Legazpi, Albay
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Legazpi (, American Spanish: , European Spanish: ), officially the City of Legazpi (; ), is a component city and capital of the
province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
of
Albay Albay (IPA: ), officially the Province of Albay (; ; Baybayin, ᜎᜎᜏᜒᜄᜈ᜔ ᜈᜅ᜔ ᜀᜎ᜔ᜊᜌ᜔), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Bicol Region of the Philippines, mostly on the southeastern part of the isla ...
,
Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 209,533. Legazpi is the regional center and largest city of the
Bicol Region The Bicol Region, designated as Region V, is an administrative region of the Philippines. It comprises six Provinces of the Philippines, provinces, four on the Bicol Peninsula (the luzon#Southeastern Luzon, southeastern end of Luzon): Albay, Ca ...
and in Albay, in terms of population."DILG Regional Office No. 5 Directory"
. Bicol Region Official website.
It is the region's center of tourism, education, health services, commerce and transportation in the Bicol Region. The city is applying for a Highly Urbanized City (HUC). The city is composed of two districts, Legazpi Port and the Old Albay District. Mayon Volcano, one of the Philippines' most popular icons and tourist destinations, is partly within the city's borders. In 2018, Legazpi was ranked first in overall competitiveness among component cities by the National Competitiveness Council. The city also ranked first in infrastructure and second in
economic dynamism Economic dynamism is the rate and direction of change in an economy. This can include activities like the rate of new business formation, the frequency of labor market turnover, and the geographic mobility of the workforce. Economists disagree on t ...
. In the same year, Legazpi was also named "most business-friendly city" in the component city category by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry.


Etymology

The city of Legazpi was named after
Miguel López de Legazpi Miguel López de Legazpi (12 June 1502 – 20 August 1572), also known as ''Adelantado, El Adelantado'' and ''El Viejo'' (The Elder), was a Spanish conquistador who financed and led an expedition to conquer the Philippines, Philippine islan ...
, the Basque Spanish ''
conquistador Conquistadors (, ) or conquistadores (; ; ) were Spanish Empire, Spanish and Portuguese Empire, Portuguese colonizers who explored, traded with and colonized parts of the Americas, Africa, Oceania and Asia during the Age of Discovery. Sailing ...
'' who officially annexed the
Philippine Islands The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...
to the
Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire, sometimes referred to as the Hispanic Monarchy (political entity), Hispanic Monarchy or the Catholic Monarchy, was a colonial empire that existed between 1492 and 1976. In conjunction with the Portuguese Empire, it ushered ...
in 1565, and whose surname came from a town in
Gipuzkoa Gipuzkoa ( , ; ; ) is a province of Spain and a historical territory of the autonomous community of the Basque Country. Its capital city is Donostia-San Sebastián. Gipuzkoa shares borders with the French department of Pyrénées-Atlantiqu ...
,
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
.


History


Pre-Hispanic

The area that is now Albay had a thriving civilization before the Spanish arrived. The Spanish explorers found densely populated settlements with an abundance of gold and provisions in the southern Bicol peninsula. Ancient inhabitants practiced rice cultivation, made fine gold jewelry and possessed silk, suggesting trade with China. American anthropologist Henry Otley Beyer found jars, stone tools and shells from 100 to 500 BC in
Sorsogon Sorsogon, officially the Province of Sorsogon ( Bikol: ''Probinsya kan Sorsogon''; Waray: ''Probinsya han Sorsogon''; ), is a province in the Philippines located in the Bicol Region. It is the southernmost province in the island of Luzon and ...
and Albay. Meanwhile, ancient burial jars and pottery were also found in Hoyop-Hoyopan Cave in
Camalig Camalig, officially the Municipality of Camalig (; ), is a municipality in the province of Albay, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 72,042 people. It is popularly known for its finest delicacy—Pinangat, a Bico ...
. Other evidences of pre-Hispanic civilization include the Mataas shell scoop, which dates back to the Late Neolithic Period, found in Cagraray Island. The Mataas shell scoop was declared a National Cultural Treasure by the
National Museum of the Philippines The National Museum of the Philippines () is an umbrella government organization that oversees a number of national museums in the Philippines, including Ethnography, ethnographic, Anthropology, anthropological, Archaeology, archaeological, an ...
.


Foundation

Legazpi was originally a fishing settlement called Sawangan that occupied the mangrove swamps that is now the Legazpi Port, inhabited by fisher folk and farmers. In 1569, a Spanish expedition dispatched by Miguel Lopez de Legazpi led by Luis Enriquez de Guzman and Augustinian friar Alonso Jimenez first set foot in Albay. They arrived on the coastal settlement called Ibalon in present-day Magallanes, Sorsogon after exploring the islands of
Masbate Masbate, officially the Province of Masbate (Masbateño language, Masbateño: ''Probinsya san Masbate''; ), is an island Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located near the midsection of the nation's archipelago. Its provi ...
, Ticao and Burias and proceeded inland as far as present-day Camalig, Albay. In July 1573, the conquistador
Juan de Salcedo Juan de Salcedo (; 1549 – 11 March 1576) was a Spanish conquistador. He was the grandson of Spanish general Miguel López de Legazpi. Salcedo was one of the soldiers who accompanied the Spanish conquest to the Philippines in 1565. He joined th ...
, grandson of Governor-General Legazpi, led another expedition from the north. They founded Villa Santiago de Libon (present-day Libon, Albay) and reached the settlement of Albaybay, whose name was subsequently shortened to 'Albay' or ''Pueblo de Albay''. In 1616, Pueblo de Albay served as the capital of Partido de Ibalon, which included present-day Albay, Sorsogon, Masbate, parts of
Camarines Sur Camarines Sur (; ), officially the Province of Camarines Sur (Central Bikol language, Bikol: ''Probinsya kan Habagatan na Camarines''; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Bicol Region on Luzon. Its ca ...
and the islands of
Catanduanes Catanduanes (; ), officially the Province of Catanduanes (), is an island province located in the Bicol Region of Luzon in the Philippines. It is the 12th-largest island in the Philippines, and lies to the east of Camarines Sur, across the M ...
, Ticao and Burias.


Spanish colonial era

Spanish religious missionaries governed the settlement in the 1580s. In 1587, Franciscan friars of the ''Doctrina de Cagsawa'' began to convert the area's population to
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...
. The village of Sawangan became more populous and progressive and the first parish priest, Fray Francisco de Santa Ana, OFM, built a wooden chapel with St. Gregory the Great as patron. Sawangan then became an independent parish and was called ''Misión de San Gregorio Magno de Sawangan''. A bigger and more imposing church replaced the chapel during the tenure of Fray Martin del Espiritu OFM in 1636 and Sawangan continued to thrive despite the Moro raids in the 1700s, a super typhoon in 1742, an earthquake in 1811, and other calamities. Sawangan was created a visita regular in 1605 and elevated as an independent town in 1616.


