Sorsogon City

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Sorsogon City
Component city
City of Sorsogon
Flag Seal
Nickname(s):  "Gateway to Southern Philippines"[1]
Map of Sorsogon with Sorsogon City highlighted
show OpenStreetMap Wikimedia | © OpenStreetMap
Sorsogon City Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 12°58′N 124°00′E / 12.97°N 124°E / 12.97; 124Coordinates: 12°58′N 124°00′E / 12.97°N 124°E / 12.97; 124
Country	Philippines
Region	Bicol Region
Province	Sorsogon
District	1st district
Founded	February 28, 1895
Cityhood	December 16, 2000
Barangays	64 (see Barangays)
Government  [2]
• Type	Sangguniang Panlungsod
• Mayor	Ma. Ester E. Hamor
• Vice Mayor	Mark Eric C. Dioneda
• Representative	Evelina G. Escudero
• City Council	show Members 1st District Jo Abegail C. Dioneda Melchor P. Atutubo Hilario D. Dioneda Danilo A. Deladia 2nd District Ralph Walter R. Lubiano Mary Ellen D. Jamisola Franco Eric O. Ravanilla Joven G. Laura 3rd District Nestor J. Baldon Erwin J. Duana Fernando David H. Duran III Rebecca D. Aquino
• Electorate	100,056 voters (2019)
Area [3]
• Total	276.11 km2 (106.61 sq mi)
Elevation	86 m (282 ft)
Highest elevation	1,078 m (3,537 ft)
Lowest elevation	0 m (0 ft)
Population  (2020 census) [4]
• Total	182,237
• Density	660/km2 (1,700/sq mi)
• Households	35,207
Demonym(s)	Sorsoganon
Economy
• Income class	3rd city income class
• Poverty incidence	28.48% (2015)[5]
• Revenue	₱635,602,765.08 (2016)
Service provider
• Electricity	Sorsogon 2 Electric Cooperative (SORECO 2)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	4700
PSGC	056216000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)56
Climate type	tropical rainforest climate
Native languages	Central Bikol Tagalog
Major Pan-Philippine Highway Route
Minor/Alternative City Routes
Major religions	Christianity
Website	sorsogoncity.gov.ph

Sorsogon City, officially the City of Sorsogon (Waray Sorsogon: Syudad san Sorsogon; Central Bikol: Syudad nin Sorsogon; Tagalog: Lungsod ng Sorsogon), is a 3rd class component city and capital of the province of Sorsogon, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 182,237 people. ^[4]

The component city was established on the year of 2000, from the merger of Bacon and Sorsogon municipalities.^[6] The city's total population spread across 64 barangays.

It serves a trans-shipment point from the Visayas and Mindanao provinces, and is dubbed as the "Gateway to Southern Philippines".^[1] Sorsogon City is one of the region's leading cities in urbanization and the most promising city in terms of development.

History[]

Evidence of human habitation come from 3,000-year old remains in a cave in Bacon and ancient burial sites dug upstream of Sorsogon rivers. Spanish missionaries came upon settlements in both sites when they arrived in the 1600s. Moro pirates had already frequented the territorial waters before the arrival of the Spanish missions.

Bacon was established as a visita of Casiguran while Sorsogon, originally in Sitio Pocdol in Capuy, was then established as a visita of Bacon. Sorsogon then became an independent, full-fledged parish in 1628 due to an increase in population. The two parishes later became civilian political units.^[7]

The Pueblo Civil de Bacon was established in 1754, with Juan Elias as its first gobernadorcillo. Sorsogon became an independent pueblo in 1864. Both Bacon and Sorsogon were under the territorial jurisdiction of the province of Albay until the establishment of the independent province of Sorsogon on October 17, 1894.^[8]

In 1951, Sorsogon was made the center of the episcopal see of the then newly established Roman Catholic Diocese of Sorsogon comprising the Sorsogon and Masbate provinces, with the Saints Peter and Paul Parish Church in the town of Sorsogon as the designated cathedral.^[9]

Foundation[]

Sorsogon City was created by virtue of Republic Act No. 8806^[6] which was enacted on August 16, 2000, and ratified in December 2000.

Geography[]

Sorsogon City covers a land area of 31,292 hectares (120.82 sq mi). It is at the southernmost tip of the Bicol Peninsula and of Luzon Island. The city is bounded by Castilla in the west, Manito in the northwest, Albay Gulf in the north, Prieto Diaz in the east, Gubat in the southeast, Casiguran in the southwest, and Sorsogon Bay in the south. Sorsogon is characterized by an irregular topography; mountain ranges on the north-west, sloping uplands on the central part of the city, plain areas south western and central north and southeast portion, and marshlands on the southeast deltas. It is also surrounded by water, with Sorsogon Bay to the west Albay Gulf to the north east, and Philippine Sea in the east.

Panoramic view of Sorsogon Bay

Sorsogon City is 581 kilometres (361 mi) southeast of Manila and 54 kilometres (34 mi) south of Legazpi City. The 2015 Census puts the city's population at 168,110 with an annual growth rate of 0.84%. Sorsogon City ranked as the 3rd largest city in terms of population in the Bicol region. The only city in the province of Sorsogon, Sorsogon City is the largest in terms of land area in the Bicol region.

The Pan-Philippine Highway which runs from northwest to southeast through the city, connects Sorsogon City to the municipalities of Castilla, Pilar, in the northwest towards Daraga, Legazpi City, Naga City and the rest of Luzon. It also connects to the municipalities of Gubat, Casiguran and the rest of the second district municipalities of the province of Sorsogon in the southeast.

