Tottotville homes defective

Less than five years after it built the so-called model housing units in Tottotville, the government faces complaints by homeowners of leaks, apparently caused by defective construction.

Documents obtained by the Saipan Tribune showed Tottotville homeowners complaining of water leaks from ceilings, window sills, and exterior doors; water-damaged rear service doors due to lack of roof protection; rattling water pipe sounds on dry wall locations; peeling off paint on concrete ceilings; and damaged roof tiles.

An occupant complained of water seeping in from the floor to wall connection during heavy rains, when water forms a pond outside the wall.

Another homeowner complained of leaks in the ceiling, possibly from a crack on the concrete roof, a leak on the ceiling between the master bedroom and toilet, a leak underneath the kitchen sink, a hole on the outside wall, water traces and wall paint bubbles, loose kitchen door pulls, and separation between concrete wall and wooden closet framings.

There are about 45 homeowners currently live in Tottotville, the first subdivision built by the Northern Marianas Housing Corp. in 2000 primarily for low- to moderate-income families. The units were awarded through a lottery conducted by NMHC a few years back.

When it opened, Tottotville was hailed by both government and private authorities as a model subdivision: fully paved, with a basketball court, and 24-hour water and electricity.

The uniformly designed houses—each unit contains two bedrooms and a garage—were designed by the Hawaii-based SSFM company and were built by Telesource Saipan.

In a Dec. 16, 2004, letter to NMHC and Commonwealth Development Authority executive director Maria Lourdes S. Ada, SSFM International-Saipan vice president Ralph Hayashi said that, based on interviews with homeowners, they have learned that “no one from NMHC visited the homes to review the complaints.”

“One homeowner told that she was instructed by NMHC personnel to go see SSFM, even though she told the NMHC person that she should not have do so (sic),” said Hayashi.

He further said that one homeowner indicated that there appears to be “favoritism being extended by your staff.”

“The homeowner indicated NMHC will do some things for some homeowners and not for others,” he said.

Hayashi said that most of the items cited by homeowners were reported perhaps as far back as two or three years ago.

As far as SSFM is concerned, he said, it has provided recommendations on the reported deficiencies and has communicated with NMHC on the issue.

“We urge you to take care of these matters by either the original contractor or NMHC,” said Hayashi.

Ada was reached for comments but was not available as of press time.