1814 Eruption of Mt. Mayon

On February 1, 1814, a catastrophic eruption of Mt. Mayon partially destroyed Sawangan and buried Cagsawa, Budiao and Camalig. The parish priest of Sawangan, Fray Pedro Licup, urged the residents to transfer to Makalaya (present-day Barangay Taysan) located on the slopes of Mt. Bariw. However, many residents decided to return to the lowlands and settled in Taytay (present-day Barangay Bagumbayan). Other survivors opted to return to the original location of Sawangan and established Binanuahan (Banuang Gurang) despite a decree by the Gobierno Superior signed on October 1, 1829, which prohibited the establishment of new towns. The new settlement in Taytay grew larger and eventually became a township. Binanuahan was declared a visita or tributary of Taytay and the combined town became known as Albay Nuevo. In 1839, the settlers in Taytay started to erect a stone church designed by Gobernadorcillo Don Jose Ma. de Peñaranda, an architect, in consultation with Fray Jose Yagres, OFM. The structure would become the present Cathedral of San Gregorio Magno in the Old Albay District. Meanwhile, those who returned to Sawangan established an ''ermita'' or chapel dedicated to the Archangel Raphael, whom they adopted as patron saint. This became the present church of St. Raphael the Archangel in the Legazpi Port district. On July 17, 1856, Governor General Ramon Montero signed a decree creating the township of Pueblo Viejo, out of Binanuahan and the adjacent villages of Lamba, Rawis and Bigaa. In another decree, Montero named the town Legazpi, which was formally established on October 22 of the same year, in honor of no less than Miguel Lopez de Legazpi, the first Governor General, who landed in the town's territories years before.


Port of Legazpi opened to world trade

The port of Legazpi served as anchorage for ships sailing to Nueva España (Mexico) beginning in the latter part of the 16th century. The nearby Sula Channel was used as a sanctuary by galleons during storms because of its sheltered inlet. In 1873, Legazpi was made a port of entry by a Royal Decree earlier issued in Madrid on May 18, 1872, and later promulgated by Governor-General Juan Alaminos y Vivar on December 3, 1874. Legazpi was declared a city for the first time under the Becerra Law of 1892. In 1894, the Spanish Minister of the Ultramar promulgated a decree creating the combined city government (ayunamiento) of Legazpi, a merger of the towns of Albay (now Old Albay District) and
Daraga Daraga ( ɐrɐ'gaofficially the Municipality of Daraga ; ), is a municipality in the province of Albay, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 133,893. The municipality is home to the famous Cagsawa Ruins. Hist ...
with the territories of the former.


Philippine revolution

On September 22, 1898, the Civil Governor of Albay, Angel Bascaran y Federic and the Spanish residents evacuated Albay. Subsequently, a revolutionary junta was organized by Don Anacieto Solano who later turned over the command to General Vicente Lukban, General-in-chief of Operations of the revolutionary government in the southern region.


American colonial era

On January 23, 1900, American forces composed of three infantry companies equipped with powerful rifles and cannon landed on the shores of Albay Gulf to conquer Legazpi. They were met by 800 revolutionary Filipino troops headed by General Jose Ignacio Paua, Col. Antero Reyes, Captain Alvaro Nepomuceno, and Policarpio Pergone who put up a strong defense of the city. The American troops, headed by Brig. Gen. W.A. Kobbe, encountered heavy resistance from the Filipino forces who gallantly engaged them in a bloody fight on San Rafael Bridge that resulted in the death of 172 Filipinos including Reyes, who used only bolos. Another 12 Filipinos were injured while the American forces suffered only 12 injured infantrymen. To commemorate the valiant efforts of the revolutionary troops, a monument was built on the site of the former San Rafael Bridge. The swampy area where the bridge was located was reclaimed during the early 20th century and is now the intersection of Rizal Street and Quezon Avenue. Following their occupation of the city in 1900, the American occupiers cancelled Legazpi's city status. In 1908, after the war's conclusion, the Americans split Legazpi into two separate towns, Legazpi and Albay (now Old Albay District), which became the provincial capital of Albay. In 1922, the town of Daraga was further split from the then municipality of Albay.


World War II

On December 12, 1941, a few days after the
attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Empire of Japan on the United States Pacific Fleet at Naval Station Pearl Harbor, its naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Territory of ...
, Legazpi was occupied by forces of the
Imperial Japanese Army The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA; , ''Dai-Nippon Teikoku Rikugun'', "Army of the Greater Japanese Empire") was the principal ground force of the Empire of Japan from 1871 to 1945. It played a central role in Japan’s rapid modernization during th ...
, the purpose of which was to obtain control of local airstrips which could be used as forward bases by fighter aircraft for operations in central Luzon. Throughout the Japanese occupation, resistance by Bicolano and local troops of the Philippine Commonwealth Army continued in the hills and mountains south of Legazpi. In January 1945, American and Filipino liberation forces, supported by Bicolano guerrillas, liberated Legazpi. However, the city suffered extensive aerial bombardment from US aircraft and many old buildings were destroyed including the old St. Raphael church and the Academia de Santa Ines campus.


Independent Philippines

Legazpi became a city for the second time on July 18, 1948, when Daraga and Legazpi were combined to constitute its territory under Republic Act No. 306; at that time, President
Elpidio Quirino Elpidio Rivera Quirino (; November 16, 1890 – February 29, 1956) was a Philippine nationality law, Filipino lawyer and politician who served as the 6th President of the Philippines from 1948 to 1953. A lawyer by profession, Quirino entered p ...
appointed Jose R. Arboleda as the first city mayor. But on June 8, 1954, Republic Act No. 993 was approved, recreating the two towns (Daraga and Legazpi) and the city was dissolved.


Cityhood

Finally, on June 12, 1959, Legazpi became a city for the third time under Republic Act no. 2234. Amendments were introduced under R.A. 5525. Presidential Decree 125 issued on February 23, 1973, declared the town of Daraga as part of the territorial jurisdiction of the city. This decree, however, was not implemented with the onset of the Integrated Reorganization Plan, which involved the restructuring of local governments. On September 24, 1972, then President
Ferdinand Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. (September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino lawyer, politician, dictator, and Kleptocracy, kleptocrat who served as the tenth president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled the c ...
designated Legazpi as the administrative center of Bicol Region through the Integrated Reorganization Plan of 1972, the implementing framework of Presidential Decree No. 1.
Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...
visited Legazpi on February 21, 1981, during his first apostolic journey to the Philippines. Aside from Manila where the beatification of St. Lorenzo Ruiz was held, the Pope also visited
Baguio Baguio ( , , ), officially the City of Baguio (; ; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Cordillera Administrative Region, Philippines. It is known as the "Summer Capital of the Philippines", ...
,
Bacolod Bacolod, officially the City of Bacolod (; ; ; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Negros Island Region in the Philippines. With a total of 600,783 inhabitants as of the 2020 census, it is th ...
,
Iloilo Iloilo ( ; ), officially the Province of Iloilo (; ; ; ), is a province in the Philippines located in the Western Visayas region. Its capital and largest city is Iloilo City, the regional center of Western Visayas and politically independen ...
,
Bataan Bataan (, , , ; ) , officially the Province of Bataan, is a province in the Central Luzon region of the Philippines. Its capital is the city of Balanga while Mariveles is the largest town in the province. Occupying the entire Bataan Peninsula ...
,
Cebu Cebu ( ; ), officially the Province of Cebu (; ), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 surrounding islands and islets. The coastal zone of Cebu is identified as a ...
, and Davao. The Pope held a mass dedicated to farmers at the St. Gregory the Great Cathedral.


