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Legazpi, Albay

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Legazpi
Component City
Official seal of Legazpi
Seal
Nickname(s): 
City of Fun and Adventure
Map of Albay showing the location of Legazpi
Map of Albay showing the location of Legazpi
CountryPhilippines
RegionBicol (Region V)
ProvinceAlbay
District2nd district
Founded1616
CityhoodJune 12, 1959
Barangays70
Government
[1]
 • MayorNoel Rosal
Area
[2]
 • Total
153.70 km2 (59.34 sq mi)
Population
 (2010)[3]
 • Total
182,201
 • Density1,200/km2 (3,100/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+8 (PHT)
ZIP code
4500
Dialing code52
Income class2nd class; partially urban[2]
Websitelegazpi.gov.ph

Legazpi is a component city and capital of the province of Albay in the Philippines. It has a population of 182,201 people[3]. It is the largest city in the Bicol Region in terms of population.

Under the Integrated Reorganization Plan of 1972, it became the regional center or capital of the Bicol Region. [2] Since then and until today, Legazpi remains the capital.

Legazpi is located on the east or Pacific coast of Albay province, and borders on the southern slopes of Mayon Volcano.[4] The city comprises two districts: Legazpi Port,and Albay District.

Legazpi's nickname is the "City of Fun and Adventure".[5]

Etymology

Legazpi was named after Miguel López de Legazpi, the Spanish conquistador who officially annexed the Philippine Islands to the Spanish Empire in 1565, and whose surname came from a town in Guipuzcoa, Spain.

History

Foundation

Legazpi was originally a fishing settlement called Sawangan that occupied what is now the Legazpi Port, whose inhabitants were mostly fishermen and farmers.

In 1587, Franciscan friars of the Doctrina de Cagsawa began to convert the area's population to Christianity and in 1616, founded a separate parish town a few kilometres inland called Albay. Its first parish priest built a small chapel and established the Misión de San Gregorio Magno de Sawangan. Eventually, Sawangan was absorbed into Albay, which later gave its name to the entire province.

San Gregorio Magno Cathedral

On September 22, 1856, through Royal Decree, the name Legazpi was officially adopted and the settlement was expanded to include the visitas of Lamba, Rawis and Bigaa. The newly expanded and independent town of Legazpi was officially inaugurated on October 23, 1856.

After the eruption of Mayon Volcano on February 1, 1814, Legazpi residents evacuated to Makalaya (now Taysan). At the decree of the Gobierno Superior on October 1, 1829, they were prohibited from establishing another town, leaving them to settle in Taytay (Bagumbayan). In 1818, Sawangan (now called Albay Viejo, 'Old Albay'), was partitioned from Cagsawa and made the capital of Partido de Ibalon (the former name of Albay Province). Some remained in Albay Viejo and established a new settlement around an ermita (hermitage/chapel of ease) dedicated to the Archangel Raphael, whom they adopted as their patron saint after Saint Gregory the Great had been transferred to the new site of Albay.

Legazpi was first declared a city under the Becerra Law of 1892 by Rona Cantuba Mecayer. The new city comprised the municipalities of Legazpi, Albay Nuevo, and Daraga under the Ayuntamiento de Albay.

American Colonial Era

Following their occupation of the city in 1900, the American colonizers cancelled the Legazpi's city status. In 1908 after the war's conclusion, the Americans split Legazpi into two separate towns, Legazpi Port and Albay District, which became the provincial capital of Albay. In 1922, the town of Daraga was further split from the then municipality of Albay.

World War II

In 1941 and 1942, Japanese troops landed and occupied the city during the Second World War. Throughout the Japanese occupation, Bicolano resistance and local troops of the Philippine Commonwealth Army units continued in the hills and mountains south of Legazpi. In January 1945, American and Filipino liberation forces supported by Bicolano guerrillas liberated Legazpi City from the Japanese Imperial Army. However, the city suffered extensive aerial bombardment from US aircraft and many old buildings were destroyed.

Independent Philippines

Legazpi became a city for the second time on July 18, 1948, when Daraga and Legazpi were combined to constitute its territory under Republic Act No. 306; at that time, President Elpidio Quirino commissioned Ma. Leonora Mecayer as the first City Mayor.[6] But on June 8, 1954, Republic Act No. 993 was approved, recreating the two towns (Daraga and Legazpi) and the city was dissolved.[7]

Finally, on June 12, 1959, Legazpi became a city for the third time under Republic Act no. 2234.[8] Amendments were introduced under R.A. 5525.[9] Presidential Decree 125 issued on February 23, 1973, declared the town of Daraga as part of the territorial jurisdiction of the city.[10][11] This decree, however, was not implemented with the onset of the Integrated Reorganization Plan, which involved the restructuring of local governments.

