the early part of the Japanese occupation despite its proximity to the army camp, Fort William McKinley. This was because the army hastily left the camp for Bataan in December 30, 1941, saving the surroundings including the barrio from hostilities. Even as the war raged, folks who fled to Manila and the surrounding provinces hiked back to Pinagkaisahan to tend their rice fields. However in almost all places occupied by the Japanese, all stocks of rice, eggs, mangoes and bananas in the barrio were routinely confiscated by the invaders, leaving the folks with root crops like camote, cassava, taro roots and vegetables, which they plant in all available lots and gardens.

However, as the war went on, Pinagkaisahan suffered deaths and losses among many of its menfolks many of whom were killed or wounded in other places. In 1942, several thatched roofs were burned. The 1945 Japanese surrender and Liberation found the central part of Pinagkaisahan burned down. It was written that in the liberation of Manila in 1945, the Japanese retreated to outskirts of Manila. As the war drew to a close, the fall and destruction fell on Makati. The Japanese vented their wrath on the barrios of Guadalupe and Pinagkaisahan, killing everyone in sight and everything in their path. With the wanton destruction the barrio folks faced major reconstruction problems.

After the war, Ayala y Cia turned the southeastern part of its property into present Manila Golf Club. Later on the southwest rice fields were graded and became North Forbes Park. The National Government's Highway 54 (later renamed Epifanio de los Santos Ave. or EDSA) was completed. All these developments found several original families dislocated/relocated to other places in the barrio. These developments also defined present boundaries of Pinagkaisahan.

 

The post war years even found the bayanihan spirit amongst the barrio folks more intense, probably because of the unifying experience they had during the Japanese occupation. Its elders among them Sacapinio, Manansala, Cuao, etc. requested Ayala y Cia for lot where the Barrio can build a shrine for the Lady of Immaculate Conception. It was granted. Once more Pinagkaisahan had a chapel at the corner of the then Merced and Native streets. This signaled the barrio's return starting with the yearly celebration of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception complete with a parade of beauties, and culminating in drama and stage performance.

Barangay Olympia, Makati City

INTRODUCTION

Barangay Olympia belongs to Makati City's first district, and is a member of the Northwest Cluster or Cluster 3 of Makati. The barangay is a residential area with a population of 21,270 recorded by the 2010 census, which is 4% of the total population of Makati City. On the other hand, the barangay’s land area is only 0.4565 square kilometers or 1.70% of the total land area of Makati. There are 47 residents per 1,000 square meters.

 

The Barangay came from 3 former Sitios: Proper, Obrero and Sampalukan and was later called HINYERO after a German Engineer who lived in the area, but it was changed to OLYMPIA after the tile and brick factory on the bank of Pasig River adjacent to the Lazzai Building.

 

The barangay also hosts the part of Makati Circuit, formerly known as the Philippine Racing Club (PRC) together with Brgy. Carmona.

 

 

HISTORY

This barrio was previously named HINYERO after a German engineer who lived here. The barrio was later called OLYMPIA after the tile and brick factory on the bank of Pasig River adjacent to the Lazzai Building. A resolution was passed in 1925 officially naming the barrio Olympia.

 

During the incumbency of Barangay Captain Vicente Martelino, the incorporation of Sitio Proper, Sitio Obrero and Sitio Sampalukan took effect. Many years ago, Sitio Sampalukan was part of 1,650 hectares hacienda that was merely a zacatales and very poor rice land.

 

SITIO OBRERO was named after hundredth of factory workers (locally called OBREROS) whose families settled just near the industrial site of tiles and brick factories and a big factory of laundry soap in a Lizzar Building owned by a German engineer.

 

SITIO PROPER, whose site was at the upper portion, has a Trambia Railway Station which serves as a means of transportation, to and from Manila. It was then called “PROPER” because of its strategic center of trade and commerce. On its site were also a back to back public cemetery and an English cemetery.

 

Spouses Enrique Zobel de Ayala and Consuelo Roxas, whose marriage in 1901 signaled a significant bearing on Makati's development in the years ahead, owned it. After the end of World War I, Ayala y Compania started dividing a portion of hacienda into low budgeted subdivisions. One of them was Olympia Subdivision, which included Sitio Sampalukan.

 

The name Sampalukan was influenced by the legendary story of two Sampaloc trees that sprouted in the area. As narrated by Mr. Paulino J. Vizcarra also known as Tata Kaling, in his childhood he saw in his vivid memories the trees that robustly and elegantly grew near the corner of today's JP Rizal and Pasong Tamo Streets. Among gatherings one of Tata Kaling's favorite recollection, is the miraculous medicinal effects of the leaves, twigs and fruits of the said Sampaloc trees in healing various illnesses of sick barrio folks. The trees during their lifetime had been the source of panacea to several people in their community. So when they were cut-off to give way for the construction of JP Rizal Street many people mourned their loss. But the same people wanted to remember the tremendous usefulness and abundance the trees brought them. In their honor, they punctuated their gratitude to them by naming their community as Sampalukan which name is being retained up to now.