Geography

Legazpi is on the eastern portion of the province of Albay bounded on the north by the municipality of
Santo Domingo Santo Domingo, formerly known as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city of the Dominican Republic and the List of metropolitan areas in the Caribbean, largest metropolitan area in the Caribbean by population. the Distrito Na ...
, on the east by
Albay Gulf Albay Gulf is a large gulf in the Bicol Peninsula of Luzon island in the Philippines. Whale shark sightings The place has been one of the tourist spots in the province because of the frequent sightings of whale sharks (known as ''butanding'' in t ...
, on the west by the municipality of
Daraga Daraga ( ɐrɐ'gaofficially the Municipality of Daraga ; ), is a municipality in the province of Albay, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 133,893. The municipality is home to the famous Cagsawa Ruins. Hist ...
, and on the south by the municipalities of Manito, Albay and Pilar and Castilla, Sorsogon. The city is located south of Manila. From north to south, the city spans approximately 29 kilometers; from east to west, the narrowest portion is about 3 kilometers (urban district) while the widest is about 15 kilometers (southeast area). Legazpi has a total land area of 20,437 hectares, 90 percent of which is classified as rural (18,431.66 hectares) while 10 percent is classified as urban (2,005.39 hectares). Legazpi's topography is generally plain on the northeastern areas, with slopes ranging from five to fifteen degrees. The southern areas have mostly rolling to hilly terrain. In the city's coastal areas, the terrain varies from plain (north) to hilly (south). Legazpi is criss-crossed by several rivers including the Tibu, Macabalo and Yawa rivers with a number of swampy areas, particularly in the urban district. To mitigate flooding in these low-lying areas, the local government has built an urban drainage and flood control system consisting of dikes, canals, sea walls and three pumping stations located in Barangays San Roque, Bay-Bay and Victory Village.


Barangays

Legazpi is politically subdivided into 70
barangay The barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as ''barrio'', is the smallest Administrative divisions of the Philippines, administrative division in the Philippines. Named after the Precolonial barangay, precolonial po ...
s."Municipality/City: LEGAZPI CITY (Capital)"
. Philippine Standard Geographic Code Interactive. Retrieved on May 17, 2012.
Each barangay consists of
purok A ''purok'' () is an informal division within a barangay in the Philippines. While not officially considered a local government unit (LGU), a ''purok'' often serves as a unit for delivering services and administration within a barangay. ''Pur ...
s and some have
sitios A ''sitio'' (Spanish language, Spanish for "site") in the Philippines is a territorial enclave that forms part of a barangay. Typically rural, a ''sitios location is usually far from the center of the barangay itself and could be its own bar ...
. Currently, there are 45 urban barangays and 25 rural barangays.


Climate

Legazpi City features a
tropical rainforest climate A tropical rainforest climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southeast Florida, United States ...
with copious amount of rainfall throughout the year. Legazpi has noticeably wetter and drier periods of the year. However, the city's driest month, April, still sees on average of over of precipitation per month. Similar to many other cities with this climate, temperatures are relatively constant throughout the course of the year, with a mean annual average of . The coolest month is January with a daily mean of and the hottest months are jointly May and June with a daily mean of . The all-time record high temperature was on May 27, 1968, and the all-time record low temperature was on February 28, 1971.


Disaster risk reduction

Because of its geographical location on the eastern coast of the Philippines and the close proximity of Mayon Volcano, Legazpi is vulnerable to
typhoon A typhoon is a tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere and which produces sustained hurricane-force winds of at least . This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, accounting for a ...
s,
sea level rise The sea level has been rising from the end of the last ice age, which was around 20,000 years ago. Between 1901 and 2018, the average sea level rose by , with an increase of per year since the 1970s. This was faster than the sea level had e ...
and
volcanic eruptions A volcanic eruption occurs when material is expelled from a volcanic vent or fissure. Several types of volcanic eruptions have been distinguished by volcanologists. These are often named after famous volcanoes where that type of behavior h ...
. To mitigate the effects of climate change and improve the city's resilience against disasters, the city government has adopted a
disaster risk reduction Disaster risk reduction aims to make disasters less likely to happen. The approach, also called DRR or disaster risk management, also aims to make disasters less damaging when they do occur. DRR aims to make communities stronger and better prepared ...
and
climate change adaptation Climate change adaptation is the process of adjusting to the effects of climate change, both current and anticipated.IPCC, 2022Annex II: Glossary[Möller, V., R. van Diemen, J.B.R. Matthews, C. Méndez, S. Semenov, J.S. Fuglestvedt, A. Reisinger ...
strategy. The City Government of Legazpi was recognized by the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC) as a model locality in implementing risk reduction management practices in the Philippines. On the provincial level, Albay has institutionalized
disaster preparedness Emergency management (also Disaster management) is a science and a system charged with creating the framework within which communities reduce vulnerability to hazards and cope with disasters. Emergency management, despite its name, does not actua ...
and disaster response by creating the Albay Public Safety and Emergency Management Office (APSEMO) in 1995. The APSEMO is tasked to design and implement a disaster risk management and reduction program. Its main objective is to develop more pro-active and disaster resilient communities. Specific
disaster preparedness Emergency management (also Disaster management) is a science and a system charged with creating the framework within which communities reduce vulnerability to hazards and cope with disasters. Emergency management, despite its name, does not actua ...
strategies in Albay and Legazpi include preemptive evacuation, 'zero casualty' policy, re-planning of the city's land use,
mangrove A mangrove is a shrub or tree that grows mainly in coastal saline water, saline or brackish water. Mangroves grow in an equatorial climate, typically along coastlines and tidal rivers. They have particular adaptations to take in extra oxygen a ...
reforestation, and the establishment of the Climate Change Academy as a training center for disaster risk management, evaluation of climate risk hazards and adaptive capabilities, planning, and programming. On March 12, 2018, Mayor Noel E. Rosal announced his administration's proposed plan to construct a permanent 1000-room evacuation center in Barangay Homapon for citizens living within the "eight-kilometer extended danger zone" near the volcano
Mayon Mayon (; , ), also known as Mount Mayon and Mayon Volcano is an active stratovolcano in the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Albay in Bicol Region, Bicol, Philippines. A popular tourist spot, it is renowned for its "perfect cone" bec ...
.


Demographics

According to the 2020 census, the population of Legazpi is 209,533 people, with a density of . Legazpi had an average annual population growth of 1.86% between 2000 and 2007 according to the 2010 census. About 58 percent of the city's population or 105,853 live in areas classified as urban while 42 percent or 76,348 live in rural areas. The city has a population density of 9 people per hectare (54 people per hectare in urban areas and 4 people per hectare in rural areas). Daytime population in Legazpi is estimated to reach 350,000 due to the daily influx of students, workers, entrepreneurs, and tourists. Legazpi is the most populous city in the province of Albay and in the Bicol Region. It comprises 14.8% of the total population of Albay. The main language spoken is Central Bikol. In addition, English and Filipino/Tagalog are also widely used and spoken.


