Floridablanca, Pampanga

Floridablanca
Municipality
Municipality of Floridablanca
Municipal Hall
Flag Seal
Map of Pampanga with Floridablanca highlighted
OpenStreetMap
Floridablanca Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 14°58′26″N 120°31′41″E
Country	Philippines
Region	Central Luzon
Province	Pampanga
District	2nd district
Founded	April 30, 1867
Barangays	33 (see Barangays)
Government
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
• Mayor	Darwin R. Manalansan
• Vice Mayor	Michael L. Galang
• Representative	Gloria Macapagal Arroyo
• Municipal Council	Members Mark Kelvin M. Mendoza Jacob E. Fajardo Jesus I. Nanquil Diosdado D. Vitug Jr. Lloyd Darren O. Manalansan Emmanuel D. Tolentino Richard Lee B. Carlos VI Joe Rey P. Montemayor
• Electorate	72,707 voters (2022)
Area
• Total	175.48 km2 (67.75 sq mi)
Elevation	28 m (92 ft)
Highest elevation	114 m (374 ft)
Lowest elevation	7 m (23 ft)
Population  (2020 census)
• Total	135,542
• Density	770/km2 (2,000/sq mi)
• Households	30,994
Economy
• Income class	1st municipal income class
• Poverty incidence	2.92 % (2018)
• Revenue	₱ 404.7 million (2020)
• Assets	₱ 531.6 million (2020)
• Expenditure	₱ 355.6 million (2020)
• Liabilities	₱ 183.6 million (2020)
Service provider
• Electricity	San Fernando Electric Light and Power Company (SFELAPCO)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	2006
PSGC	0305406000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)45
Native languages	Kapampangan Tagalog

Floridablanca, officially the Municipality of Floridablanca (Kapampangan: Balen ning Floridablanca; Filipino: Bayan ng Floridablanca) is a 1st class municipality in the province of Pampanga, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 135,542 people. Floridablanca is a part of the province of the Pampanga located in Central Luzon lying north of Dinalupihan, Bataan and south-southwest of San Fernando, Pampanga.

Etymology

Floridablanca is derived from Spanish which translates to "white flower." However, there are two versions of the name's origin:

• in honor of José Moñino, 1st Count of Floridablanca, a former chief minister of Spain whom the locals believed to have visited the place in the early 1800s despite the lack of evidence of his visit; or
• white flowers of a pandacaqui plant (Tabernaemontana pandacaqui) that flourished in the town, considered as a more credible origin.

Previously, the town was named San Jose de Calampaui, which is derived from Spanish for Saint Joseph, its patron saint.

History

Floridablanca was founded in 1823 as Hacienda de San Jose de Calampaui at the site of a monastery. In 1867, it was renamed to Pueblo de Floridablanca.

In the 1920s, the Pampanga Sugar Mill was built at Del Carmen in the 1920s. The area was the site of military bases of the Philippine Commonwealth Army and the Philippine Constabulary from 1942 to 1946. The Philippine Air Force established Basa Air Base at a former American military airfield in 1947.

Geography

Floridablanca is located on the western part of Pampanga along the Zambales mountain ranges and is bounded by the municipalities of Porac on the north, Lubao on the south, Guagua on the east, and Dinalupihan, Bataan on the west. It is 40 kilometers (25 mi) from the city of San Fernando and 106 kilometers (66 mi) from Manila. The town is at an elevation of 12 feet (3.7 m) above sea level. Floridablanca is north of Dinalupihan, Bataan via Dinalupihan-Floridablanca Access Road at the Bataan-Pampanga boundary line.

With an area of 17,548 hectares (43,360 acres), it is the third largest municipality in the province, after Porac and Candaba.

Barangays

Floridablanca is politically subdivided into 33 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

Climate

Demographics

Population census of Floridablanca

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1903 7,001 —     1918 9,486 +2.05% 1939 17,521 +2.96% 1948 24,825 +3.95% 1960 28,655 +1.20% 1970 39,830 +3.34% 1975 45,419 +2.67% 1980 51,648 +2.60%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1990 66,146 +2.51% 1995 76,683 +2.81% 2000 85,394 +2.33% 2007 103,388 +2.67% 2010 110,846 +2.57% 2015 125,163 +2.34% 2020 135,542 +1.58%
Source: Philippine Statistics Authority

In the 2020 census, the population of Floridablanca, Pampanga, was 135,542 people, with a density of 770 inhabitants per square kilometer or 2,000 inhabitants per square mile.

Economy

Floridablanca is the second largest producer of rice in the province. It produces more than enough rice to meet its needs resulting in a surplus. In 1999, only 37.76% of its produce was used for its own rice requirement resulting in a surplus of 65.24% equivalent to 17,553 metric tons.

Government

Local government

Like other towns in the Philippines, Floridablanca is governed by a mayor and vice mayor who are elected to three-year terms. The mayor is the executive head and leads the town's departments in executing the ordinances and improving public services. The vice mayor heads a legislative council (Sangguniang Bayan) consisting of councilors from the Barangays of Barrios.

List of municipal leaders

Tourism

Aside from Basa Air Base, the town has cultural treasures and interesting points.

• 1887 San Jose Obrero Parish Church: the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Fernando exercises jurisdiction over the Heritage Church.
• Bahay na Puti (Alvendia House): the Justice Carmelino Alvendia, Sr. ancestral mansion is owned, preserved and maintained by his family.

Notable personalities

• Dante Rivero, movie actor
• Jillian Ward, actress
• Justice Carmelino Alvendia, Sr.
• Rhea Santos, newsreader from GMA and OMNI

Gallery

• 
  Basa Air Base Main Gate
• 
  Façade of the Saint Joseph the Worker Parish Church
• 
  The heritage house of the town
• 
  Public market