More bike weekends coming: A new bike park is set to open in Quezon City soon
In need of fresh air in the middle of the city? Good news: This new bike park in Quezon City might just become your favorite unwinding spot.
Quezon City Mayor Joy Belmonte shared on Instagram on March 3 a few teaser photos of the soon-to-be-launched bike park in the city.
“QCitizens, isa sa mga dapat abangan sa ating lungsod ay ang soon to open na bike park sa loob ng Payatas Controlled Disposal Facility (PCDF),” she wrote in her caption, sharing that she personally visited the area to inspect its safety for the local cyclists.
“Ito ay personal na binisita at ininspeksyon ni Mayor Joy Belmonte upang makita kung ito'y ligtas sa mga siklista.”
“Sino ang mag-aakala na ang dating Payatas Dumpsite ay ngayo'y isang magandang park na! Abangan ang pagbubukas nito, QCitizens!” she concluded.
Before its green transformation, the area was an open landfill that served as the main dumpsite of the locals a.k.a. “Second Smokey Mountain.” Apart from Tondo, Payatas is also illegally inhabited by around 100 families.
In the early years, the garbage disposal in the area wasn’t controlled, prompting the Payatas tragedy in 2000 when a portion of the mountain of garbage collapsed in the local’s houses, burying 200 people alive. It was closed for a few weeks until its reopening was ordered by then-Mayor Ismael Mathay Jr. “to prevent an epidemic of illness due to uncollected garbage.”
It was converted into a “controlled disposal facility” in 2004 until its closure again in 2010. It was reopened again the following year until its closure in 2017 due to nearly reaching its capacity limit.
Further details about its official opening date and other amenities have yet to be announced.