Religion

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
is the predominant religion in the city. Other religious denominations include
Iglesia ni Cristo The (INC; ; ) is an independent Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, church founded in 1913 and registered by Felix Manalo, Félix Manalo in 1914 as a corporation sole, sole religious corporation ...
,
Members Church of God International The Members Church of God International (), abbreviated as MCGI, is an international Christian religious organization with headquarters in the Philippines. It is popularly known in the Philippines as ''Ang Dating Daan'' (; abbreviated as AD ...
,
Orthodoxy Orthodoxy () is adherence to a purported "correct" or otherwise mainstream- or classically-accepted creed, especially in religion. Orthodoxy within Christianity refers to acceptance of the doctrines defined by various creeds and ecumenical co ...
, Protestant churches such as
Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...
,
Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...
,
Evangelical Christians Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide, interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that emphasizes evangelism, or the preaching and spreading of the Christian g ...
,
Seventh-day Adventist Church The Seventh-day Adventist Church (SDA) is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sa ...
,
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian restorationist Christian denomination and the largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement. Founded dur ...
,
Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses is a Christian denomination that is an outgrowth of the Bible Student movement founded by Charles Taze Russell in the nineteenth century. The denomination is nontrinitarian, millenarian, and restorationist. Russell co-fou ...
, and
Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...
. The city is the ecclesiastical seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Legazpi.


Economy

Legazpi is a major economic hub in the
Bicol Region The Bicol Region, designated as Region V, is an administrative region of the Philippines. It comprises six Provinces of the Philippines, provinces, four on the Bicol Peninsula (the luzon#Southeastern Luzon, southeastern end of Luzon): Albay, Ca ...
. Economic activities in the city include agriculture, wholesale and retail trade, services, manufacturing and mining. Major sources of income include rice, root crops, and coconut. The city exports
coconut oil Coconut oil (or coconut fat) is an edible oil derived from the kernels, meat, and milk of the coconut palm fruit. Coconut oil is a white solid fat below around , and a clear thin liquid oil at higher temperatures. Unrefined varieties have a disti ...
, copra cake,
perlite Perlite is an amorphous volcanic glass that has a relatively high water content, typically formed by the Hydrate, hydration of obsidian. It occurs naturally and has the unusual property of greatly expanding when heated sufficiently. It is an indu ...
, and abaca products. The city also has a fast-growing tourism industry with focus on adventure tourism. The city government is promoting Legazpi as an ideal location for ICT- BPO businesses. In 2014, Legazpi's locally generated income reached Php338.2 million, with total income (including IRA) at Php711.1 million. In the same year, Legazpi ranked first among cities in Bicol in terms of tax collection efficiency. Legazpi City was recognized as the most business-friendly city in Southern Luzon in 2007 by the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry. In 2014, the city was ranked second among the top three livable cities in the Philippines in the Livable Cities Design Challenge organized by the National Competitiveness Council (NCC) and the
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC ) is an inter-governmental forum for 21 member economy , economies in the Pacific Rim that promotes free trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Following the success of Association of Southeast Asia ...
. The
Department of Agriculture An agriculture ministry (also called an agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister f ...
-Bicol's data notes that 90% of Philippines' pili plantation-production comes from the
Bicol Region The Bicol Region, designated as Region V, is an administrative region of the Philippines. It comprises six Provinces of the Philippines, provinces, four on the Bicol Peninsula (the luzon#Southeastern Luzon, southeastern end of Luzon): Albay, Ca ...
. In 1936, Don Antonio Regidor, who was born in Spain on November 24, 1891 pioneered
Bicol Region The Bicol Region, designated as Region V, is an administrative region of the Philippines. It comprises six Provinces of the Philippines, provinces, four on the Bicol Peninsula (the luzon#Southeastern Luzon, southeastern end of Luzon): Albay, Ca ...
’s pilinut industry. He founded Central Pilinut Candy at Old Albay District, Barangay Pinaric, Legazpi City, Albay. In 2023, "Albay Pilinut Candy" is managed by his grandchild Audrey Rose Battung-Deocarez


Trade and industry

There were 5,055 business establishments in Legazpi . Most of these are located in the city's central business district, the Legazpi Port District. Landco Business Park, the first master-planned commercial business district in the Bicol Region, opened in 2001. Thriving industries in Legazpi include coconut oil milling and production (Legaspi Oil Company – CIIF), construction aggregate quarrying, '''pinukpok ( abaca fabric) production in Barangay Banquerohan, and organic fertilizer manufacturing. To further boost the local economy, the city government is promoting the establishment of information technology (IT) parks and industrial estates such as the Embarcadero IT Park in Barangay Victory Village, City Light Industrial Park (CLIP) in Barangay Bogtong, Legazpi City Special Economic Zone in Barangay Banquerohan, Bicol Regional Agro-Industrial Center (BRAIC) and First Legazpi Industrial Estate, both in Barangay Homapon. The city is also home to a number of retail establishments. Liberty Commercial Center, Inc. (LCC), a homegrown Albayano company established in nearby Tabaco, Tabaco City in 1945, operates a major mall (LCC Mall Legazpi), three supermarkets and five ''Expressmarts'' (grocery stores) in the city. Another notable mall is Pacific Mall Legazpi, the first full-sized mall in Bicol. Other malls in Legazpi include Embarcadero de Legazpi, A. Bichara Silverscreens and Entertainment Center, 101 Shopping Mall, Yashano Mall and Gregorian Mall. The city has also attracted investments from national retail chains including Metro Gaisano, SM Savemore, Robinsons Supermarket, Puregold, Ministop and
7-Eleven 7-Eleven, Inc. is an American convenience store chain, headquartered in Irving, Texas. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Seven-Eleven Japan, which in turn is owned by the retail holdings company Seven & I Holdings. The chain was founde ...
.
Ayala Malls Ayala Malls is a retail subsidiary of real estate company Ayala Land, an affiliate of Ayala Corporation. Founded in 1988, Ayala Malls owns a chain of large shopping malls, all located in the Philippines. Ayala Malls is one of the largest shoppi ...
recently opened its Ayala Malls Legazpi – Liberty City Center. Meanwhile, SM City Legazpi, the second and largest SM Supermall in Bicol and the 71st in the Philippines, is located beside the Legazpi City Bus Terminal and opened on September 14, 2018. The city has two public markets: Legazpi City Public Market, a recipient of the 'Huwarang Palengke Award' in 2006, and Old Albay Public Market. The Ibalong Pasalubong Center has shops selling souvenirs and local handicrafts.


Banking and finance

As of December 2017, Legazpi had a total of 47 banks, with volume of bank deposits at Php35.4 billion. Legazpi Savings Bank, a thrift bank based in the city with eleven branches around the Bicol Region, was acquired by Robinsons Bank in 2012. The
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (; commonly abbreviated as BSP in both Filipino and English) is the central bank of the Philippines. It was established on January 3, 1949, and then re-established on July 3, 1993 pursuant to the provision of Re ...
also has a branch in the city, along Rizal Street in Barangay Cabangan.