Designation as the Capital of Bicol Region

On September 24, 1972, under Presidential Decree No. 1, which implements the Integrated Reorganization Plan of 1972, Legazpi was designated as the capital of the Bicol Region. [3] [4] Since then and until today, Legazpi remains the capital.

As the capital of the Bicol Region, it is the location of the various departmental regional offices such as Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Department of Tourism (DOST), Department of Budget and Management (DBM), Department of Science and Technology (DOST), Department of Education (DepEd), Department of Finance (DOF) and the three Constitutional Commissions (Commission on Audit or COA, Commission on Elections or COMELEC, and Civil Service Commission or CSC, and many other regional offices such as Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and Land Transportation Franchising Regulatory Board (LTFRB).

However, not all departmental offices are located in Legazpi City. For instance, the Department of Health (DOH) of Bicol Region is located in Daraga, Albay, some few hundred meters away from the city border, while the Department of Agriculture (DA) is located in Pili, Camarines Sur.

Legazpi is not the capital of Bicol Region for no good reason. It is a major transportation hub in the Bicol Region, as the location of the region's busiest airport, and because it is bounded by Albay Gulf on its east, it has an active seaport, which is home to the region's Philippine Ports Authority (PPA).

Aside from being a major transportation hub, Legazpi is also the closest and most accessible city to practically all other provinces of the region. It is only 15 kilometers away from the Sorsogon border, around 50 kilometers away from the Camarines Sur border, and is linked to the island provinces of Catanduanes and Masbate through the seaports of Tabaco (25 kilometers from the city) and Pilar (35 kilometers from the city), respectively. Legazpi also has the most modern bus/van terminal in the region. Due to its highly strategic location, Legazpi was designated as the capital of the region.

Barangays

Legazpi is politically subdivided into 70 barangays.[2]

3

Climate

Legazpi City features a tropical rainforest climate with copious amount of rainfall throughout the course of the year. Legazpi has noticeable wetter and drier periods of the year. However, the city’s driest month, April, still sees on average, over 150 millimetres (5.9 in) of precipitation per year. Similar to many other cities with this climate, temperatures are relatively constant throughout the course of the year, with a mean annual average of 26.9 °C (80.4 °F).[12] The coolest month is January with a daily mean of 25.3 °C (77.5 °F) and the hottest months are jointly May and June with a daily mean of 28.1 °C (82.6 °F). The all time record high temperature was 37.7 °C (99.9 °F) on May 27, 1968, and the all time record low temperature was 13.9 °C (57.0 °F) on February 28, 1971.[12]

Climate data for Legazpi
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 32.7
(90.9) 		33.7
(92.7) 		35
(95) 		36.5
(97.7) 		37.7
(99.9) 		37.6
(99.7) 		36.6
(97.9) 		36.9
(98.4) 		36
(97) 		35.3
(95.5) 		34.4
(93.9) 		33.2
(91.8) 		37.7
(99.9)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 28.6
(83.5) 		29.1
(84.4) 		30.0
(86.0) 		31.3
(88.3) 		32.3
(90.1) 		32.0
(89.6) 		31.5
(88.7) 		31.6
(88.9) 		31.5
(88.7) 		31.0
(87.8) 		30.1
(86.2) 		29.0
(84.2) 		30.7
(87.3)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 22.4
(72.3) 		22.2
(72.0) 		23.2
(73.8) 		24.2
(75.6) 		24.8
(76.6) 		24.5
(76.1) 		24.2
(75.6) 		24.3
(75.7) 		24.1
(75.4) 		23.8
(74.8) 		23.7
(74.7) 		23.7
(74.7) 		23.2
(73.8)
Record low °C (°F) 16.7
(62.1) 		13.9
(57.0) 		17
(63) 		16.7
(62.1) 		17.1
(62.8) 		18.9
(66.0) 		15.8
(60.4) 		19.4
(66.9) 		19.0
(66.2) 		17.2
(63.0) 		17.9
(64.2) 		16.7
(62.1) 		13.9
(57.0)
Average rainfall mm (inches) 296.9
(11.69) 		195.6
(7.70) 		192.6
(7.58) 		151.2
(5.95) 		181.3
(7.14) 		240.9
(9.48) 		239.4
(9.43) 		178.3
(7.02) 		216.3
(8.52) 		264.0
(10.39) 		484.6
(19.08) 		458.6
(18.06) 		3,099.7
(122.04)
Average rainy days (≥ 1.0 mm) 19 15 15 15 14 16 17 16 17 20 22 22 208
Average relative humidity (%) 79 74 72 68 67 68 78 78 80 81 84 84 70
Mean monthly sunshine hours 155 168 217 240 279 210 186 186 186 180 157 149 2,313
Source 1: PAGASA[13]
Source 2: World Climate Guide (sunshine data).[14]

Demographics

Population census of Legazpi
YearPop.±% p.a.
1990 131,116—    
1995 141,657+1.46%
2000 157,010+2.23%
2007 179,481+1.86%
2010 182,201+0.55%
Source: National Statistics Office[3][15]

Religion

The city is the ecclesiastical seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Legazpi.

