A Cebu City technical panel has recommended that Mont Property Group's 118-hectare Monterrazas de Cebu project be allowed to continue after a review of its flood control measures, while noting that the findings did not establish that the development played no role in flooding in nearby areas.

The city's Technical Infrastructure Committee (TIC), through Resolution No. 2026-008 adopted on Sept. 8, approved a fact-finding report for submission to the Sangguniang Panlungsod, or City Council, according to a statement from Mont Property Group sent to reporters on Tuesday.

The review was prompted by concerns over flooding in communities near the development and by directives from Cebu City Vice-Mayor Tomas Osmeña to investigate whether the project was contributing to the problem.

According to the developer, a joint inspection conducted in July by the TIC, the Department of Engineering and Public Works, the Office of the Building Official, and the Cebu City Environment and Natural Resources Office found that flood control measures had been installed at the site.

In Catchment 01, known as the Montelago sector, inspectors found that seven detention ponds had a combined capacity of 27,483.4 cubic meters, well above the design requirement of 8,220 cubic meters, Mont Property Group said. The company said the ponds are intended to hold rainfall on-site and release water gradually into municipal drainage systems.

The technical panel said it could not conclude that Monterrazas was solely or directly responsible for flooding in low-lying areas. It also cautioned that the findings did not establish that the development does not contribute, directly or indirectly, to flooding. The twin findings clear the project to proceed while leaving open the question of its role in area flooding.

The panel further cited drainage conditions outside the project, according to Mont Property Group, including neighboring developments without retention ponds, differences in the sizes of existing concrete culverts, and changes to a downstream drainage alignment made by an adjacent development. The company said some culverts in the Guadalajara area narrow from 1,500 millimeters to 450 millimeters. The details underscore that the committee's examination of the flooding question extended beyond the project's boundaries, taking in infrastructure linked to neighboring developments and municipal drainage.

"Mont Property Group will continue to ensure all of our projects comply with the government's regulations. Our top priority has always been the welfare of our neighboring communities and making sure that we protect the environmental integrity of these shared spaces," Mont Property Group General Manager Camille Bondad said.

The review followed earlier regulatory actions involving the project. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) filed a criminal complaint against Mont Property Group on Dec. 3 last year over alleged violations of forestry laws. The agency had cited the developer over 734 trees allegedly cut at the site and alleged violations of conditions under its amended environmental compliance certificate, including the absence of required water discharge permits. The complaint is separate from the city-level flood control review, and the committee's report now heads to the City Council, the body set to receive the panel's findings.

— Juliana Chloe A. Gonzales, BusinessWorld