Business process outsourcing

Legazpi is recognized as one of the 'next wave cities' for business process outsourcing (BPO). The next wave cities are a list of ICT hubs beyond Metro Manila identified by the Information Technology and Business Process Association of the Philippines and the Department of Science and Technology, based on a set of criteria such as worker supply, telecom infrastructure and other factors needed to sustain the BPO industry. Legazpi is aiming to attract more BPO firms to put up offices in the city. , BPO companies in Legazpi include One Half Philippines. The city currently has one IT park, the Embarcadero IT Park, which offers about 8,000 call center seats that could provide jobs to some 24,000 agents in three shifts. Pioneering the business in the city is the Incubation Center of Southern Luzon Technological College Foundation Inc. (SLTCFI), which is an extension of Embarcadero's P1.8-billion IT Park, the very first IT ecozone in the Bicol region inaugurated in July 2009. , the biggest locator in Embarcadero IT Park is Sutherland Global Services.


Housing

There are 141 residential subdivisions and housing sites (132 privately owned, 9 government owned) in Legazpi. National and local real estate developers have also invested in the city. These include Vista Land (Camella Legazpi), Deca Homes, and Sunwestville Realty and Development Corp. (Eco Homes Bayshores Condominium). In 2015, Taft Property Ventures Development Corp., the real estate arm of Gaisano Group, announced that it is building a condominium in Legazpi.


Tourism

Located on the southern foothills of the scenic Mount Mayon, the city has a flourishing tourism industry. The province of Albay, whose center of trade and commerce is in the city, recorded a 66 percent growth rate in tourist arrivals for 2013. In the same year, the city had a total of 263,568 foreign tourist arrivals, the most in the region. In 2014, the city welcomed 666,210 tourists, an increase of 15 percent from the previous year. including Chinese tourists who arrived at the city via direct chartered flights from Xiamen, China. In 2015, Legazpi aims to reach its target of 900,000 tourist arrivals. Legazpi increased its tourist arrivals by 13.97% in 2017. Legazpi has the tourism tagline the ''"City of Fun and Adventure"'', with a number of adventure tourism activities within the city including riding an ATV around Mt. Mayon,
zip-lining A zip-line, zip line, zip-wire, flying fox, or death slide''Who Really Benefits from Tourism'', Publ. Equations, Karnataka, India, 2010. Working Papers Series. "Canopy Tourism"page 37/ref>Jacques Marais, Lisa De Speville, ''Adventure Racing'', ...
,
skydiving Parachuting and skydiving are methods of descending from a high point in an atmosphere to the ground or ocean surface with the aid of gravity, involving the control of speed during the descent using a parachute or multiple parachutes. For hu ...
,
scuba diving Scuba diving is a Diving mode, mode of underwater diving whereby divers use Scuba set, breathing equipment that is completely independent of a surface breathing gas supply, and therefore has a limited but variable endurance. The word ''scub ...
, and
water sports Water is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance. It is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms ...
. In an ATV adventure to Mt. Mayon, tourists drive an
all-terrain vehicle An all-terrain vehicle (ATV), also known as a light utility vehicle (LUV), a quad bike or quad (if it has four wheels), as defined by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), is a vehicle that travels on low-pressure tires, has a seat ...
over rough trails, including a dry riverbed, leading to the volcano's lower slopes where hardened lava rock from previous eruptions are deposited. The activity was featured in reality shows
The Amazing Race Asia 4 ''The Amazing Race Asia 4'' is the fourth season of ''The Amazing Race Asia'', an Asian reality competition show based on the American series ''The Amazing Race (American TV series), The Amazing Race''. Hosted by Allan Wu, it featured ten teams of ...
in 2010 and The Amazing Race Philippines 1 in 2012. American actor
Zac Efron Zachary David Alexander Efron (; born October 18, 1987) is an American actor. Efron began acting professionally in the early 2000s and rose to prominence as a teen idol for his leading role as Troy Bolton in the ''High School Musical'' film ...
visited Legazpi in October 2012 and drove an ATV around Mayon. Hiking and climbing Mt. Mayon is allowed during peaceful spells but was prohibited following a phreatic explosion with casualties in May 2013. As part of its efforts to promote sports and adventure tourism, the city hosts annual sporting events such as Mt. Mayon Triathlon, Mayon 360 Ultramarathon and XTERRA Triathlon. The city also serves as a jump-off point to other adventure activities nearby including river rafting and waterfalls exploration in Malinao,
spelunking Caving, also known as spelunking (United States and Canada) and potholing (United Kingdom and Ireland), is the recreational pastime of exploring wild cave systems (as distinguished from show caves). In contrast, speleology is the scientific st ...
in
Camalig Camalig, officially the Municipality of Camalig (; ), is a municipality in the province of Albay, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 72,042 people. It is popularly known for its finest delicacy—Pinangat, a Bico ...
, island hopping in Bacacay, skimboarding in Santo Domingo, and whale shark interaction in Donsol, Sorsogon. The city is home to 56 hotels and 110 bars and restaurants. , Legazpi had a total of 1,547 hotel rooms. Among the notable hotels in the city is The Oriental Legazpi. Located in the hills of Taysan, it offers a panoramic view of the city, Albay Gulf and Mt. Mayon. It served as the venue of the joint conference meetings of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) from May 14 to 20, 2014 as well as the PATA New Tourism Frontiers Forum 2015. Legazpi is also aiming to be one of the top five convention destinations in Luzon by 2020. The city has two public indoor arenas that can also serve as convention centers: Ibalong Centrum for Recreation (capacity: 7,000 persons) and Albay Astrodome (capacity: 5,000 persons) The Albay Astrodome was used as the venue for the Big Night of Pinoy Big Brother: 737 on November 7–8, 2015. The city government is also planning to build the Legazpi City Convention Center. There are also several privately owned and hotel-based convention facilities such as the Casablanca Convention Hall (capacity: 1,000 persons), The Oriental Grand Ballroom (capacity: 750 persons), and Top of St. Ellis (capacity: 300 persons). In 2015, Legazpi hosted 51 national and international conventions. Legazpi was a port of call for German cruise ship Hapag-Lloyd Cruises' MS Bremen in October 2018.


Foreign trade

With a total trade value of US$129,423,764, the port of Legazpi is the leading port for exports in the entire Bicol Region for 2013. Among the 17 port districts in the country, Legazpi is one of only five port districts that posted positive collection goals for January to April 2015.


Government

Legazpi is governed by a mayor, vice mayor, and ten councilors. Each city official is elected to serve for a three-year term. The representative of the
Liga ng mga Barangay The Liga ng mga Barangay sa Pilipinas (League of Barangays in the Philippines) and the Asosasyon ng mga Kapitan ng Barangay (Association of Barangay Captains, ABC) are formal organizations of all the barangays in the Philippines. Presently, alm ...
and the
Sangguniang Kabataan A Sangguniang Kabataan (abbreviated as SK; ) is a community council that represents the youth in a barangay in the Philippines. Established to provide young people with a platform for civic engagement and participation in Local government in ...
also participates in the city council. The current city mayor of Legazpi is Alfredo A. Garbin Jr..


