The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) Region VI hosted a blessing and groundbreaking ceremony of the Negros Occidental Convention Center (NOCC) at Brgy. Guinhalaran, Silay City recently.
The ceremony opened with a welcome message from Governor Bong Lacson, followed by a briefing by DPWH Regional Director Engr. Sanny Boy Oropel who presented the project profile of the NOCC, detailing the 3-hectare land, the two-storey building, and showing the interior and exterior perspectives and a multipurpose building.
“May this center also be the catalyst for making Negros Occidental the rising convention hub of the country.”
“In the coming months, we will witness the transformation of this site into a state-of-the-art facility. May this center also be the catalyst for making Negros Occidental the rising convention hub of the country,” Lacson said.
The two-story multipurpose facility will be able to accommodate up to 6,200 visitors.
The project cost of building is estimated to be P1.03 billion.
“It began when I visited the launching of the Convention Center in Iloilo and was a guest speaker at one of the events there.”
“This is probably more than six years in the making. It began when I visited the launching of the Convention Center in Iloilo and was a guest speaker at one of the events there,” Bacolod City Mayor Albee Benitez said.
“So sabi ko pwede na ring lagyan ang Negros and so the ball started rolling. It was Congressman Benitez who started this project, and it will be Congressman Benitez who will finish it…. We are very happy that this will probably change the landscape of this area,” the mayor added.
The mayor’s brother, 3rd District Representative Kiko Benitez, said the Negros Occidental Convention Center will be a certified green building that will prioritize eco-friendly practices.
“The one stipulation was that it should be at least as nice, if not nicer, than the one in Iloilo. So that was our marching order, and we have tried to abide as much as we can, depending of course on the constraints DPWH had, to ensure that Negros Occidental has another anchor like this that can at least compare and compete with the convention centers in Panay,” the lawmaker concluded.