Barangay Kasilawan, Makati City

INTRODUCTION

 

Barangay Kasilawan belongs to the Makati City's first district, and is a member of the Northwest Cluster or Cluster 3 of Makati. Kasilawan is the smallest barangay in Makati with a total land area of only 0.946 square kilometers. that is 0.30% of the total land area of Makati. Based on its existing land use, Kasilawan is predominantly a residential area.

 

During the 2010 NSO census, its total population is 5,291 which is lower than the 2007 data which is 5,756. Relating this to its total land area, there are 56 residents per 1,000 square meters.

 

Although relatively a small barangay, the residence of the first Mayor of Makati, Mayor Pablo Cortez is located in barangay Kasilawan.

 

HISTORY

Kasilawan was once a part of Tejeros, but in 1960, a resolution was passed for its separation from the latter. It was finally approved by the Provincial Board of Rizal on January 29, of the same year.

 

It got its name from Mayor Pablo C. Cortes (1945-1947), a well-known member of the Free Masonry, Lodge No. 77 better known as Kasilawan Lodge. It was also known as "Suaboy" because it was once a swampy area and pigs roamed around the place.

 

Jose De Luna Medina was the first appointed Barrio Lieutenant of Kasilawan. He was followed by Catalino Delos Santos Medina, who is the first elected Barangay Captain in which that time the Barrio Charter was enacted by the Philippine Congress.

Barangay Forbes Park, Makati City

INTRODUCTION

Barangay Forbes Park, which was established in early 1940s, is one of the first villages to be developed by Ayala Corporation. It was named after an American Governor-General assigned in the Philippines – William Cameron Forbes.  It has a land area of 2.5 square kilometers with a population density of one (1) person per 1,000 square meters. Based on the 2010 Census of Population, Forbes Parks has 2,533 residents.

 

Purely residential in use, Forbes Park is considered as one of the oldest settlement in Makati and is renowned to be the home of the Philippines’ flushest families and well-known diplomats and expatriates business executives. Famous landmarks of Barangay Forbes Park include the following: Manila Golf Club, Manila Polo Club, Santuario de San Antonio Parish, San Antonio Plaza Arcade, Kasiyahan Homes, Manila Polo Townhouses, and the more than a hundred century old Acacia Trees.

 

 

HISTORY

The development of Forbes Park is credited to two scions of the Ayala Corporation namely Alfonso Zobel de Ayala, distinguished Spanish-Filipino patriarch and Joseph R. McMicking, an American businessman soldier. They provided the vision and energy behind the phenomenal growth and development of Makati. Through their corporate vehicle, Ayala y Compania (now Ayala Corporation) founded in 1814, the two industrialists built a modern mini city with no public sector aid, except for the cooperation of the Makati municipal administrators.

 

The destruction of southern Manila during the liberation by Allied Forces in 1915 created opportunities for developers who had land available for new housing. The fine residential areas in Ermita and Malate were reduced to rubble. Many old residents moved out in the late 1940's to the suburbs mainly to the new subdivisions in San Juan, Mandaluyong, and Quezon City. The original Hacienda de Makati of the Ayalas had been reduced in size by the pre-war parceling of the Singalong-San Andres subdivisions, the donation of South Cemetery and sale of lots around the old poblacion in Makati. Only 900 hectares were left of the sprawling grassy fields held by the Ayalas.

 

This is where Colonel McMicking's vision came in a modern multi-zone subcity to be built in steps over 25 years, each zone complementing and enhancing the value of the others. The skyline that sprang from Makati and near ordering of shopping centers and residential villages within its periphery became a revelation to everyone. It was a master stroke for McMicking and his fellow planners to first put up that part of the Hacienda that was distant and farthermost from the center of Manila. Forbes Park, as this segment was to be known established New Makati's first-class character.

 

Col. McMicking was inspired by the decorous Spanish Mission-style homes around Palo-Alto, south of San Francisco. They were comfortably girded by lawns and trees but were necessary opulent. In 1948, when Ayala broke ground in Makati, Forbes Park was about as far from Manila as anyone cared to live. Ayala persuaded the Manila Polo Club then in Pasay City, to sell its land and move to Makati. The Manila Golf Club agreed to move to Forbes Park for its old Caloocan site was no closer to Manila than Makati. The dunders felt it appropiate that the first Makati village be named after W. Cameron Forbes, the American Governor General who helped bring polo to the Philippines.

