LINGAYEN – A total of 257 low-cost housing units will be constructed starting this month.

Engr. Alvin Bigay, head of the Pangasinan Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Office (PHUDCO), said his office is working double time with the National Housing Authority (NHA) and Pag-IBIG to speed up completion of all required documents “so that house construction can start immediately.”

He said 20 units will be built at a time. It will take 18 days to construct one unit costing P300,000 each, he said, adding that more than three contractors will undertake the job.
Most of the units are under the Maniboc Socialized Housing Project in barangay Maniboc here.

The project is a joint undertaking of the provincial government that provided the landfilling and the NHA which provided P10 million for land development. Pag-IBIG will finance the house construction.

Payment is either on cash or installment basis depending on the preference of the applicants.

Governor Victor E. Agbayani earlier expressed optimism that completion of the project will open up new doors and bright opportunities for the beneficiaries who are basically government employees.

The PHUDCO has so far developed two resettlement sites for homeless Pangasinenses and five socialized housing projects benefiting around 1,474 families in the province since 1995, including the 60 housing lots located in barangay Talogtog here which were recently awarded. (Ruby Bernardino/PIO)