House holds off voting on Sea Touch-DLNR lease deal
The House of Representatives held off voting on a proposed submerged lands lease between the Department of Lands and Natural Resources and Sea Touch Saipan LLC for a $1.125-million shark and stingray marine park project over what Natural Resources Committee chair Anthony Benavente (Ind-Saipan) said were remaining concerns, including the criteria for site election.
Benavente, during Thursday’s session, told his colleagues that the Natural Resources Committee wants further “clarification.” The bill was referred back to committee.
“No. 1, what’s the criteria for site selection? No. 2, are there available alternative locations? Because of this, we feel that this bill needs to go back to committee for further review,” Benavente said.
Rep. Ray Tebuteb (Ind-Saipan) echoed Benavente’s position, adding that there are “quite a few pertinent information” that need to be “scrutinized.”
Rep. Teresita Santos (R-Rota), however, pointed out that most committee members already signed off or approved the committee report recommending passage of the bill approving the proposed DLNR-Sea Touch lease agreement.
While that is true, Benavente said there were other concerns raised after the report was prepared including the site selection criteria and alterative sites.
The committee recommended passage of Speaker Joseph Deleon Guerrero’s (Ind-Saipan) House Bill 18-198, in the form of House Draft 1.
The proposed substitute bill ensures that the accurate square meters of the premises to be leased are reflected in the bill. The substitute bill, made in collaboration with DLNR, corrects the discrepancies pertaining to the combined leased area and to include the CNMI local grid coordinate system.
The accurate total square meters of the property being leased is some 1,481 square meters, from 4,575 square meters, located by the Fiesta Resort & Spa beach side in Garapan. The proposed lease is for $12,000 a year.
The committee version of the bill also changes the coordinates from four geocoordinates to eight CNMI local grid coordinates.
“Neither the change to the square meters nor the coordinates added or subtracted from the actual land that the parties negotiated and agreed to lease,” the committee version of the bill states.
A public hearing on the bill conducted by the Natural Resources Committee drew support from those who testified in person and in writing.
The proposed submerged lands project area covers some 4,575 square meters by the Fiesta Resort & Spa beach in Garapan.
Saipan Sea Touch plans to build temporary holding pens for the sharks and stingrays, and a floating walkway on the shallow waters fronting the hotel.
If approved by the Legislature, the lease would be for five years. The lease may be renewed for up to an additional 20 years, with each renewal term of up to five years.
The House Natural Resources Committee, in its report, said granting of the submerged land lease will enhance tourism by providing a new tourist attraction and will also create new jobs and business opportunities.
T he House of Representatives needs to get their acts together and take care of this tourism attraction opportunity before the investor pulls out altogether. There is nothing here for the CNMI to be completely worried about as far as the proposal is concerned and whatever it will entail. They are not constructing any building or permanent structure, they are just putting together a holding pen for the two species and a for the interaction. Whatever fishing that used to occur here has been long gone and any recent fishing have been occurring elsewhere and not at the selected site. Congressman Tebuteb needs to be supportive and not be in opposition for the CNMI needs all the economic help at this point in time.
$12,000 a year is like chump change. A couple of years ago an Australian company started the shark feeding business. After making a million in one year the company decided to sell the business because the market profitability was not sustainable.
All of this “concerns” are in the wrong directions. There are fed Laws on capture and “keeping” these species.
“catch vessels”, capture enclosures, feeding, interactions, etc. there is a long list of actual pertinent concerns.
This could be a very big draw asnd important to tourism and the economy.
My big concern is “does this company actually have the knowlege anbd expertise to actually pull this off.
Do they think that they can just “lure” sharks and Rays into an enclosure? Yes it can and has been done.
So how much are “each species” supposed to get fed per day AND at what time AND how much?
Certain species will not tolerate capture. Many sharks have a high capture mortality rate, in excess of 90%.
So which species? What species are Federally NOT permitted to be captured?
Same with the Rays..
These brain dead elected are looking in the wrong direction and have no idea of what is happening. Total miscreants and attempting to look like they understand.
WAKE UP PEOPLE this is actually controlled by Fed Regs. AFTER any permit is approved.
Been there done that under contract with University of Hawaii, under Guidance of NOAA.