MEGA STRUCTURE. An architect's perspective of the proposed sports stadium in Tolosa, Leyte. It will be the largest sports stadium in the Visayas with a seating capacity of 25,000. (Photo courtesy of Department of Public Works and Highways)
TACLOBAN CITY – The largest sports stadium in the Visayas region with a seating capacity of 25,000 will soon rise in Tolosa, Leyte province.
The mega facility will rise within a 20-hectare lot in Canmogsay village, Tingog Partylist Rep. Jude Acidre said in a press briefing Tuesday.
He said choosing Tolosa to be the location of the stadium is part of the effort to promote the first district of Leyte as a MICE (meeting, incentives, conferences, and events or exhibitions) destination in the region.
MICE is one of the top tourism programs of the Department of Tourism (DOT).
"This is part of our aggressive move to make the first district a MICE destination," Acidre told reporters.
Tacloban and its neighboring town of Palo are among the areas identified by the tourism department in the region as part of the MICE corridor in Eastern Visayas, where most of the biggest hotels and big facilities for conferences, concerts, and sporting events are located.
Data provided by the DOT regional office shows that the region hosted 765 MICE activities attended by 79,600 participants in 2023. These events contributed to increased tourism arrivals.
"By doing that, we will bring in more investment, more jobs, and a better life for our region," Acidre added.
This facility, once completed, will allow the region to host international sporting events.
“This project is not only significant to Tolosa but to the entire Leyte area as well, since development and progress also extend to the nearby municipalities,” Department of Public Works and Highway Eastern Visayas Regional Director Edgar Tabacon said.
An initial fund of PHP200 million has been downloaded to the DPWH regional office for the construction of the multi-purpose sports center.
The pilot project to be implemented this year is a mid-rise structure with a total floor area of about 34,395 square meters with a mezzanine floor, intended for the provision of a football stadium with bleachers and track and field set-up.
The completion of the entire stadium is targeted to be finished within three to four years. (PNA)
