C.

Long-term & short-term goals

The local government of Novaliches proposes for the district an urban system that promotes
economic development, strengthens local competitive advantages, and significantly raises the quality of
life of its residents.

The district envisions itself in the long run to be a high-quality community that fosters:

 A secure, educated, and healthy population

 A robust, dynamic, and thriving economy
 A connected, harmonious, and appealing cityscape
 A healthy, resilient, and clean environment
 A vigorous, sound, and responsive government

Term goals 2022-2025

Three (3) basic schemes were formulated for the term goals of the district: (a) urban system; (b)
housing and communities; and (c) governance. The first scheme is subdivided into two: urban
competitiveness and poverty reduction; the second is focused on housing affordability and delivery; and
the third, on performance-driven governance.

a. Urban competitiveness. The districts economic development is significantly influenced by the

metropolitan structure. Given growing city integration, the competitiveness of the districts that
make up the urban system in relation to other districts in the area will determine how much
they can play this role. Novaliches district shall strive to integrate with its neighbors to ensure its
competence.
b. Poverty reduction. The continued relatively high poverty incidence in the district is a direct result
of the lack of pro poor economic growth. As a concentration of economic activity, Novaliches
district can serve as agent of poverty reduction.
c. Housing affordability and delivery . The lack of affordability is a major contributor to the issue
afflicting the district's housing market. The basic response to this problem is based in economic
expansion, which gives people jobs and money to manage their households, which could lead to
an increase in degrees of affordability. In the short-medium term, increasing the availability of
housing credit and financial resources as well as lowering the cost of land and housing
production will make a significant difference.
d. Sustainable communities. Communities must be centered on both function and amenities on
appropriate environmental guidelines. They must be viable by offering a minimum service
standard and lined with the overall climate change effort of the city.
e. Performance-oriented governance. Governance is the key to improving urban competitiveness
and poverty reduction, to providing shelter, and to the development of sustainable
communities. Enhancing effectiveness, cutting off wastage, and corruption, as well as better
coordination at all bureaucratic levels are required while recognizing the decentralized
government organization structure.

The term goals of the district are intended primarily as a guide to the formulation and
implementation of plans, programs, and activities (PPAs) of both local and city government through its
specific strategies which are as follows:
1. For urban competitiveness
 Boost the productivity and efficiency of urban industrial areas to increase
district competitiveness. bolster current prowess in producer services and
manufacturing. Concentrate export-focused efforts in core export markets that may be
internationally competitive.
 Encourage the growth of strategic clusters; increase the value added of existing clusters;
encourage local promise; and focus development planning, research, and data gathering
on clusters.
 Improve basic functions, deal with traffic congestion, mobility, pollution, etc., in order to
show that the district functions as an adequate service hub.
 Support IT enabled services to further enhance the district’s competitive advantage in
the sector.
 Support tourism sector and its district & urban-rural linkages.
2. Poverty alleviation
 Poverty alleviation - encourage smaller families.
 HR and livelihood - Support human resource and livelihood programs aimed at poverty
alleviation. Increase entrepreneurial opportunities for the poor.
3. Housing affordability
 Local district planning - link local land use/physical and com- munity development plans
with industry/local employment generating in- vestment programs.
 Land access and management - provide incentives to unlock land for affordable housing.
Provide and encourage access to land for affordable housing.
 Explore promising financing sources and schemes - increase funding and other resources
for proven and key housing programs and institutions. Streamline housing development
transaction processes; reduce transaction costs and protect housing consumers.
4. Sustainable communities
 Use market-based incentives and disincentives to provide public amenities to support
urban land use objectives.
 Encourage sustainable planning/green building – review and revise traditional zoning
and encourage sustainable and private sector initiatives through performance and
service standards. Anticipate and encourage sustainable development and building
practices in local and metropolitan development plans and other ordinances. Continue
to build capacities of LGUs in development and land use planning.
 Integrate climate change adaptation and disaster risk management into community and
district development.
5. Performance-oriented governance
 IRA-based incentives - provide incentives for LGUs to be less IRA dependent and to
mobilize their own revenue source; encourage LGUs to tap innovative financing
schemes.
 Horizontal linkages (plan- implementation) - Strengthen LGU capacity building in
strategic planning, investment programming, budgeting, and implementation linkages.
 Interagency coordination - improve vertical coordination among levels of administration
(city, district, barangay/municipal)
  Transparency and accountability - increase accountability of LGU and private sector;
increase process transparency to minimize opportunities for corruption; support
private-public partnerships in project implementation.
 Encourage and support performance- based local governance.
 Interlocal coordination - support district (inter-barangay) jurisdictional cooperation;
provide real incentives to interlocal cooperation; harmonize legal and service
management mechanisms among the district LGUs.

