‘Old plan to remain shelved’

The Northern Marianas College is not keen on reviving the on-site expansion program that was earlier shelved to give way for the Pacific Gateway project.

Acting NMC president Tony Deleon Guerrero said the current NMC board of directors and administration have no intention to revive the proposed NMC Business Center program, describing it as “too expensive.”

Originally called the NMC Business and Tourism Center, the project was estimated to cost $8 million.

According to Deleon Guerrero, the expansion project was actually his “brainchild.”

As director of the former visitor industry program at NMC, he introduced the 1998 project during the term of Agnes McPhetres as college president.

He said the college went as far as completing the architectural and engineering design for the project, which was subsequently shelved during the term of former college president Jack Sablan.

“It got too expensive, especially if you consider that it would benefit just one program—which is business and hospitality,” Deleon Guerrero said.

The college leadership, he said, has not presented the plan to the Babauta administration, as it has no plan to resurrect the project.

“We’re already having difficulty financing the Pacific Gateway project. There is no way we can afford an $8 million project that will do good to only one department,” he said.

Deleon Guerrero added that terminated NMC program director Jack Angello was acting in his personal capacity when he recently wrote the U.S. Department of Agriculture-Rural Development about the expansion plan.

“[We want] to explore the possibility of the USDA assisting the NMC in a facilities project at its current campus location, not the La Fiesta site. This information will be relayed to CNMI congressman Justo Quitugua, House chairman for the Education Committee, who has asked me to research viable avenues to improve NMC’s current campus, which is in need of new and expanded building space,” Angello had said in a June 9 letter to Guam-based USDA rural development manager Joseph M. Diego.

Diego had replied that the shelved project seems to be feasible and eligible for funding under the federal agency’s community facilities program.

Earlier, the USDA-RD expressed concerns over NMC’s La Fiesta project—recently put on hold by the NMC Board of Regents for lack of funding—citing program eligibility and funding issues.

In particular, the USDA was concerned about NMC’s lack of authority from the Legislature to incur public debt for La Fiesta.

NMC, under former president Kenneth Wright, purchased La Fiesta mall in San Roque for $7.5 million.

Under the acquisition deal, the college has to pay the mall’s original owners $200,000 a year beginning this October, whether the facility is used or not.

The college, however, cannot convert the facility into a campus due to serious financial problems. NMC needs some $10 million to renovate La Fiesta and buy collateral equipment.

The mall was originally owned by JAL and Hotel Nikko Saipan. It was later sold to Cocos Lagoon Corp., which then sold it to NMC.