San Antonio is an administrative division in southern

Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila (often shortened as Metro Manila; fil, Kalakhang Maynila), officially the National Capital Region (NCR; fil, link=no, Pambansang Punong Rehiyon), is the capital region, seat of government and one of three List of metrop ...

, the Philippines. It is a collection of sixteen

gated communities A gated community (or walled community) is a form of residential community or housing estate containing strictly controlled entrances for pedestrians, bicycles, and automobiles, and often characterized by a closed perimeter of walls and fences. ...

on the east side of

Parañaque Parañaque, officially the City of Parañaque ( fil, Lungsod ng Parañaque, ), is a first class Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to t ...

abutting the city of

Muntinlupa Muntinlupa, officially the City of Muntinlupa ( fil, Lungsod ng Muntinlupa), is a 1st class Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the ...

, and the informal settlements surrounding them. The

barangay A barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as barrio (abbreviated as Bo.), is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district, or ward. In metropolitan ...

is a long strip along the north side of

Dr. Santos Avenue Dr. Arcadio Santos Avenue or Dr. Santos Avenue, formerly and still referred to as Sucat Road or Parañaque–Sucat Road, is the primary east–west thoroughfare in Parañaque, southern Metro Manila, Philippines. The avenue's western end is in ...

stretching from

South Luzon Expressway The South Luzon Expressway (SLEX), signed as E2 of the Philippine expressway network and R-3 of the Metro Manila arterial road network, is a limited-access toll expressway that connects Metro Manila to the provinces in the Calabarzon region ...

to just west of San Antonio Avenue by the Jaka Plaza commercial center. It is bordered by Marcelo Green to the north, the Muntinlupa barangay of

Sucat Dr. Arcadio Santos Avenue or Dr. Santos Avenue, formerly and still referred to as Sucat Road or Parañaque–Sucat Road, is the primary east–west thoroughfare in Parañaque, southern Metro Manila, Philippines. The avenue's western end is in ...

across the expressway to the east,

BF Homes Parañaque BF Homes Parañaque, officially Barangay BF Homes, is a gated community and administrative division in southern Metro Manila, the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen barangays that make up Parañaque and is the city's largest barangay and sout ...

across Dr. Santos Avenue to the south, and San Isidro and Moonwalk to the west. It extends to the northwest along San Antonio Avenue and also shares a border with

Don Bosco John Melchior Bosco ( it, Giovanni Melchiorre Bosco; pms, Gioann Melchior Bòsch; 16 August 181531 January 1888), popularly known as Don Bosco , was an Italian Catholic priest, educator, writer and saint of the 19th century. While working ...

further north and northwest. The barangay is part of the Parañaque's 2nd congressional district. San Antonio is the city's administrative center, being the location of the Parañaque City Hall. It is the most populous of the four barangays in Metro Manila bearing the name San Antonio. In 2016, the barangay also recorded the highest number of informal settlers in Parañaque with 2,661 households illegally occupying properties in the barangay, and 607 households living in makeshift houses. As of the 2015 census, San Antonio had a population of 67,401.

History

The barangay was founded in 1978 as a result of

real estate development Real estate development, or property development, is a business process, encompassing activities that range from the renovation and re-lease of existing buildings to the purchase of raw Real Estate, land and the sale of developed land or parcels ...

and changing

demographics Demography () is the statistical study of populations, especially human beings. Demographic analysis examines and measures the dimensions and dynamics of populations; it can cover whole societies or groups defined by criteria such as edu ...

happening across the Manila region in the decades following

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. The multiplication of barangays was also aided by a national government program for economic acceleration through the creation of more administrative divisions during the term of President

Ferdinand Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. ( , , ; September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino politician, lawyer, dictator, and kleptocrat who was the 10th president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled under martial ...

. The contiguous gated communities of San Antonio Valley (except Phases 2, 6, 12 and 15), Barangay Village, Fourth Estate, and Mon El Subdivision were separated from San Dionisio on May 1, 1978 through Presidential Decree No. 1329. It was named after its largest component village (San Antonio Valley Phase 1) where the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Manila The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Manila ( lat, Archidioecesis Manilensis; fil, Arkidiyosesis ng Maynilà; es, Arquidiócesis de Manila) is the archdiocese of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church in Metro Manila, Philippines, encompassing ...

established the San Antonio de Padua Parish Church in 1970, with Saint

Anthony of Padua Anthony of Padua ( it, Antonio di Padova) or Anthony of Lisbon ( pt, António/Antônio de Lisboa; born Fernando Martins de Bulhões; 15 August 1195 – 13 June 1231) was a Portuguese people, Portuguese Catholic Church, Catholic priesthood (Cath ...

