The city’s Office of the Building Official (OBO) has issued a notice of violation to the under-construction Starbucks coffee shop for failing to meet required building setbacks, officials confirmed.
The violation halts the project at the corner of CPG Avenue and J. Borja Street until corrections are made.
The required setback is 7.5 meters from the gutter line on both streets.
In a detailed social media post, Mayor Jane Yap provided a timeline of the project and the city’s enforcement actions, saying it was in response to a “valid concern” raised by a Boholana architect.
“This is to assure everyone that the City enforces the National Building Code and our zoning ordinances fairly and consistently regardless of who the applicant is,” Yap wrote.
According to the mayor’s timeline, the property, owned by the Diocese of Tagbilaran, was successfully rezoned from an institutional to a light-density commercial zone in September 2024.
The application for the one-storey Starbucks, to be operated by Rustans Coffee Corporation, was received by the city on Oct. 9, 2025.
The OBO issued the notice of violation less than a month later after inspectors found the construction did not comply with the approved plans.
Yap said that as of Nov. 22, corrective work was ongoing and being strictly monitored by the OBO.
She noted that without correcting the violation, the establishment will not be granted an occupancy permit, which is legally required to operate.
“Every project in the city should comply with the law and will not be allowed to continue unless corrected,” Yap said.
The OBO has advised the project owners to correct the violation to continue construction and eventually obtain the necessary permits to operate.