 

As the physical contours of the subdivision took shape, the first sale of Forbes lot (no. 2 Caimito Place) took place in January 1949. The buyer was John L. Manning and inscribed in his title (as in all Forbes land titles) deed restrictions binding for 30 years from January 1, 1949. The Ayala clan demonstrated their confidence in Forbes Park by being among the first to move in. The trickle later became a flood as word spread that Forbes realty was unbeatable. With proximity to Makati's growing business district, shops and cinema as magnet, the other Ayala residential villages opened up to strong demand - San Lorenzo (1952), Bel-Air (1954), Urdaneta (1957) Magallanes and Dasmariñas (1962).

Barangay Comembo, Makati City

INTRODUCTION

Barangay Comembo belongs to the Makati City's second district and is located at the Southeastern of Makati and Northeastern part of Fort Bonifacio. It is part of Cluster 5 or the Eastside Cluster along with East Rembo, Pembo and Rizal.

 

Based on the 2010 Census of Population conducted by the National Statistics Office, Comembo has a total of 14,433 population and percentage share of 1.13% versus the city’s population with an estimate of 2,887 households. By population density on the other hand, considering  its land area and population count, the barangay has 47 per 1,000 square meters. Comembo is generally a residential area except for strips of Commercial areas along the J.P. Rizal Extension, Anahaw and Sampaguita Streets. 

 

 

HISTORY

The area now known as Comembo was formerly Mamancat. Even before the coming of the Spanish colonizers, Mamancat was already a vibrant settlement teeming with various economic activities. As its name suggests, Mamancat – from the Tagalog root word ancat – means import, a central place where good commodities were acquired, purchased or bartered. This activity complemented the role played by its more prosperous neighbour, Aguho (now Pateros) known also during the Spanish time as embarcadero or a place for embarkation. It is an area where goods by foreign merchants coming from as far as India, China and the Middle East were brought and bartered for native goods and commodities.  For more than a hundred years, Mamancat was under the wings of power of Pateros. Its inhabitants continued cultivating is fertile soil. The river, aside from supplying them with food was also used as their highway to transport their produce, animals and people going to and from other barangays. It served also as their sources of potable water used for drinking, cooking and bathing.

Mamancat was then a part of Meysapan (old name of Makati), a larger settlement, whose forests and mountain vastness served as hunting grounds for games, fowls, wild plants, fruits and vegetables necessary for the needs of its inhabitants.

When the Second World War broke out, Mamancat was totally abandoned by its inhabitants for fear of being hit by cross forces between the Japanese Imperial Army and the American-Filipino forces combined. Fort William McKinley was an important target for the invading Japanese forces because of its strategic location.

To maintain its presence in the Philippines, the American Colonial Government established military camps in the different parts of the country. It bought four big parcels of real estate from a wealthy landowner totalling 850 hectares which lies within the territorial boundaries of Pateros. To the detriment of Mamancat folks, their untitled farmlands were included in the deal. From then on, Mamancat was separated from Pateros and became part of a military reservation called Fort William McKinley.

Due to the continued pressure of the insurrectos in the rural areas, the American authorities secured the camp by enjoining all inhabitants to leave the area except for an American caretaker and some Filipino helpers who maintain the place.

After the War, the American colonial government transferred to the Filipino people the ownership of the camp. It was renamed Kuta Bonifacio to perpetuate the legacy of the founder of the Katipunan, Supremo Andres Bonifacio. Not too long, the Philippine Ground Force (PGF) of the Philippine Army from Fernando Basa Airbase, Floridablanca, Pampanga occupied some portions of the Camp to serve their housing needs. The first barrio within the military camp was organized and named Central Enlisted Men’s Barrio or CEMBO for short.

In 1956, another unit from the Infantry Training Group (ITG) and the Artillery Training Group (ATG) occupied the area along Pasig River and Pateros River up to the boundary of the old settlement of Mamancat. Two barrios were created for these new settlers and were called West Riverside Enlisted Men’s Barrio (WEST REMBO). The following year, a pioneering unit from 501st Combat Engineering Group of the Philippine Army developed and settled in this area of the old Mamancat to honor the officers and men of the Combat Engineering Group, and gave birth to Combat Enlisted Men’s Barrio. From then up to the present, the official name of the Barangay is COMEMBO.

From 1958 to 1982, the Barangay Captains of Barangay Comembo were appointed by the Post Commander of Fort Bonifacio, since the barangay was part of Fort Bonifacio. The first appointed Barangay Captain of Comembo was Juan S. Biteng who served from 1958 to 1982. The first barangay election was held with Pacifico Gonzales as its first elected Barangay Captain.

Presently, Mr. Ariel M. Sarmiento is the Barangay Captain of Comembo.