A PROPOSED HISTORICAL AVENUE IN PILA, LAGUNA LINKING THE SOCIETY THROUGH CULTURAL HERITAGE

Heritage is the legacy that we receive from the past, that we experience in the present and that we will pass on to future generations. (UNESCO 2017) Our Constitution mandates the State to conserve, develop, promote, and popularize the nation's historical and cultural heritage and resources, as well as artistic creations. (National Cultural Heritage Act of 2009) Therefore, as Filipinos we must take the initiative to preserve our heritage. Pila, Laguna is a town with well-preserved historical structures. This town can be found just beside the town of Sta. Cruz and Nagcarlan. It is one of the few that has preserved the Spanish colonial town planning system. (Pila CLUP, 2019) This project aims to restore the aesthetic feature of the historical structures and turn it into something that will be useful but will still preserve the essence of the structures. The original designs will remain the same and, but the structures shall be given new and different functions. Upon restoring the ancestral houses it shall be turned into museums that will showcase historical items from the town, into a mini library that will collect Filipino books of different genres, and art galleries where local artists can display their works, and into shops that will sell locally made products and delicacies. This project will be mainly beneficial to the municipality of Pila. It will benefit the culture and arts, education, tourism, and business sectors. A project that aims to bridge the gap between modernization and history preservation.