Mayors of Legazpi City


Culture


Festivals

The Ibalong Festival is a non-religious festival held annually each August. The festival celebrates the epic-fragment Ibalon, which narrates the exploits of three legendary heroes of Ibalon or Ancient Bikol: Baltog, Handyong, and Bantong. It was first held in October 1992. Yearly activities include the Ibalong Street Presentation, trade fairs, bazaars and weekend markets, Mutya ng Ibalong Pageant, and sports-related events such as the annual Mt. Mayon Triathlon. The Magayon Festival is a month-long annual festival celebrating Mt. Mayon. It is held in May in the entire province of Albay with most of the activities held in Legazpi. The name comes from the Bikol word '''magayon''', which means beautiful, from which the name of Mt. Mayon is derived. The festival features agricultural products display and trade fairs, culinary shows, cultural events, street parades, photo/arts exhibits, and sports events. During the
Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...
season, the Karangahan Albay Green Christmas is held to emphasis on safe and environment-friendly celebration of the Yuletide season. First held in 2009, the festival runs from December 1 to 31. Having different patron saints, the city's two districts have different ''fiestas''. Legazpi port district fiesta is held every October 24 in honor of St. Raphael the Archangel. Yearly activities include street parade and a maritime procession. The Albay district fiesta is held every September 3, in honor of St. Gregory the Great; it is usually declared a local non-working holiday. There are several local festivals held in the city's barangays including Santo Cristo Festival in Barangay Dap-Dap, Bankero Festival in Barangay San Roque, Biga Festival in Barangay Bigaa, Banua Festival in Barangay Binanuahan, Peñafrancia Festival in Barangay Sabang and Hikot Festival in Barangay Victory Village.


Sports

The Albay Vulcans are a Philippine
rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...
and
rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...
team based in Legazpi. They play in the Philippines National Rugby League Championship.


Infrastructure


Transportation

Legazpi is considered as the gateway to Bicol because of its relative proximity to the provinces of the region due to its geographical location. With an airport, seaport, bus and rail terminals, the city is accessible to all modes of transportation.


Air

The city was formerly served by Legazpi Airport. It was the busiest domestic airport in mainland Southern Luzon and was ranked 15th busiest in the country in 2012, with total passenger traffic of 578,762. The Legazpi Airport has a runway length of and is capable of handling international aircraft. ,
Cebu Pacific Cebu Air, Inc. (), operating as Cebu Pacific (stylized in lowercase), is a Philippine low-cost airline based in Pasay, Metro Manila. Founded in 1988, the airline was the first low-cost carrier in Asia and is also the largest airline in the Phi ...
flies three times daily between Manila and Legazpi four times weekly between Cebu and Legazpi.
Philippine Airlines Philippine Airlines (PAL) is the flag carrier of the Philippines. Headquartered at the Philippine National Bank, PNB Financial Center in Pasay, the airline was founded in 1941 and is the oldest operating commercial airline in Asia. Philippine ...
has two daily flights between Manila and Legazpi.
Cebgo Cebgo, Inc., operating as Cebgo (stylized in all lowercase), is the wholly-owned regional subsidiary of Cebu Pacific. It is the successor company to South East Asian Airlines and Tigerair Philippines. It is now owned by JG Summit, the parent com ...
(formerly Tigerair Philippines), a subsidiary of Cebu Pacific, has one daily flight between Manila and Legazpi. In 2015, the Legazpi Airport was renovated to expand and improve the passenger terminal, add separate arrival and pre-departure areas for domestic and international chartered flights, and provide office space for the Bureau of Immigration, customs and animal quarantine, and the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency. In October 2021, Legazpi Airport was replaced by the Bicol International Airport (
IATA The International Air Transport Association (IATA ) is an airline trade association founded in 1945. IATA has been described as a cartel since, in addition to setting technical standards for airlines, IATA also organized tariff conferences tha ...
: DRP,
ICAO The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO ) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that coordinates the principles and techniques of international air navigation, and fosters the planning and development of international sch ...
: RPLK), in Barangay Alobo,
Daraga Daraga ( ɐrɐ'gaofficially the Municipality of Daraga ; ), is a municipality in the province of Albay, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 133,893. The municipality is home to the famous Cagsawa Ruins. Hist ...
, away from the former airport.


Land

Legazpi is accessible by land transport. Modes of public transport within the city include
jeepney A jeepney (), or simply a jeep (), is a type of Public transport, public utility vehicle (PUV) that serves as the most popular means of Transportation in the Philippines, public transportation in the Philippines. Known for its crowded seating ...
s,
tricycles 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, ...
,
taxicab A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a Driving, driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of thei ...
s and pedicabs. Several buses ply the route between Manila with stops in neighboring provinces. The city has an award-winning integrated bus and public utility vehicle terminal called Legazpi Grand Central Terminal, a public-private partnership project. Buses and public utility vehicles also have regular trips between Legazpi and neighboring cities. In order to spur development in the city, The Toll Regulatory Board declared Toll Road 5 the extension of South Luzon Expressway. 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. The city also has Legazpi Boulevard which connects the Bicol International Airport to the municipality of
Daraga Daraga ( ɐrɐ'gaofficially the Municipality of Daraga ; ), is a municipality in the province of Albay, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 133,893. The municipality is home to the famous Cagsawa Ruins. Hist ...
. The boulevard is known for its scenic view of Mayon volcano by both joggers and tourists. It is also one of the longest coastal roads outside the country's capital.


Rail

The city was also served by Legazpi station, the southernmost terminus of the
Philippine National Railways The Philippine National Railways (PNR) (; ) is a government-owned and controlled corporation, state-owned railway company in the Philippines which operates one commuter rail service between Laguna (province), Laguna and Quezon, and local servic ...
(PNR). Plans are underway to revive rail transport between Manila and Legazpi. In the mid-2010s, the PNR has started commuter rail service between Legazpi and Naga City. Legazpi station was also the terminus of Legazpi – Tabaco branch line and the Legazpi Division Line. The Naga–Legazpi route was reopened on December 27, 2023, six years after its suspension in April 2017 due to insufficient trains. It was later proposed in 2021 by Joey Salceda for his reelection bid that the Legazpi–Daraga alignment of the
PNR South Main Line The PNR South Main Line (, also known as Southrail and formerly the Main Line South) is one of the two trunk lines that form the Philippine National Railways' network in the island of Luzon, Philippines. It was opened in stages between 1916 a ...
shall be replaced by the Metro Legazpi Tramway project, a
light rail Light rail (or light rail transit, abbreviated to LRT) is a form of passenger urban rail transit that uses rolling stock derived from tram technology National Conference of the Transportation Research Board while also having some features from ...
and
streetcar A tram (also known as a streetcar or trolley in Canada and the United States) is an urban rail transit in which vehicles, whether individual railcars or multiple-unit trains, run on tramway tracks on urban public streets; some include s ...
line that will connect downtown Legazpi to the new Daraga station of the PNR South Long Haul project. The line will have 8 stations over an unspecified track length.


