Central Terminal Lawton Ferry Station Manila Multimodal Terminal (Lawton)
The Arroceros Forest Park is a riverside
urban forest park in
Manila,
Philippines, located on Antonio Villegas Street (former Calle Arroceros) in the central district of
Ermita.
Developed in 1993, the 2.2-hectare (5.4-acre) park on the south bank of the
Pasig River, at the foot of
Quezon Bridge, consists of
secondary growth forest with 61 different tree varieties and 8,000
ornamental plants providing a habitat for 10 different bird species.[1] Despite its small size, it is considered an important feature of the city in providing fresh air to the Lawton area, which is traversed by many commuters from other cities in the region.[2] It lies in a historic area of Manila and has been called "Manila's last lung", being the city's only
nature park.[3] The park is administered by the City Government of Manila in partnership with private environmental group, Winner Foundation.
History
The area occupied by the Arroceros Forest Park used to be part of the
parián or market of Manila.
During Spanish rule, in the 19th century, it was the site of the Fabrica de Arroceros, a tobacco factory of the Spanish Compañía General de Tabacos de Filipinas.
During the Philippine revolution and the first Philippine Republic, Philippine forces had control over the area for some time as they surrounded Intramuros.
During
American rule, it was used as a military garrison which housed the
Signal Corps at the Cuartel de Infantería ("infantry barracks") and the
Surgeon General's office at the Estado Mayor ("major estate").
When the USA transferred sovereignty over the islands to the Philippines after
World War II, the barracks were converted into the headquarters of the
Department of Education.[3]
The park was established in 1993 after the government's education department offices were transferred to its present location in
Pasig. Through a memorandum of agreement signed between the City of Manila and Winner Foundation supported by then First Lady
Amelita Ramos, the city agreed to lease the site for development as a nature park by the private environmental group. With an initial 150 century-old trees that survived the war, the park now hosts over 3,000 trees through reforestation efforts spearheaded by the Manila Seedling Bank.[3][1]
The park became the subject of controversy in 2003, when then mayor
Lito Atienza ordered its closure to give way to the construction of a school administration building and teachers' dormitory for
Division of City Schools – Manila on a portion of the park despite protests from conservation groups. The groups claimed that of the 8,000 trees in the park in 2000, only 2,000 remained when the buildings were completed. The park was reopened in 2007.[4]
However, the memorandum of agreement signed earlier in the 1990s had expired a year later in 2008, leaving the park vulnerable to any future threats to its existence. A few years later, the park was threatened once again, when in July 2017, the Winner Foundation received an order from the Manila city government to vacate the park so that the city could build a gymnasium inside. This prompted the Winner Foundation and its partner groups to launch a signature campaign opposing the construction of the gym.[5] An online
Change.org petition made by a partner group urging the Senate Committee on Climate Change reached 115,000 signatures.[2] The construction of the gym was eventually deferred by former mayor President
Joseph Estrada.[6]
Upon winning the mayoral election,
Isko Moreno said he would not allow any construction from occurring in Arroceros Forest Park, vowing to block the impending construction of the gym made by the previous city administration.[2]
On February 27, 2020, Mayor Isko Moreno signed City Ordinance No. 8607, or the Arroceros Forest Park Ordinance, designating the Arroceros Forest Park as a permanent forest park instead of as ordinary city property. Under this ordinance, cutting of trees, dumping of waste, and excavation is prohibited within the area. Alongside the ordinance, the mayor also revealed plans to allocate P1 million for the park's operations, to appoint "peace officers" to help in taking care of the park, and to expand the forest park as the highlight of a future green city in the Lawton area.[7]
The park was formally reopened in February 2022 as the Arroceros Urban Forest Park after a redevelopment. The park which was 2.51 hectares was expanded by 5 hectares.[8]
In October 2023, a group of public school teachers staged a "
Zumba protest" at Arroceros Park in front of the DCS-Manila offices to demand higher wages, better facilities and working conditions, and a bigger budget for the education sector.[9]
In November 2023, the Bawal Mag-Shoot Dito pro-photography advocacy group held a "Tigil Pitik Photowalk"
lit.'Stop Shooing Photowalk' at Arroceros Park in protest of rules across various public parks in the country that
prohibited the taking of photos for personal and non-commercial use.[10]
In April 2024, the park made headlines for having a recorded temperature of 36 °C (97 °F) amidst an
El Niño phenomenon, being 5 °C (9 °F) cooler than the recorded 41 °C (106 °F) temperature in the rest of Manila.[11] The lower temperatures in the park have been attributed to the park's role in combatting the
urban heat island effect in the city.[12]