Photo by the Philippine Collegian 

     The U.P. Shopping Center burned down this morning when the stalls in the middle portion started to blaze at about 7:15am (time according to the Philippine Collegian) . Most of the stores inside were still closed when the spark broke out. The cause of the fire is still being investigated.

   The U.P Shopping Center structure itself has been declared “condemned” by the U.P Office of the Campus Architect in the early 1990s. The UP Diliman administration then tried to rebuild the structure by temporarily re-settling the tenants legally thru court actions but the tenants resisted and used their resources to get a TRO and an injunction from the Court of Appeals.

   UP Shopping Center bustled with business housing eateries like the iconic Rodic’s, many photocopying stalls, internet shops, and the well-known UP Maroons store — home of U.P. official T-shirts, the sablay graduation garb, and memorabilia.