Sea

The port of Legazpi is classified as a national sub-port of entry catering to domestic and foreign cargo vessels. Its modern-day port, which was built by the engineering firm Pedro Siochi and Company during the era of President Quezon, played a great role in the liberation of Manila in 1945. , regular passenger trips from the port are between Legazpi and the island municipality of
Rapu-Rapu Rapu-Rapu, officially the Municipality of Rapu-Rapu (; ), is a municipality in the province of Albay in the Bicol Region of the Philippines. The population was 36,151 at the 2020 census. The municipality comprises three islands: Rapu-rapu Isla ...
and coastal villages of Bacon District, Sorsogon City. The city government has proposed the construction of an international
cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports of call, where passengers may go on Tourism, tours k ...
terminal under public-private partnership. The proposed passenger cruise terminal has received approval from the Department of Tourism and the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA).


Waste management

The city government operates a sanitary landfill in barangay Banquerohan. Opened in 2011 through a grant from the Spanish government's Agencia Espanola Cooperacion Internacional para el Desarollo (AECID), the sanitary landfill has two cells that will contain the city's non-recyclable waste. In 2010, Legazpi implemented a solid waste management program with emphasis on reduction of waste in the household and business establishment level;
resource recovery Resource recovery is using wastes as an input material to create valuable products as new outputs. The aim is to reduce the amount of waste generated, thereby reducing the need for landfill space, and optimising the values created from waste. Resou ...
,
recycling Recycling is the process of converting waste materials into new materials and objects. This concept often includes the recovery of energy from waste materials. The recyclability of a material depends on its ability to reacquire the propert ...
, and reusing at the barangay level; collection, transfer, transport and management of residual waste at the city level. The city also aims to reduce
plastic waste Plastic pollution is the accumulation of plastic objects and particles (e.g. plastic bottles, bags and microbeads) in the Earth's environment that adversely affects humans, wildlife and their habitat. Plastics that act as pollutants are cate ...
by implementing the 'plastic for rice program' wherein citizens can exchange five kilos of residual plastic waste for a kilo of rice. The city government recognizes barangays that practice outstanding solid waste management. As a result of its waste management programs, the city was able to successfully reduce solid waste generated per capita per day from in 2009 to in 2015. Meanwhile, the city is planning to build a
septage Fecal sludge management (FSM) (or faecal sludge management in British English) is the storage, collection, transport, treatment and safe end use or disposal of fecal sludge. Together, the collection, transport, treatment and end use of fecal slud ...
and waste water treatment facility to protect its water resources. A Japanese firm has also proposed an organic fertilizer manufacturing project.


Flood control

To prevent flooding in the city's main business center, the city government is building a
flood control Flood management or flood control are methods used to reduce or prevent the detrimental effects of flood waters. Flooding can be caused by a mix of both natural processes, such as extreme weather upstream, and human changes to waterbodies and ru ...
project that is envisioned to turn Legazpi into an 'all weather city'. Components of the project include three
pumping station Pumping stations, also called pumphouses, are public utility buildings containing pumps and equipment for pumping fluids from one place to another. They are critical in a variety of infrastructure systems, such as water supply, Land reclamation, ...
s located in barangays San Roque, Baybay and Victory Village, dikes and drainage systems along the Tibu and Macabalo Rivers, and a 2.7 kilometer coastal road in barangays Pigcale, Sabang, Baybay, San Roque and Rawis that will serve as protection from
storm surge A storm surge, storm flood, tidal surge, or storm tide is a coastal flood or tsunami-like phenomenon of rising water commonly associated with low-pressure weather systems, such as cyclones. It is measured as the rise in water level above the ...
s.


Education

Legazpi is a center of education in the Bicol Region. It is home to two universities ( Bicol University and University of Santo Tomas–Legazpi) and a number of colleges and technical-vocational schools. , there are 63 daycare/pre-schools, 57 elementary schools and 27 secondary schools in the city. Bicol University, established in 1969 as the premier regional state and research university and the first ISO 9001:2008 certified public university in Bicol, has its main campus in Legazpi near the boundary with neighboring
Daraga Daraga ( ɐrɐ'gaofficially the Municipality of Daraga ; ), is a municipality in the province of Albay, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 133,893. The municipality is home to the famous Cagsawa Ruins. Hist ...
town. The BU Main Campus hosts the College of Education (BUCE), College of Nursing (BUCN), College of Arts and Letters (BUCAL), College of Science (BUCS), Graduate School (BUGS), Institute of Physical Education, Sports and Recreation (IPESR), College of Medicine (BUCM), Bicol University College of Education Integrated Laboratory School-Elementary Department and Bicol University College of Education Integrated Laboratory School-High School Department (BUCEILS-HS). The Bicol University Research Extension Program Center (BUREPC), the Amphitheatre and the Little Theater are also found on this campus. For the school year 2015–16, BU has 27,226 enrollees.
University of Santo Tomas - Legazpi A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Uni ...
formerly ''Aquinas University of Legazpi'' is the first Catholic University in Bicol Region and Southern Luzon run by the Dominican Fathers/Order of Preachers. Founded by Don Buenaventura de Erquiaga as the Legazpi Junior Colleges in 1948, UST-Legazpi became a university in 1968 when the administration of the college was passed on to the Dominicans. University of Santo Tomas – Legazpi offers pre-elementary, elementary, high school (General Curriculum, Special Program in the Arts, and PAASCU Level III-candidate Science High School), Senior High School, and twenty–three (23) programs (in the College of Arts, Sciences and Education; College of Business Management and Accountancy; College of Health Sciences; and College of Engineering, Architecture, and Fine Arts), the newest of which are the BS Pharmacy, the first and only program in the Region, and BS Medical Technology, both supervised by UST-Manila. The Peñaranda Campus hosts the College of Business Management and Accountancy, College of Law (the Center of Excellence in Legal Education in Bicol), the Graduate School, and the Center for Continuing Education. St. Agnes' Academy, established in 1912 by the Missionary Benedictine Sisters as "Academia de Sta. Ines", is the oldest Catholic school in Albay and the second Benedictine school to be established in the Philippines after
St. Scholastica's College Manila Saint Scholastica's College, also referred to by its acronym SSC or colloquially St. Scho, is a private Catholic basic and higher education Women's colleges, institution for women founded and managed by the Congregation of the Missionary Benedi ...
. Divine Word College of Legazpi is a Catholic college run by the Societas Verbi Divini (SVD) Congregation. It started as Liceo de Albay, a diocesan parochial school for boys established in 1947 by Rev. Fr. Juan Carullo, a retired Army Chaplain. In 1960, the SVD led by Fr. Joseph L. Bates took over the administration of the school and renamed it Divine Word High School. It was elevated to tertiary level as Divine Word College of Legazpi (DWCL) in 1965. Legazpi City Science High School, founded in 2004 as "Legazpi City High School" and became full-fledged science high school on January 15, 2016. Located in Bitano, Legazpi City, it provides education for junior and senior high school students. Its
junior high school Middle school, also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school, is an educational stage between primary school and secondary school. Afghanistan In Afghanistan, middle school includes ...
department offers SPSTE (''Special Program in Science, Technology, and Engineering''). Likewise, its
senior high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., b ...
offers two tracks with three strands. The academic track includes
STEM Stem or STEM most commonly refers to: * Plant stem, a structural axis of a vascular plant * Stem group * Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics Stem or STEM can also refer to: Language and writing * Word stem, part of a word respon ...
(''Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics''), ABM (''Accounting and Business Management''), and ICT (''Information and Communications Technology'') under the TVL (''Technical-vocational'') strand.