as its patron. In 1963, President

Diosdado Macapagal Diosdado Pangan Macapagal Sr. (; September 28, 1910 – April 21, 1997) was a Filipino lawyer, poet and politician who served as the ninth president of the Philippines, serving from 1961 to 1965, and the sixth vice president, serving from 19 ...

and First Lady

Eva Macapagal Evangelina "Eva" Macaraeg-Macapagal (born Evangelina Guico Macaraeg; November 1, 1915 – May 16, 1999) was the second wife of Diosdado Macapagal, the ninth President of the Philippines. She was the ninth First Lady of the Philippines, and t ...

laid the cornerstone for the Parañaque Municipal Hall in San Antonio (then part of San Dionisio) during a ceremony hosted by then Mayor Eleuterio de Leon. The building was completed years later during the term of Mayor Florencio Bernabe Sr. and eventually replaced the old ''Casa Tribunal'' in La Huerta. The San Antonio complex added a legislative and judiciary building in 2015.

Education

Several educational institutions are located in San Antonio. They include: * Agape Young Achievers' Christian Academy * Fourth Estate Elementary School * International Christian Academy * LH Montessori High * Parish Learning Center San Antonio de Padua * San Antonio Elementary School * San Antonio National High School * United Christian Academy * UP South School

Transportation

3156San Antonio Valley 14 Avenue Parañaque City Hall

San Antonio's road network consists of three national roads as of 2017. The

and elevated

Skyway A skyway, skybridge, skywalk, or sky walkway is an elevated type of pedway connecting two or more buildings in an urban area, or connecting elevated points within mountainous recreational zones. Urban skyways very often take the form of enclos ...

form the barangay's eastern boundary where the West Service Road, a national tertiary road, runs along a short stretch of its territory giving access to a few industrial and logistics facilities.

is a national primary road which starts at the barangay's southeast corner and travels the whole stretch of its boundary line with BF Homes. The San Antonio side of the avenue is lined with several retail stores including Jaka Plaza, Shopwise Sucat, the Santa Grove strip mall which also houses a

Teleperformance Philippines Teleperformance Philippines (TP) is an offshore business process outsourcing and contact center company in the Philippines. It is a subsidiary of the Teleperformance Group. Company profile Teleperformance began operations in the Philippines ...

branch, and Amaia Steps, a condominium with a retail podium. It is also the main access road to the different gated communities as well as a few slum areas in between those communities. The Elorde Sports Center, a popular boxing venue and the oldest in the chain of boxing gyms in the country owned by the family of

Gabriel Elorde Gabriel "Flash" Elorde (March 25, 1935 – January 2, 1985) was a Filipino professional boxer. He won the lineal super featherweight title in 1960. In 1963, he won the inaugural WBC and WBA super featherweight titles. He holds the record at supe ...

, has stood on the site across from the

Manila Memorial Park Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populated ...

and adjacent to Fourth Estate Subdivision on Dr. Santos Avenue since 1974. San Antonio Avenue is the main north–south thoroughfare of the barangay situated on the western side by the Jaka Plaza. This local road not only provides access to the Parañaque City Hall, the San Antonio de Padua Parish Church and San Antonio Valley Wet Market, it also serves to connect the communities of San Antonio and

and as an alternate route between Dr. Santos Avenue and

Doña Soledad Avenue Doña Soledad Avenue is an east-west route in the southern Metro Manila city of Parañaque, Philippines. It traverses barangays Don Bosco and Moonwalk, both located in northeastern Parañaque. It runs from its intersection with E. Rodriguez Avenue ...

, through a maze of narrow residential streets in San Antonio Valley and Better Living Subdivision. Public transportation in San Antonio consists primarily of

jeepney Jeepneys (), sometimes called jeeps (), are minibus-like public utility vehicles, serving as the most popular means of public transportation in the Philippines. They are known for their crowded seating and kitsch decorations, which have become ...

s and

UV Express UV Express (formerly known as FX, Metered Taxi, and GT Express) is a license to operate utility vehicles, particularly vans, as an alternative mode of public transportation in the Philippines. The term also refers to the vehicles themselves. This ...

along Dr. Santos Avenue and West Service Road, and city buses along South Luzon Expressway. The barangay is also served by the

Sucat railway station Sucat station is a railway station located on the South Main Line in Muntinlupa, Metro Manila, Philippines. It was originally established by the Manila Railway Company in 1908 as part of the construction of the original Southern Lines to the pr ...

in the adjacent barangay

Tricycle A tricycle, sometimes abbreviated to trike, is a human-powered (or gasoline or electric motor powered or assisted, or gravity powered) three-wheeled vehicle. Some tricycles, such as cycle rickshaws (for passenger transport) and freight trikes, ...

s are the main mode of transportation in the gated barangays and inner streets like San Antonio Avenue in San Antonio Valley, which is typical of barangays in Metro Manila.

References

{{Metro Manila populated places Barangays of Metro Manila Parañaque