The thrills of ‘Katips’

The whole stretch of Katipunan, which runs from the UP Town Center to White Plains, is a vital part of Quezon City. This major thoroughfare is part of the Circumferential Road 5 (C5), where more than 100,000 vehicles pass through every day.

Katipunan Avenue was named after the revolutionary society founded by Andres Bonifacio and other patriots, who eventually launched an uprising against the Spanish rule in the Philippines.

Today, the Katipunan area, often referred to as “Katips,” is one of the fastest-growing areas of the Diliman district. It is recognized as Quezon City’s university belt as several academic institutions are located around it such as the Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU), University of the Philippines Diliman, and Miriam College. The Center for Culinary Arts is also located here, along with Kostka School and specialty schools, montessoris, and tutorial centers, among others.

According to a study by the ADMU, the total population of the universities and schools in this area summed up to more than 70,000 people with an estimated 33 percent living within Katipunan.

The Katipunan Avenue also gained popularity as a gastronomic haven, where a wide range of food choices are available—from fine dining and casual restaurants, bars and popular coffee shops, novelty cafés and food halls, fast food diners and carinderias, even mobile stalls selling street food.

Gasoline station complexes here have restaurants and coffee shops, as well as those that surround information technology (IT) zones.

The boom of Katipunan Avenue is parallel to the continuous growth of Diliman as a district with big plans.

Quezon City was established in 1939 with the vision of recreating Washington DC on the vast Diliman estate. It was drawn up by the city’s first masterplanner, American architect Daniel Burnham. He was eventually succeeded by Harry Frost who completed the famous “Frost Plan” with architect Juan Arellano.

When Quezon City became the national capital in 1949, many national government departments began to set up office in the new city. To date, there are about 125 national government offices and 25 government-owned and -controlled corporations located in Quezon City, and many of these agencies are located in Diliman.

The late Mayor Norberto Amoranto built the present 14-storey Quezon City Hall, currently known as one of the highest and most expansive city halls in the country.

Some of the national government agencies with head offices in Diliman include the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), the Social Security System (SSS), the National Power Corporation (Napocor), the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Philvolcs), the Court of Tax Appeals, the National Computer Center, the Office of the Ombudsman, and the Departments of Agriculture (DA), Agrarian Reform (DAR), Interior and Local Government (DILG), and the Environment and National Resources (DENR).

Diliman also serves as home to several IT parks and buildings in the city like the UP-Ayala Land Technohub, Diliman IT Building, Eton Centris and Eugenio Lopez Jr. Communication Center.

Source: Inquirer Archives, Quezon City official website, ADMU website