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Investor to revive revolving resto
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Posted on Oct 14 2005
A Saipan investor wants to restore what the Nauru Building in Susupe was originally famous for: the revolving restaurant atop the seven-floor building.
Erick Van Der Maas, a Holland-born businessman who purchased Nauru Building last August, said yesterday that he would redevelop it into a top-caliber type of restaurant.
“It’s going to be a high-class restaurant. You have to make it special. It will be offering international cuisine to diners,” he said.
The restaurant, he said, would be called “Sky Café.”
Right now, he said, he is looking for a business partner to pursue the project. “I’m looking for the right person to work with,” he said.
Van Der Maas said the restaurant still rotates even now. “You’ll get an amazing view of the island from there,” he said.
He said the Saipan World Resort, which was believed to be the reason why the restaurant had to stop operations several years ago, is not obstructing the view at all.
He said the restaurant just needs to be refurbished. It needs a new kitchen and its ceiling needs repainting.
The restaurant area is about 4,200 square feet. The building was built for the king of Nauru in the early 70s. The entire seventh floor of the building was never rented out because it served as the exclusive suite for the king.
The other floors of the building currently house several offices, including the Philippine Consulate General on the fifth floor, the Philippine Labor Office on the ground floor, and the island’s only cable TV, KMCV on the second floor.
Van Der Maas said the building will undergo major renovation work and will be renamed Marianas Business Plaza.
The investor has been on Saipan for five years now. Before that, he lived in Taiwan for 15 years.