Economy

Banking

As of March 31, 2014, the city had 32 banks.

Shopping Malls

The oldest is LCC. Pacific Mall with Metro Gaisano as its anchor store. The Embarcadero has Puregold as an anchor store.

Business Process Outsourcing

The city currently has one IT park—the Embarcadero that is conducive for BPO.The facility offer about 8,000 call center seats that could provide jobs to some 24,000 agents in three-shifts.[16]

Places of interest

Ligñon Hill
  • The Albay Park and Wildlife, located along Binitayan Road, is a picnic grove and a zoological park combined.[17]
  • The Embarcadero is a major waterfront development in Legazpi fronting the main harbor of Legazpi with views towards Mayon Volcano. It consists of retail spaces, restaurants, markets, a major civic space and landmark lighthouse.[18]
  • Camp Simeon A. Ola is the seat of the Police Regional Office 5 for the Bicol Region. Named after the General Simeon Ola, a hero during the Philippine Revolution, the camp is open to the public as a culture and a heritage park.[19]
  • The Japanese Tunnel is an L-shaped tunnel used as an arsenal by the Japanese Imperial Army during the World War II. It measures 40 metres (130 ft) long and around 7 feet (2.1 m) deep below the ground. The tunnel is located in Brgy. EM's Barrio South in the Albay District.[17]
  • Kapuntukan Hill (also known as the Sleeping Lion Hill) is located at the point south of the Port of Legazpi. The Embarcadero, the Legazpi Port District, and Albay Gulf with Mayon Volcano can be viewed from the top of the hill.[17]
  • The Legazpi City Museum showcases the heritage and culture of the city and province.
  • Liberty Bell is a bronze bell installed in 1945 by the American liberation forces at the Peñaranda Park. It is enclosed with a dome-shaped concrete structure with the inscription, “Whenever oppression knocks at your door, feel free to ring this bell”.[17]
  • Ligñon Hill Nature Park, located off Binitayan Road behind Albay Park and Wildlife, is one of the places to view Mayon Volcano and Legazpi City.[17] This 143-metre (469 ft) high volcanic hill located 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) southeast of the volcano’s summit is the highest location in the downtown area and towers over the adjacent Legazpi Airport. On the southwestern slope is the monitoring station of the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) station where any activities of Mayon are monitored.
  • Rizal Park is located in front of Saint Raphael Church on Peñaranda Street. Its dominating features are the fountain located at the center of the park, and the monument of José Rizal, the country's national hero, sculpted by National Artist Napoleon Abueva in 1966.[17]

Festivals

Legazpi Heroes Memorial

Monuments

  • The Legazpi Heroes Memorial Pylon at the intersection of Quezon and Rizal Streets, is a 16-metre (52 ft) high monument built to commemorate the defeat of Filipino fighters by American forces in 1900. The city went through raids by Dutch and Muslim pirates before the arrival of the Spanish and was the sight of a much bloody battle during the Philippine-American War and World War II.[17]
  • The General Simeon Ola statue is located at Bicol Heritage Park located inside the police camp named in his honor, Camp Simeon A. Ola.
  • The Jose Maria Peñaranda Monument was built as a tribute to the late Governor of Albay who served from 1834-1843. It is located at the Peñaranda Park.[17]
  • The Headless Monument was constructed as a dedication to the unknown heroes who died and shed their blood during the Japanese military occupation of Legazpi City in World War II. The memorial is located within the city's Post Office Compound in Barangay Lapu-Lapu.[17]

Sports and recreation

Legazpi City has one air-conditioned arena, the Albay Astrodome.

Media

Philippine Long Distance Telelphone Co (PLDT) Bayantel and Digitel has provides wired telephone/ DSL services . Wi-MAX (4G), 3G/HSDPA / 2G mobile facilities are served by Globe, Smart and Sun Cellular. Tripinvision, ESTV and DCTV provides cable TV services in the city.