D. Key players and their roles

District governments play a pivotal role in helping communities to revitalize low-income

neighborhoods. Each district establishes local development goals and allot public funds to programs
that promote affordable housing and other forms of community development. They select if
community development corporations (CDCs) will serve as their main development partners.
Additionally, they manage the distribution of property, housing, and other city assets. To this end,
the Novaliches district government outlined the major entities that play significant roles in the
fulfillment of its goals. The next segment shall discuss these entities and their roles in the district
and their relationship with each other.

Potential centers

Lagro-Fairview Commercial Sub-center. The CLUP 2000 of Quezon City pictures the node at the
corner of Quirino Avenue and Regalado Avenue as the Lagro-Fairview Commercial Sub-Center.
Although the area containing the Sacred Heart Market and the corner of Quirino Avenue and
Ascension Street in Lagro has long existed as a minor commercial area and commuter-transfer point
for Lagro, North Caloocan, and Bulacan residents, this Area of Growth only came to public attention
after the establishment of the SM-Fairview and the Robinson's Malls along opposite sides of Quirino
Avenue. For commuters from the aforementioned locations as well as from Novaliches and Fairview
regions, SM- Fairview and Robinson's shopping malls and call centers are now acting as crucial
transportation hubs. For its business center project, SM has allocated a sizable piece of its property
at the mall's rear that faces Mindanao and Regalado Avenues. The Jacinto Steel, which for a while
served as the only landmark in the region, has since substantially dismantled, leaving only the
warehouses and the wide tract of mostly empty land with the radio tower on the Quirino Avenue
north side. Construction on the DMCI Redwoods condominium complex is now taking place
between the warehouses and the empty lot. Another substantial piece of undeveloped property
connects Sacred Heart Village and Lagro. This triangular and contiguous area, beginning with the SM
and Robinson's Mall projects, covering the vacant lands north and south of Quirino Avenue and
north of Mindanao Avenue going westward up to the intersection of the said two avenues will likely
absorb large-scale developments and important service industries with high economic impact. The
MRT Line 7 is planned to pass through Regalado Avenue and turn right to Quirino Avenue. In the
intermediate future, the Lagro-Fairview area could transition from a sub-center to a significant
growth center.

Balintawak-Novaliches Industrial Area. The traditional industrial areas of Quezon City, Balintawak
and Novaliches, were once a key source of employment for many locals. Manufacturing facilities
that were hazardous and polluting among the emerging industries in the region. Many industries
faded out and moved outside of QC when the policy to spread growth and eliminate these types of
enterprises in Metro Manila was enacted. The development of science and technology has also
played a role in making some industries' systems and procedures obsolete, causing them to close
their doors as a result of intense rivalry and the evolving nature of goods and services. The region is
now in disrepair as a result of the abandoned manufacturing and plants. A handful of the defunct
factories have since been transformed into more economically sound uses, like businesses.
Balintawak and Novaliches straddle the gateway to the north and provide the essential link and ser-
vices to the production and growth areas of central and northern Luzon. Renewal of these areas can
reverse the blight and inject vibrancy to its economic fiber.

