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SOCIAL netizens have taken their opposition to the placing of gates at Burnham Park through social networking sites Facebook and Twitter.

A group of Baguio residents who have started the protests against the proposed earth balling of trees in Luneta Hill have once again stepped up their efforts, this time on the proposed placing of gates in Burnham Park to control public entry.

Karlo Marko Altomonte, a playwright and director and a staunch organizer of the biggest environmental rally in the history of the Summer Capital, has again taken his cause online by calling on local officials led by Mayor Mauricio Domogan and the City Council to keep the 32.88-hectare Burnham Park green, open, and beyond the commerce of man.

The 109-year-old Burnham Park, built during the American period and designed by architect Daniel Burnham, has been fenced in the past years by the Burnham Park Fencing Committee led by Baguio Bishop Carlito Cenzon and was only completed last year mainly through the help of a P25 million funding allotted by President Benigno Aquino III.

The Tourism Infrastructure Enterprise Zone Authority has also embarked on the rehabilitation of the parks Rose Garden recently where terra cotta tiles and a lighted dancing fountain were placed to improve the aesthetics of the park.

The area already floods every now and then and they want to further reduce its water-absorption capacity? Let's say No! Altomonte said in his Twitter account.

The petition was placed online through the website Change.org and garnered more than 600 signatures to date since it was placed in the website last June 6. The group intends to give the petition to local officials.

We oppose the planned concreting of portions of the Melvin Jones Football Grounds. Burnham Park is the only remaining green space in the Central Business District of Baguio City and such is essential to the well-being of the community. What Melvin Jones Football Grounds needs is the improvement of the pitch by clearing of it of debris and the maintenance of the grass cover for the enjoyment of both local athletes and families for activities such as picnics, etc. Perhaps the funds allotted for this can be used instead to re-pave the badly dilapidated biking area, the group said.

We oppose the installation of gates for it will serve no practical purpose and will only be a waste of precious public funds. Security concerns may be better addressed with the addition of more security personnel and lighting, the petition stated.

The petition also stated that the group opposes both ongoing and further commercialization of Burnham Park, including the proposed privatization of the Athletic Bowl, which must remain beyond the commerce of man for the welfare of the general public. Even the skating rink has for some time now been limited to those who can afford to either rent skates from or pay a rink fee to the concessionaire, which should be free and open to the public.

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Park ‘gating’ sparks social media outrage