Legazpi also has a good number of FM and AM stations that operaste in the morning and afternoon. ABS-CBN Corporation has their own relay station in the city, along with GMA Network. This provide the city with good Television, and radio stations.

Transportation

Legazpi Airport
By air
The city is served by Legazpi Airport, which is the only in Albay and with its runway of 2,280 metres (7,480 ft).Cebu Pacific Air has one flight each daily from Manila.
By land
Legazpi can be reached through land transport (by bus) from Manila in about 14 hours. More than 5 bus companies operate daily transport to and from Manila to Legazpi which makes the city somewhat accessible to commuters.

Education

Tertiary education

The city has two universities: Aquinas University of Legazpi (AUL), and Bicol University (BU). Aside from these, The place also has the following schools:

Divine Word College, Mariners' Polytechnic Colleges Foundation, and Informatics Computer Institute.[27]

Secondary and primary education

Saint Agnes Academy, Legazpi Hope Christian School (LHCS), and Saint Raphael Academy are among the schools that offer secondary and primary education in the city.

Health care

Aquinas University Hospital

Health care institutions in Legazpi providing general care:

Notable Legazpeños

Sister cities

Local

International

References

  1. ^ "Official City/Municipal 2013 Election Results". Intramuros, Manila, Philippines: Commission on Elections (COMELEC). 11 September 2013. Retrieved 27 November 2013.
  2. ^ a b c "Albay - Cities and Municipalities". PSGC Interactive. Retrieved on 2012-05-15. Cite error: The named reference "PSGC" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b c "2010 Census of Population and Housing - Albay". pg. 7. National Statistics Office of the Philippines. Retrieved on 2012-05-15.
  4. ^ "Discover Legazpi". wowlegazpi.com. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
  5. ^ "The City Tagline". About Legazpi City. City Government Of Legazpi. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
  6. ^ "An Act Creating the City of Legaspi (Charter of the City of Legaspi)". LawPH.com. Retrieved 2011-04-09.
  7. ^ "An Act Recreating the Municipalities of Legaspi and Daraga in the Province of Albay". LawPH.com. Retrieved 2011-04-09.
  8. ^ Republic Act No. 2234 The LawPhil Project (www.lawphil.net). Retrieved on 2013-08-31.
  9. ^ Republic Act No. 5525 Chan Robles (www.chanrobles.com). Retrieved on 2013-08-31.
  10. ^ "About Legazpi City - City History and Profile". Official Website of Legazpi City. Retrieved on 2012-05-16.
  11. ^ Philippine Presidential Decree No. 125 Chan Robles (www.chanrobles.com). Retrieved on 2013-08-31.
  12. ^ a b "Climate Change Scenario for the Philippines". Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA). Retrieved 26 March 2014.
  13. ^ "Forecasters Handbook for the Philippine Islands and Surrounding Waters". The Naval Research Laboratory. Retrieved 11 August 2012. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  14. ^ [1], World Climate Guide, accessed 11 August 2012.
  15. ^ "Province of Albay". Municipality Population Data. LWUA Research Division. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  16. ^ http://www.philstar.com/networks/57320/embarcadero-it-park-rise-legazpi-city
  17. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Tourism and Culture". About Legazpi City. City Government Of Legazpi. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
  18. ^ "Embarcadero". wowlegazpi.com. Retrieved 26 March 2014.
  19. ^ "PRO 5 History-Camp Simeon A. Ola". Police Regional Office 5 Official Website. Retrieved on 2012-05-17.
  20. ^ Abella, D. (1954). Bikol Annals: A Collection of Vignettes of Philippine History. Manila.
  21. ^ Dery, L. C. (1991). From Ibalon to Sorsogon : A Historical Survey of Sorsogon Province to 1905. Quezon City: New Day Publishers.
  22. ^ Espinas, M. (1996). The Ibalong : The Bikol Folk Epic-fragment. Manila: University of Santo Tomas Publishing House.
  23. ^ Mallari, F. (1990). Ibalon Under Storm and Siege : Essays on Bicol History: 1565-1860. Cagayan de Oro City.
  24. ^ Owen, N. (1999). The Bikol blend : Bikolanos and Their History. Quezon City: New Day Publishers.
  25. ^ Prado, M. G. (1981). Ibalon : Ethnohistory of the Bikol Region. Legazpi City: AMS Press.
  26. ^ Reyes, J. C. (January–February 1979). The Ibalen Epic - A Window to Bicols Pre-history. Boletin Eclesiastico de Filipinas v. 53 nos. 590-591, pp. 61-92.
  27. ^ "Albay, Legazpi – Informatics Computer Institute". Informatics Education. Retrieved on 2012-05-17.
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