Barangays[]

Climate[]

Sorsogon City features a tropical rainforest climate with copious amount of rainfall throughout the course of the year. There is no pronounced dry season, but it has very pronounced maximum rain from November to January with December as the wettest month of the year; experiencing 23 days of rain. Temperature is constant throughout the year. Sorsogon City's average yearly rainfall is just over 2,671 mm (105.2 in). April is the driest month of the year which only sees 12 rain days and 2,671 mm (105.2 in) of rainfall. Average High temperature is at 38.08 °C (100.5 °F) and its Average Low temperature is at 24.5 °C (76.1 °F). The coolest month is January with a daily mean of 25.5 °C (77.9 °F) and the hottest months are jointly April and May with a daily mean of 28 °C (82.4 °F).

Demographics[]

Demographic statistics:^[14]

• Annual Growth Rate 1.69% for the period 2000 – 2007
• Population Growth Rate – 2.15% (1995–2000)
• Population Density - 627 persons per square kilometer
• Total Number of Households 30,290
• Male Population - 77,117
• Female Population - 74,337
• Religion – 95% Roman Catholic
• Labor Force – 56% of the total population, 1/4 of the over-15 years old is, at least, high-school graduate, 15% of the total workforce have college-level education
• Student Population - 15,323
• Voting Age Population - 83, 123

Economy[]

Sorsogon City, as the capital town of the province of Sorsogon, is a hub of trade and commerce. Business is concentrated in the downtown area near the public market and major commercial establishments primarily geared towards retail and wholesale and the Bacon District is the secondary business district of the city.

As of 2012, Sorsogon City ranked third among the cities with most revenue in the Bicol region with an estimated annual income of P432,978,837,^[21] only behind Naga City and Legazpi City. Despite being a city and its increasing annual income, agriculture and fisheries sector is still the driving force of its economy.^{[citation needed]} The main agricultural products include rice, coconut, abaca, pili nuts, root crops and vegetables.^{[citation needed]}

The Bay City Sorsogon, that is currently being built at the coast of Barangay Balogo will definitely have a huge impact on the economic growth of the city. It is a priority project of LKY Development Corporation, a privately owned real estate company. The Bay City Sorsogon includes a Commercial Complex, Five Star Hotel, Coliseum, Outdoor Dining Area, a Central Bus Terminal and a lot more. The excavation of this 16-hectare property just started during the last quarter of 2010 and the completion is expected by the 3rd quarter of 2011.^{[22][better source needed]}

City government[]

The city's local government is headed by a mayor elected by popular vote. The Vice Mayor serves as the presiding officer of the Sangguniang Panlungsod (city council), with 12 Councilors elected by popular vote as its members.^[23] The Sangguniang Panlungsod serves as the city's legislative body and its role is to enact ordinances, approve resolutions, appropriate funds for the general welfare of the city and its inhabitants.^{[citation needed]} Both the council members and the mayor serve three-year terms; and eligible for re-election for two more three-year terms.^{[citation needed]}

The 3 Districts of Sorsogon City shown in the picture: Marked in green is Bacon district, Yellow is the East District and in Blue, the West district.

Infrastructure[]

Sorsogon Sports Complex (Under construction)

A Sorsogon City Coastal Road is already underway. The construction of the coastal highway was pledged by Senator Francis Escudero and Sorsogon 1st District Representative Evelina Escudero. The 22-hectare coastal highway will help alleviate the traffic congestion once completed and provide an additional space for a walkway.^[24]

In order to spur development in the city, The Toll Regulatory Board declared Toll Road 5 the extension of South Luzon Expressway.^[25] A 420-kilometer, four lane expressway starting from the terminal point of the now under construction SLEX Toll Road 4 at Barangay Mayao, Lucena City in Quezon to Matnog, Sorsogon, near the Matnog Ferry Terminal. On August 25, 2020, San Miguel Corporation announced that they will invest the project which will reduce travel time from Lucena to Matnog from 9 hours to 5.5 hours.^[26]

The Sorsogon Sports Complex (Formerly known as the Balogo Sports Complex) is a complex of sport facilities located at Brgy. Balogo and its still under rehabilitation. With the total cost of ₱887 Million and the capacity was 15,000 people, the said sports complex will become the host for the future Palarong Pambansa.^[27] Mohri & P.A. Associates are the architecture of that project with the total area of 56,218 sq. m. and a 4 story.^[28]

Notable people[]

• Eddie Garcia – Film actor and director
• Eugenia Apostol (sister of former Sorsogon Mayor Duran) – one of the founders of Philippine Daily Inquirer
• Francis "Chiz" G. Escudero – former congressman, and a former senator of the 15th Congress,^[29] and currently serving his first term as provincial governor of Sorsogon^[30]
• Jorge Barlin – First Filipino and Bikolano Bishop and was assigned parish priest and Vicar Forane of Sorsogon from 1887 to 1906^[31]
• Loida Nicolas Lewis – Chairwoman and chief executive officer of TLC Beatrice, LLC, the Lewis Family investment firm and is also chairman and CEO of TLC Beatrice (China) and TLC Beatrice Foods (Philippines).
• Mary Walter – actress, whose career spanned through several decades. She was born in Bacon.^[32]
• Aldin Ayo - a former Sorsogon City's councilor, former coach of Letran Knights^[33] and currently the basketball coach of the De La Salle Green Archers.

Sister cities[]

Local[]

• Legazpi
• Iloilo City, Iloilo
• Pasay
• Zamboanga City

International[]

• Ceuta, Spain
• Sterling Heights, Michigan, United States

References[]

External links[]

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Sorsogon City.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sorsogon City.

• Philippine Standard Geographic Code
• Philippine Census Information
• Local Governance Performance Management System