Robredo details P500-M JMR Coliseum rehabilitation
By Jason B. Neola
MAYOR Maria Leonor “Leni” Robredo has explained the origin and timeline of the P500-million national government funding for the rehabilitation and retrofitting of the Jesse M. Robredo (JMR) Coliseum, saying the project was pursued because the facility has become the city’s largest evacuation center.
In a Facebook post on Monday, September 21, Robredo said the coliseum was constructed in 2009 and opened in 2010 as a venue for major events, conventions, sports competitions and concerts. It was renamed Jesse M. Robredo Coliseum through Sangguniang Panlungsod Ordinance No. 2012-043 following the death of her husband in August 2012.
With a seating capacity of 12,000, the facility has over the years become a major evacuation center because of the frequent typhoons and flooding affecting Naga, housing thousands of families during calamities.
Robredo, however, said the coliseum was not originally designed as an evacuation facility and therefore lacks several basic amenities needed for prolonged evacuation.
She cited limited space for tents, bleachers that cannot be used as beds, ground-floor comfort rooms that become unusable during floods, the absence of communal kitchens and inadequate areas for storing relief goods.
“The need to repair and retrofit the Coliseum became even starker” after Typhoon Kristine, which brought what she described as Naga’s worst flooding.
Robredo said she began looking for funding for the rehabilitation soon after assuming office in 2025, but securing the amount needed for the project proved difficult.
She said Sen. Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan advised the city to apply for funding through the Local Government Support Fund (LGSF), which the city subsequently pursued.
The city was informed in early February 2026 that the funding request had been approved in principle, according to Robredo.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. later visited Naga and turned over the P500-million funding for the rehabilitation of the coliseum.
Of the amount, P450 million is intended for the repair and rehabilitation of the facility, while P50 million is earmarked for heavy equipment needed to strengthen the city’s disaster-response capability, Robredo said.
The funding will support the transformation of the coliseum into a safer and more functional facility that can serve both as an evacuation center during disasters and as a venue for major events and sports competitions.
Robredo said that despite the release of the funding, construction could not immediately begin because several government and nongovernment agencies and organizations are currently holding office inside the coliseum.
The city needs to relocate these offices before construction starts, she said.
Robredo said the Balatas Building, which will serve as the temporary offices of the affected agencies and organizations during construction, is expected to be ready in October.
The city consequently scheduled the bidding for September. Robredo said the procurement process is now in the post-qualification stage, with construction expected to start within October.
The rehabilitation is part of the city government’s efforts to strengthen its disaster preparedness and resilience, particularly in view of the coliseum’s increasing role as a major evacuation facility during typhoons and floods.
During the President’s February visit, Marcos also inspected key waterways in Naga as part of the government’s flood-mitigation efforts and assessed the condition of the JMR Coliseum following damage caused by previous earthquakes and typhoons.
The President, accompanied by Robredo, Public Works Secretary Vince Dizon and officials of concerned national government agencies, also inspected dredging operations at Sagop Creek under the government’s “Oplan Kontra Baha.”
The flood-mitigation initiative includes the clearing of creeks and drainage systems to improve water flow and reduce flooding in vulnerable areas.
The national government has committed to complementary interventions, including continued dredging, drainage improvements and long-term flood-control measures.
Robredo said the national government assistance for the coliseum would help address one of the city’s critical disaster-response infrastructure needs while allowing the facility to continue serving as a venue for major public events.
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