San Dionisio, Parañaque

San Dionisio is an administrative division in southern Metro Manila, Philippines. It is a barangay at the southwestern edge of Parañaque and north of its border with Manuyo, Las Piñas. The barangay is centered on the westernmost section of Dr. Santos Avenue (former Sucat Road) where it veers north and parallels Elpidio Quirino Avenue (former Calle Real) with De Leon Street and Aldana Avenue forming its boundaries with La Huerta and Manuyo Uno respectively. It extends to the east along the San Dionisio River-Villanueva Creek by barangay Moonwalk to the north and along Balong Creek by Manuyo Dos, Las Piñas to the south towards its border with San Isidro. San Dionisio includes a large swath of the C-5 Road South Extension properties in Parañaque including the Amvel Business Park, Avida Sucat and SM City Sucat sites, the Irasan Complex logistics hub, and as well as the area surrounding the Evacom Plaza. It also covers a significant portion of the reclaimed Freedom and Long Islands in the Las Piñas–Parañaque Critical Habitat and Ecotourism Area.

San Dionisio
Barangay
Kabihasnan area of San Dionisio
San Dionisio
Coordinates: 14°29′2″N 120°59′33″E
Country Philippines
RegionMetro Manila
CityParañaque
Congressional districtsPart of the 1st district of Parañaque
Government
 • Barangay ChairmanPablo Olivarez
Area
 • Total6.6256 km2 (2.5582 sq mi)
Population
 (2015)
 • Total63,506
 • Density9,600/km2 (25,000/sq mi)
ZIP code
1700
Area code(s)2

San Dionisio is the second largest barangay in Parañaque in terms of land area and the third largest in terms of population. It is often mistakenly referred to as Sucat being the location of SM City Sucat shopping mall on the former Sucat Road. This erroneous reference is also applied to the other barangays traversed by Sucat Road. Sucat, however, is a barangay of Muntinlupa located at the opposite end of Sucat Road by the South Luzon Expressway. As of the 2015 census, San Dionisio had a population of 63,506.[1]

History
San Dionisio chapel

The history of San Dionisio is tied to the establishment of its namesake visita or chapel south of La Huerta. The visita was named after its patron, Saint Denis, whose headless image is enshrined in the brick stone chapel on Elpidio Quirino Avenue (formerly Calle Real), which was originally a wooden chapel built in 1640.[2][3] Tata Dune, as the saint is fondly called by residents and devotees, is also the patron saint of Paris and all of France who was martyred by means of being beheaded by a sword for his faith.[4] Community life revolved around religious events during the Colonial Period when residents also engaged in traditional industries such as fishing, saltmaking and embroidery. This changed with the development of gated communities and expansion of Nichols Field into a civil international airport in the mid 20th century.[5]

In 1978, the gated communities of BF Homes, Teoville, Goodwill Phase II, Irene-ville, Santa Rita Village and Jackielou Subdvision were carved out of San Dionisio to form the present barangay of BF Homes Parañaque.[6] In the same year, the village lost Clarmen Village, Salvador Estate, Lopez Village, Villa Mendoza, Parañaque Green Heights and a small portion of San Antonio Valley to a new barangay named San Isidro.[7] The rest of San Antonio Valley, Barangay Village 4th Estate Subdivision and Mon El Subdivision were annexed to the new barangay of San Antonio later that year.[8]

The barangay lends its name to one of the oldest and successful cooperatives in the country, the San Dionisio Credit Cooperative.[9]

Culture

An annual street drama performance of Moros y cristianos is staged at the plaza of the San Dionisio Chapel on the former Calle Real in May. This tradition, commonly known as moro-moro or comedia (Filipino: komedya), dates back to the Spanish colonial period and is currently organized by the San Dionisio Cultural Society and played by the Komedya ng San Dionisio troop founded in 1962.[5][10] The barangay also participates in the Sunduan festival of La Huerta and celebrates its annual patron saint's day in September.[11]

Education
See also: List of schools in Parañaque

San Dionisio hosts the main campus of Parañaque National High School. It is also the location of the following institutions:

Transportation
Dr. Santos Avenue, also known as Sucat Road, in San Dionisio
The El Shaddai (movement) International House of Prayer in Amvel Business Park near C-5 Road

San Dionisio's transportation network consists of two national primary roads, one national secondary road and one expressway as of 2017.[12] The Manila–Cavite Expressway and Elpidio Quirino Avenue provide north-south connectivity, with the latter traversing the barangay's old section and the Kabihasnan commercial row along Victor Medina Street. The barangay's main east-west corridor is Dr. Santos Avenue which links its old section with the bigger commercial developments in its eastern sector, including the SM City Sucat shopping mall. In a bend of the avenue north of Victor Medina Streets starts Ninoy Aquino Avenue, a national secondary road that links the barangay to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport as well as the popular Dampa, a collection of stalls and restaurants near the boundary with La Huerta that sell and cook fresh and locally-caught seafood.[13] A recent addition to the barangay's road network is the south extension of C-5 Road which opened a large tract of former idle lands south of the international airport in San Dionisio to vertical commercial and residential developments in 2007.

When the Manila Light Rail Transit System Line 1 is extended to Cavite, it will have a station in San Dionisio located on the intersection of C-5 Extension and Dr. Santos Avenue. The C-5 South Link Expressway will also cut across the barangay parallel to the existing C-5 Road towards an interchange with the Manila–Cavite Expressway in Las Piñas.

Notable residents

References
  1. "City of Parañaque - Code:137604000". Philippine Statistics Authority. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  2. Dulce Festin Baybay, Ariel Marquez-de Guzman (2001). Palanyag to Parañaque: A History, p. 182. City of Parañaque, Philippines.
  3. "District I - Barangay San Dionisio". City Government of Parañaque. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
  4. Hermoso, Christina (8 October 2018). "Feast of San Dionisio". Manila Bulletin. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
  5. Fernandez, Doreen. "Princesa Miramar and Principe Leandro: Text and Context in a Philippine Komedya". Ateneo de Manila University. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
  6. "Creating Barangay Bf Homes in the Municipality of Parañaque, Metro Manila". The Corpus Juris. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  7. "Creating Barangay San Isidro in the Municipality of Parañaque, Metro-Manila". The Corpus Juris. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
  8. "Creating Barangay San Antonio in the Municipality of Parañaque, Metro Manila". The Corpus Juris. Retrieved 18 April 2018.
  9. Punongbayan, Michael (5 February 2007). "Parañaque community a model of success". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
  10. Manipon, Roel Hoang (24 January 2008). "In Focus: Mock Swords into Cultural Ploughshares: the National University Celebrates with Komedya". National Commission for Culture and the Arts. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
  11. "Events". City Government of Parañaque. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
  12. "2017 Road Data: National Capital Region". Department of Public Works and Highways. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
  13. "Tourist Sites And Attractions". City Government of Parañaque. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
  14. "History". Olivarez General Hospital. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
  15. "G.R. No. 160453 November 12, 2012". Lawphil.net. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
  16. "[G.R. No. 20107. September 14, 1923. ]". Chan Robles. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
  17. Torrevillas, Domini (21 March 2009). "Zialcita defined". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 19 April 2019.
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