Summary of the first Public Hearing, Wednesday, November 6, 2013
First, a couple of clarifications are needed: A Public Hearing is an event in which only those presenting the amendment to the Municipal Zoning Plan (PRC) speak, followed by the councilmembers — reducing citizen participation to the submission of written observations, which must be delivered to the municipality's records office. The second clarification is that, as expected, Mayor Rodolfo Carter was not present at the hearing, which was chaired by Councilmember Marcelo Zunino (RN).
First, a couple of clarifications are needed: A Public Hearing is an event in which only those presenting the amendment to the Municipal Zoning Plan (PRC) speak, followed by the councilmembers — reducing citizen participation to the submission of written observations, which must be delivered to the municipality's records office. The second clarification is that, as expected, Mayor Rodolfo Carter was not present at the hearing, which was chaired by Councilmember Marcelo Zunino (RN).
Esteban Yuretic, the municipality of La Florida's urban advisor, was the one who presented the PRC amendments. Amendment No. 9 includes not only Panul and the precordillera but also changes in other parts of the district — such as land subdivision in the Diego Portales sector and a reduction in the permitted building height for structures adjacent to the Schönstadt Sanctuary.
Regarding what concerns Panul, Yuretic rushed through it very quickly, without providing much detail about the municipality's proposal, painting the amendment as very beneficial and as the only option for protecting the forest, omitting a great deal of information.
Afterward, the councilmembers were given the floor. Marco Espinoza (DC) spoke first, briefly expressing his dissatisfaction with the amendment since it does not genuinely protect Panul, and insisting that the municipality should purchase the fundo.
David Peralta (PC) spoke next and, far better informed, argued that the presented amendment meant the destruction of Panul — with arguments very similar to those in Red's most recent communiqué.
The third councilmember to speak was Reinaldo Rosales (PPD), who also expressed his dissatisfaction with the amendment — which would allow the native forest to be felled — and added that this month (November) the construction permit freeze would expire. This would leave the forest unprotected, allowing the real estate company to submit a new project under current regulations, which permit the construction of mega-projects in Panul.
Up to that point everything seemed to favor the forest, but the municipality revealed a supposed "ace up its sleeve": Jeanet Fernández, director of SECPLAC, approached the microphone to read a decree from the Regional Ministry of Housing, stating that a new construction permit freeze had been granted on October 24. Red had already warned that this new freeze would be illegal — potentially laying the groundwork for possible court proceedings in favor of the property owner.
At that point the audience grew restless and many residents asked for the floor to speak, but Zunino would not give it to them. Tensions began to rise, given the censorship of residents at this supposed "Citizen Participation" forum.
Attempting to calm the situation — but making things worse — Councilmember (RN) Oscar Aguilera took the floor for a long 25 minutes, saying little more than repeatedly stating "Panul is private property," "that's how things are," "that's the current law," appearing to defend the real estate company and promote the felling of the forest.
Finally, after a great deal of protest from the audience, Zunino allowed only 3 residents to speak. The first was a member and spokesperson of Red Precordillera, who insisted on how disastrous the amendment is, illustrating how if the real estate company wanted to build something, under the new PRC it could erect an "inoffensive industry" (commercial offices, cell towers, soccer fields, buildings much larger than 140 m² if properties are consolidated, etc.) — meaning the municipality would be laying the technical and legal groundwork for the destruction of Panul. He also said he could not understand why the municipality was proposing a subdivision of the forest before receiving the results of the study it had itself commissioned.
The second to speak was the president of the local Neighborhood Association, which benefits from Amendment No. 9, but who emphatically stated that, while they did need the amendment, Panul was more important, and this amendment should not be approved.
Finally, a resident spoke who recounted the remarkable story of when he was director of SERVIU in the 1990s. He described how two parks on the verge of destruction were protected through sheer political will alone, and challenged the councilmembers by saying that all it takes is the will of the councilmembers and the mayor to save Panul — and that if Panul had not already been saved long ago, it was because economic interests were at play.
This Wednesday, the second public hearing will take place at Colegio Santa Irene, and it is important that the Panul community show up in force — to demonstrate that we will not be fresh fodder for old failures, and that as long as the forest breathes, not one more tree will be cut.
We are not willing to let the municipality pave the way for the business that the family of the late Vicente Navarrete is after — remembering that they received the forest almost as a gift, when in the dark and dictatorial times of our history mercenaries dismantled the heritage belonging to all Chileans.
We look forward to seeing you this Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. at Colegio Santa Irene, located at Diagonal Santa Irene 2940.
Forest or Death!
The content expressed in this article is the responsibility of its original authors and does not necessarily represent the views associated with the Panul Para Todos project.
The information archived in Archivo Panul was collected using automated tools, so there may be inconsistencies between what is presented here and the original link. You can visit the original link at the top of this article.