The first amusement park in Pangasinan is scheduled to open on Nov. 29 in this town, boosting tourism, overall economic activity, and employment in the area.

In an interview on Monday, Jerwin Valeros, executive and operations assistant at Blue Sky Theme Park and Events Center, said 90 percent of the employees for the soft launch are from this town.

“Our priority is the people of Bayambang; the staff here are mostly residents of the town,” he said.

He added they initially hired 60 staff for their soft opening and will add more as the grand opening approaches in the first quarter of 2026.

Valeros said the park will also have 12 food stalls for small and medium entrepreneurs in the town.

The four-hectare Blue Sky Theme Park and Events Center is part of the 67-hectare investment hub in Barangay Bani here, which is expected to boost the local economy, including the town’s coffers.

“This project will usher in investments and job opportunities. It is not for the economy alone but also for culture and commerce,” Mayor Mary Clare Judith Phyllis Jose Quiambao said in a separate interview.

The PHP2.5-billion Bayambang (BYB) Metro is a mixed-use township development that features a theme park, open spaces, hotels, residential areas, and commercial zones.

It is expected to be finished within five years. Quiambao said the project will also positively impact nearby towns in central and eastern Pangasinan.

“It would boost tourism in the town and nearby areas since it is adjacent to the famous St. Vincent Ferrer Prayer Park, where the tallest engineered bamboo statue is located, and pilgrims visit,” she said.

Meanwhile, Agricultural Infrastructure and Leasing Corp. (AILC) president Cezar Quiambao said the new metro area, including the amusement park, is expected to generate annual income of around PHP50 million to PHP200 million for the town when fully operational.

“It will generate income for the town through real estate tax,” he said.

BYB Metro’s Blue Sky theme park features a 50-meter-high Ferris wheel and a roller coaster as the main attractions, along with 11 other rides, including three for children. It will also soon have a snow world and an ice-skating rink.

For the Nov. 29 soft launch, the park hours are from 6:30 p.m. to 10 p.m., and on subsequent days, it is open Fridays to Sundays from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m.

The entrance fee is at PHP100, and the rides’ prices range from PHP50 to PHP150. (PNA)