FIGHT OVER STREET NAMES Hofschneider appeals for calm

The chair of the Saipan and Northern Islands Legislative Delegation has appealed for calm on a potentially divisive issue that may further drag the street naming project on the heels of opposing views on the overdue plan by the municipal government.

Rep. Heinz S. Hofschneider said the lawmaking body must come up with a compromise that will consider the concerns of both parties, noting that arguments presented so far by members have merits.

“We should be objective in trying to find a middle ground where we can accommodate both sides,” he said in an interview. “I don’t want this issue to be divisive. The community has never been in a predicament whereby someone would utilize some issue to make it divisive.”

Hofschneider’s comment came after legislators fought over the proposal submitted by the Office of the Saipan Mayor, which has assigned mostly Chamorro names on streets despite recommendations from the Carolinian community.

One side of the issue contends that half of the project should carry Carolinian names to reflect their heritage, while the opposing view believes that the street naming commission created by the municipal government has come up with a plan recognizing the concerns of all sectors in the community.

The SNILD chairman hoped this disagreement could be ironed out soon so that the project would move ahead and the delegation could take up other pressing issues, including allocation of at least $1 million to construct street names.

“Like anything, I don’t believe that there is no resolution to this issue,” Hofschneider explained. “There is always a middle ground for everything, it’s a matter of being able to be realistic and being practical on both sides, and accommodating.”

He added that “if the two sides really want to work and do good, then there’s a lot of room for comprises.” Hofschneider did not indicate how they could bridge their differences.

The plan provided by the commission has been in the drawing board for the last four years, but has been hampered by bureaucratic problems over the past decade. Assigning names is just the first step to implement this long-stalled project, according to legislators.

“It would be a tremendous setback if we don’t find a compromise and we continue to debate on the issue,” Hofschneider said.

The delegation needs to get it off the first phase and find the money to finance purchasing of materials and erecting street names, according to the chairman.

SNILD is hoping also to include the project under the CNMI priority list of Capital Improvement Projects so that the funding issue would not cause a delay.

“I have been writing to the governor to put it as a priority in our next CIP and it’s one of those projects that is necessary for a lot of reasons, particularly the safety of the residents in responding to emergencies,” Hofschneider pointed out.