Notable personalities

* Ramon Obusan
National Artist of the Philippines The Order of National Artists of the Philippines ( Tagalog: ''Orden ng mga Pambansang Alagad ng Sining ng Pilipinas'') is an order bestowed by the President of the Philippines on Philippine nationals who have made significant contributions to ...
for Dance. * Susan Enriquez journalistic, host * Salvacion Lim-Higgins –
National Artist of the Philippines The Order of National Artists of the Philippines ( Tagalog: ''Orden ng mga Pambansang Alagad ng Sining ng Pilipinas'') is an order bestowed by the President of the Philippines on Philippine nationals who have made significant contributions to ...
for Fashion Design. *Mariano Goyena del Prado – historian, ethnologist, and poet *Everardo Napay – Iloilo-born
zarzuela () is a Spanish lyric-dramatic genre that alternates between spoken and sung scenes, the latter incorporating operatic and popular songs, as well as dance. The etymology of the name is uncertain, but some propose it may derive from the name o ...
playwright, architect, sculptor, composer, and choreographer; worked in Legazpi for more than three decades *Teotimo C. Pacis – Bishop, Biblical translator, and poet * William 'Bogs' Adornado – three-time PBA Most Valuable Player (1975, 1976, and 1981), one of the PBA's 25 Greatest Players of All-Time * Merlinda Bobis – contemporary Philippine-Australian writer and academic * Irene Cortes – former Associate Justice of the
Supreme Court of the Philippines The Supreme Court (; colloquially referred to as the ' (also used in formal writing), is the highest court in the Philippines. It was established by the Taft Commission on June 11, 1901, through the enactment of Act No. 136, which abolished th ...
; first female Dean of the UP College of Law * Janelle Quintana – actress; 19th Aliw Awards Best New Female Artist nominee *
Valerie Weigmann Valerie Clacio Weigmann (born 22 November 1989) is a Filipino actress, fashion model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss World Philippines 2014. She represented the Philippines at the Miss World 2014 pageant held in London, Engl ...
– TV host, actress; Miss World Philippines 2014 * Athena Imperial - news field reporter, communication researcher and Miss Philippines Earth 2011. * Vincent Aycocho - a Filipino actor, comedian, singer and TV show host. He is known for as a Filipino comedian in Comedy Bar. * Miguel Solano White – track and field athlete; bronze medalist in the 400-metre hurdles at the
1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XI Olympiad () and officially branded as Berlin 1936, were an international multi-sport event held from 1 to 16 August 1936 in Berlin, then capital of Nazi Germany. Berlin won the bid to ...


Sister cities


Local

*
Mandaluyong Mandaluyong ( ; ), officially the City of Mandaluyong (, ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly-urbanized city in the Metro Manila, National Capital Region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a popula ...
,
Metro Manila Metropolitan Manila ( ), commonly shortened to Metro Manila and formally the National Capital Region (NCR; ), is the capital region and largest List of metropolitan areas in the Philippines, metropolitan area of the Philippines. Located ...
*
Bacolod Bacolod, officially the City of Bacolod (; ; ; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Negros Island Region in the Philippines. With a total of 600,783 inhabitants as of the 2020 census, it is th ...
,
Negros Occidental Negros Occidental (; ), officially the Province of Negros Occidental (; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Negros, Negros Island. Its capital is the city of Bacolod, of which it is geographically s ...
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Bacoor Bacoor (), officially the City of Bacoor (), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city in the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Cavite, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 664,625 ...
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Cavite Cavite, officially the Province of Cavite (; Chavacano: ''Provincia de Cavite''), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region. On the southern shores of Manila Bay and southwest of Manila, i ...
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Masbate City Masbate City, officially the City of Masbate (Masbateño language, Masbateño: ''Syudad san Masbate''; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city and capital of the Provinces of the Philippines, province of Masbate, P ...
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Masbate Masbate, officially the Province of Masbate (Masbateño language, Masbateño: ''Probinsya san Masbate''; ), is an island Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located near the midsection of the nation's archipelago. Its provi ...
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Sorsogon City Sorsogon City, officially the City of Sorsogon (Southern Sorsogon language, Waray Sorsogon: ''Syudad san Sorsogon''; ; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, component city and capital of the Provinces of the Philippines, pro ...
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Sorsogon Sorsogon, officially the Province of Sorsogon ( Bikol: ''Probinsya kan Sorsogon''; Waray: ''Probinsya han Sorsogon''; ), is a province in the Philippines located in the Bicol Region. It is the southernmost province in the island of Luzon and ...
* Castilla,
Sorsogon Sorsogon, officially the Province of Sorsogon ( Bikol: ''Probinsya kan Sorsogon''; Waray: ''Probinsya han Sorsogon''; ), is a province in the Philippines located in the Bicol Region. It is the southernmost province in the island of Luzon and ...
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Davao City Davao City, officially the City of Davao, is a City of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city in the Davao Region, Philippines. The city has a total land area of , making it the List of Philippine cities and municipalities ...
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Davao del Sur Davao del Sur (; ), officially the Province of Davao del Sur (; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Davao Region in Mindanao. Its capital is Digos. Davao City is the largest city in terms of area an ...


International

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Chōshi Chōshi (, ) is a city located in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 59,174 in 27,160 households and a population density of . The total area of the city is . Geography Chōshi is located in the northeastern part ...
, Japan *
Hengyang Hengyang (; ) is the second largest city of Hunan Province, China. It straddles the Xiang River about south of the provincial capital of Changsha. As of the 2020 Chinese census, Its total population was 6,645,243 inhabitants, of whom 1,290,71 ...
, China *
Beaumont, Texas Beaumont is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat of Jefferson County, Texas, Jefferson County, within the Beaumont–Port Arthur metropolitan area, located in Southeast Texas on the Neches River about east of Houston (city ...
, USA


Gallery

Kapuntukan Hill at Night.jpg, Kapuntukan Hill and Legazpi Boulevard at night Embarcadero de Legazpi at dawn.jpg, Embarcadero de Legazpi Plaza Rizal and Bichara Silverscreens.jpg, Plaza Rizal Legaspi Port, Legazpi, Philippines.jpg, Legazpi harbour and port


See also

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Bicolano People The Bicolano people (Bikol languages, Bikol: ''Mga Bikolnon'') are the fourth-largest Ethnic groups in the Philippines, Filipino ethnolinguistic group. Their native region is commonly referred to as Bicol Region, Bicol, which comprises the entir ...
* List of Bicol Region Cities and Municipalities


References


External links

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Legazpi City Tourism Information Guide
* Philippine Standard Geographic Code {{Authority control 1616 establishments in the Philippines Cities in Albay Populated places established in 1616 Port cities and towns in the Philippines Provincial capitals of the Philippines Component cities in the Philippines Cities in the Bicol Region