A country’s heritage is an integral component of the identity of its people, a truism that the framers of our Constitution recognized––which is why our Charter mandates the State to foster the preservation, enrichment and dynamic evolution of a Filipino culture, as well as to conserve, develop, promote, and popularize the nation!s historical and cultural heritage.

To aid government efforts to this end, Congress in 2009 passed Republic Act 10066 or the National Cultural Heritage Act of 2009. The primary goal of this law is to “protect, preserve, conserve and promote the nation!s cultural heritage, its property and histories, and the ethnicity of local communities.”

Measures like these, however, can only be effective if they are properly operationalized and implemented at the local level. An example of this is City Ordinance No. 2018-53 passed by the City of San Pablo, which established the city’s heritage zone and also identified historical sites outside the heritage zone. The ordinance is a concrete first step to preserving historical structures in San Pablo that were put up during the American Colonial Era, such as the colonial lamp posts and concrete flower pots in the center islands, the plaza fountain, the JP Rizal monument, and the SP Central School that was built at the turn of the century.

Sustaining this effort to preserve, develop, and promote our heritage sites will require manpower and resources––resources such as this manual produced by the University of Santo Tomas Graduate School for Conservation of Cultural Property and Environment in the Tropics. This publication is vital as it serves as a guide for the development of structures and sites in our heritage zone and sites for government and privately-owned properties––a template moving forward that will provide the city’s leaders with the knowledge necessary for the proper development of San Pablo’s potential heritage sites.

To those who put their time and effort into this manual, the city of San Pablo and the province of Laguna thank you for this valuable contribution to our efforts to develop the city’s heritage zones and structures. We are likewise grateful to the National Historical Commission of the Philippines, former Senator Loren Legarda, and the city government under the leadership of Mayor Loreto Amante for shepherding this groundbreaking initiative. It is my hope that similar projects are replicated in other parts of our beloved province, as well as the entire country.

Mabuhay po kayo at ang Lungsod ng San Pablo!