The key players

Local Government Units (LGUs). Local governments are key in leading or supporting the successful
development of the communities. Their strategy's success will have a direct effect on a community's
tax base. Their goal is to provide revenue to maintain, grow and improve local infrastructure and
community services. Local governments can initiate a community's economic planning efforts, to
build on their official community plan and role of shaping community growth and determining land
use. Local government functions that influence economic development and planning include:

 Planning and zoning bylaws

 Taxation
 Local business support
 Collaborating between communities and in the larger region 
 Accessing and using programs offered by provincial and federal governments 
 Advocating for community economic development priorities with governments and industry
 Helping create and keep stable, well-paying jobs in the community
 Improving the quality of life by providing:
Improved services
Environmental and recreational areas
Cultural and social activities

Public Institutions. Referring to the Annex 3 of the 2011-2025 Quezon City CLUP, public institutions
in the concerned area include three (3) public schools namely Doña Rosario Elem. School, Doña
Rosario High School, and Villa Verde Elem. School, two (2) police stations also known as Police
Station 4 and North Fairview Police Station, one (1) public library known as Novaliches SB Library,
two (2) day care centers, one (1) health center in Novaliches area (3) health centers in Lagro area
and two (2) barangay halls, Novaliches Proper and Sta. Monica. These are all located along Quirino
Highway. Only (1) Fire Station is within the area specifically identified as the Novaliches Fire Station
while there are (2) Fire Sub-Stations that may also serve the area namely, Lagro and Fairview Fire
Subd-Stations. While the barangay hall of Sta. Monica and the Novaliches District Center, otherwise
known as the mini-city hall of Quezon City are located along Moses St., inside Jordan Plains
Subdivision in Bgy. Sta. Monica. There are also three (3) Catholic churches and three (3) chapels and
one (1) public cemetery within the district. Non-catholic church such as the Iglesia ni Kristo, Baptist
Church, UNIDA Evangelical Church, Maranatha First Evangelical Church, Pentecostal Church of
Christ, Jesus is Lord Church, Novaliches Evangelical Church and the Church of Latter-Day Saints are
also found in the district.

The presence of these public institutions in the urban center promotes its growth. Many districts
today hold offices for various administration and governance functions, which influence people to
live in these areas for access to better governance and social amenities like security, sanitation,
housing, education, and healthcare.

Private Development Investments. The private sector is becoming a more significant force in driving
economic expansion and employment creation. It offers products and services, generates tax
revenues to pay for vital social and economic infrastructure, creates fresh, creative solutions to
development problems, and plays a key role in combating climate change. The role that business
plays in development is also expanding, moving away from the traditional strategy of assisting in
economic development to more elaborate and inclusive public-private partnerships. In order to help
end poverty and lessen inequality and exclusion as part of broader sustainable development, the
private sector has thus emerged as a crucial strategic partner for UNDP (United Nations
Development Programme).

References:

Mayer, N. & Keyes, L. (2005, June). City Government’s Role in the Community Development System.
The Urban Institute Metropolitan Housing and Communities Policy Center 2100 M Street, NW
Washington, DC 20037.

Annex 3 Growth Centers. (n.d.). quezoncity.gov.ph. Retrieved June 26, 2022, from
https://quezoncity.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/2011-2030-CLUP-Annex-03-Growth-
Centers.pdf

CLUP 2011-2025 Final Version. (n.d.). quezoncity.gov.ph. Retrieved June 26, 2022, from
https://quezoncity.gov.ph/qc-profile/comprehensive-land-use-plan-2011-2025/

What is Urban Growth? (n.d.). Conserve-Energy-Future.Com. Retrieved June 26, 2022, from
https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/urbanization-and-urban-growth.php

What is the Role of Local Government? (n.d.). British Columbia. Retrieved June 26, 2022, from
https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/employment-business/economic-development/plan-and-
measure/economic-development-basics/where-to-start/role-of-local-government#:~:text=The
%20goal%20is%20to%20provide,local%20infrastructure%20and%20community
%20services.&text=Local%20governments%20can%20initiate%20a,growth%20and%20determining
%20land%20use.

The role of the private sector in development. (n.d.). BusinessForGoals. Retrieved June 26, 2022,
from https://www.business4goals.org/en/development-challenge/the-role-of-the-private-sector-in-
development/#:~:text=It%20provides%20goods%20and%20services,actor%20in%20addressing
%20climate%20change.