There's a huge renewed interest in the revival of Iloilo City's Calle Real and it's taking shape slowly but surely. Well, not really slowly for within the last two years or so, what we have only dreamt of in the past was becoming a reality. A number of heritage buildings are now being restored courtesy of the Iloilo Cultural Heritage Foundation Inc and the Iloilo City Cultural Heritage Conservation Council. Both organizations work together in making these restorations works with the latter providing preservation and conservation guidelines for the former to execute and maintain together with the current owners. As of now there are already around 10 buildings that have been or almost restored and most of them are along JM Basa Street.
A recent article published on SunStar Iloilo heightened the interest of the Ilonggos as it was proposed that Calle Real/JM Basa street become a public park.
"CALLE Real in Iloilo City is envisioned to become a public park for pedestrians and bikers starting November 30 to December 28 to explore the viability of a pedestrianized downtown core. The one month experiment proposal, introduced by city councilor Jason Gonzales, will temporarily close the street junctions from JM Basa and Arroyo to JM Basa and Mapa at 5 p.m. to 11:59 p.m. every weekend."
This intensified the excitement as well as the realization of the previous campaign which plans to make the area good for pedestrians only, to complement the success of the Iloilo River Espanade which previously was just another diversion road. Now it is among Iloilo City's tourist attractions taking advantage of the natural setting - river, mangroves, sunrise/sunset views on top of the man-made structure - 1.2 kilometer stretch of paved and landscaped walk dotted with pocket gardens and mini parks.
Now that Calle Real is back on the limelight, the street is Iloilo City's showcase of history, culture, business and "grandeur" for more than a century. At present JM Basa Street makes the most of what it used to be (for the old Calle Real they say also form part of Iznart street). The yellow line above shows most of JM Basa Street from the roundabout called Plazoleta Gay to Freedom Grandstand.
Upclose, this is how the JM Basa street closure proposal would look like - covering around 4 blocks and street intersections with Arsenal, Aldeguer, Guanco and Mapa streets. While it is a very busy street on daytime with all the businesses along the JM Basa and its side streeta, at night time around 7pm onwards, business and the crowd tend to be magnetized by the malls and the nightlife areas. The proposal seemed timely as it can create more awareness of this heritage district of Iloilo at the same time bring more life to this corner at night.
Here's a preview and virtual tour of what can expect to along JM Basa street at night with these stunning nightshots from AgBoi blog and the Iloilo Cultural Heritage Foundation. Appreciating these structures would best when fully lighted at night or with natural light during the the early morning when vehicles are still scarce on the city streets. When the morning rush hour starts until it ends in the evening, you won't get to fully appreciate the grandeur of it all - with the hustle and bustle of the city. The Iloilo City Cultural Heritage Conservation Council website has a very detailed information about these and more buildings in their catalog.
Additions to the above are some iconic gastronomic places in the area which includes Buho Bakery (1) Roberto's (2) and KongKee (3). Hopefully these establishments will cash in in this proposal and extend their operating hours to give the Calle Real heritage warriors, a place to nourish themselves. And hoping more and more food establishments would sprout in the area to revive a decent nightlife in the area.
So a timely proposal this has become and hoping for the Ilonggos support through the City Government's and public sectors initiatives to make Calle Real, truly Iloilo City's street of grandeur!