Flashback July 07, 1999-2001

[B]July 07, 1999

Plan to “localize” park administration nixed[/B]

Expressing doubts on the local government’s capability to manage park facilities efficiently, an official of the National Park Service or NPS is opposing a proposal to localize the administration of the American Memorial Park. “We would like to continue the collaborative relationship that we have with the commonwealth in the management of the American Memorial Park,” NPS superintendent Karen Gustin said.

[B]CUC close to choosing Saipan power plant builder[/B]

A final report on the independent re-evaluation of the stalled power project on Saipan is expected to be completed within the next few days, inching closer to selecting a contractor to build the 80-megawatt plant, officials said yesterday. Burns & McDonnell, a U.S. engineering firm hired by Commonwealth Utilities Corporation to conduct another round of review on various project proposals, will submit its recommendations to the Board of Directors either this week or early next week.

[B]JAL boosts flights to Saipan[/B]

Buoyed by the positive results of its additional flights, Japan Airlines has decided to operate 10 charter flights in July and August covering the cities of Osaka, Nagoya and Fukuoka in a move to boost visitor arrivals in the CNMI. Despite the absence of charter flights last month, JAL ferried a total of 16,692 Japanese tourists which resulted in a 113 percent jump in the number of travelers from the same period last year. Of this, 10,824 passengers came from Tokyo while 5,868 were from Osaka.

[B]July 07, 2000

DPS, DPH may miss court deadline due to lack of funds[/B]

The Departments of Public Safety and Public Health will find it hard to meet the deadlines set by the Superior Court in ensuring that murder suspect Dwayne M. Sibetang will be provided with facilities that are sufficiently staffed with qualified mental health professionals due to unavailability of funds. Superior Court Associate Judge Timothy H. Bellas has ordered the CNMI government to certify on or before July 12, 2000 that the Division of Corrections has all the necessary facilities that meet the requirements of the Patient’s Rights Act and the Criminal Commitment Act.

[B]SNILD allows street naming commission to change plan[/B]

Saipan lawmakers yesterday passed a local bill to allow the streetnaming commission to alter initial plan on the efforts to mark streets and roads on the island. The measure, offered by Rep. David M. Apatang, stemmed from a petition by San Antonio residents to block the plan to assign local fish names on the village’s streets.

[B]PSS seeks aid for Anatahan school construction[/B]

Plans to expedite the construction of the proposed Anatahan school in the Northern Islands are facing delay due to the absence of transport services that would carry construction materials to the island. The Public School System has expressed concern over the lack of an adequate transportation which would haul concrete and other supplies to the construction site, citing this as one major factor slowing the project down.

[B]July 07, 2001

Blackout on Rota looms[/B]

Blackout is likely to occur in a large portion of Rota if no immediate action is taken by the Commonwealth Utilities Corp. to upgrade its inoperative substation, warned Rota-CUC resident director Charles Manglona. In his report to the CUC board of Directors, Manglona said that CUC Rota has actually been purchasing power from the Rota Resort and Country Club to serve approximately 40 percent of the island’s electricity demand.

[B]No FEMA funds yet for CUC[/B]

The Commonwealth Utilities Corp. has not received anything yet of its 90-percent expected reimbursement from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for Rota typhoon assistance. This, even as FEMA assistance funding for all jurisdictions was reportedly de-allocated due to a national budget situation last month, prompting the CNMI government to request for its reinstatement.