Cadiz City in Negros Occidental has another attraction to be proud of, with the redeveloped Cadiz City Children’s Playground (CCCP), also dubbed as playground of generations, according to a press release from the Cadiz PIO.
With a budget of P18 million from the Department of Budget and Management’s “Green, Green, Green” program, the city government took time last year to revitalize the CCCP, considered as one of the landmarks in the “City of Whales.”
DBM’s “Green, Green, Green” is a unique assistance program with the purpose of making 145 cities across the country, including Cadiz, become more livable and sustainable by developing public spaces.
Blessed and inaugurated on Easter Sunday, the reopened CCCP boasts of features that will attract and amaze children, and even those who are kids at heart.
The playground features a big shoe house, giant squash, strangler fig tree, two carabaos locking horns, the famed three wise monkeys, and a majestic lion’s head at its entrance.
The playground’s aura remains as more than a recreational space, but rather mirrors a visual and cultural narrative of Cadiz.
Moreover, CCCP is a symbol of resilience, history, and unity of Cadizeños through the years, and has become one of the landmarks in Cadiz that stood the test of time.
Built during the rule of late president Ferdinand Marcos Sr., CCCP has been a witness to the city’s growth – from a peaceful, economically thriving town to a vibrant chartered city on July 4, 1967.
It survived two severe typhoons that hammered Negros Occidental – Typhoon Frank in 2009 and the Super Typhoon Yolanda in 2013.
Cadiz Mayor Salvador Escalante, Jr said, “CCCP is a living testament of Cadizen̈os’ roots, and resilience.”
It even represents Cadiz then and now as the land of splendid opportunities, he said.
“It also serves as a center that could tell many stories of families, of students, of friends, of workers, and many more – packed in one episode – great to be told and retold from time to time,” the mayor added.
“CCCP is not just for children, but for everybody regardless of age. Here, we are building a culture of compassion and a mindset for excellence,” Escalante stressed.
By reviving this space, he said “we’re not only preserving history; we’re creating another new tourist attraction, and memories for future generations.”*
