![\"graph\"](\"http:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/graph-150x150.jpg\")
<\/p>\nA whopping $3.14 billion Saipan casino agreement between the Commonwealth Lottery Commission and Best Sunshine\u2019s parent company Imperial Pacific International has been reached\u2014the single largest development deal in recent CNMI history. This comes barely five months since the signing of a controversial gambling law that had already been amended twice and remains a subject of lawsuits.<\/p>\n
The maximum 40-year deal was reached on Tuesday night.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
This was confirmed by Imperial Pacific\u2019s announcement on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange website and Lottery Commission chair Sixto Igisomar in a brief phone interview yesterday.<\/p>\n
A signing \u201cceremony\u201d may be held in the next few days.<\/p>\n
Gov. Eloy S. Inos said the agreement provides an economic future for the CNMI people. <\/p>\n
At the same time, he said the CNMI needs to be cautious in its implementation \u201cso as to protect our environment and island culture.\u201d<\/p>\n
A $30-million deposit would soon be released from escrow, which will pave the way for the payment\u2014in the next few days\u2014of CNMI retirees\u2019 deferred 25-percent pension since last year and the payment of interest on defined benefit plan members\u2019 withdrawn contributions.<\/p>\n
The agreement grants Imperial Pacific an exclusive license to develop an integrated casino resort on Saipan.<\/p>\n
Questions as to where the hotels and casinos will be located on Saipan have yet to be answered, along with studies showing how Saipan\u2019s roads, airports, power and water sources, workforce and other amenities will be impacted during the duration of the integrated resort construction and operation.<\/p>\n
Imperial Pacific, in its announcement, said they are \u201cactively looking for quality land on the island of Saipan\u201d for the integrated resort.<\/p>\n
Trading in the shares was halted for four hours yesterday starting at 9am at Imperial Pacific\u2019s request filed with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.<\/p>\n
Terms<\/strong><\/p>\n A statement from the Lottery Commission yesterday, issued by acting press secretary Ivan Blanco, says that the terms of the license agreement cover 12 items that Imperial Pacific has to build within eight years, or by 2022.<\/p>\n These include 2,229 hotel guest rooms, 17,000 square meters of total gaming floor area, and $100-million themed entertainment facility.<\/p>\n Other requirements include at least 23 food and beverage outlets in 13,532 square meters of space, 15,000 square meters of retail space, a 600-seat theatre, 9,094 square meters of meeting space including ballroom, a wedding chapel, 200 villas, 1,050 square meters of fitness area and 1,900-square-meter spa facility.<\/p>\n Imperial Pacific estimates that the total cost of these requirements is $3.14 billion, way beyond the minimum $2 billion investment required by the Saipan casino law.<\/p>\n The four-member Lottery Commission\u2014Commerce Secretary Sixto Igisomar as chairman, Finance Secretary Larrisa Larson, Attorney General-nominee Gilbert Birnbrich, and Public Safety Commissioner James Deleon Guerrero\u2014is scheduled to meet again on Friday. The commission counsel is Jim Stump, who\u2019s been instrumental throughout the process.<\/p>\n Terence Tay, chief operating officer of Best Sunshine, is expected to be back on island later this week. Tay has been the face of Best Sunshine and its parent company, Imperial Pacific, since day one.<\/p>\n Model development<\/strong><\/p>\n Igisomar, in a statement, said the requirement for construction of an \u201cintegrated resort\u201d was modeled after large casino developments such as the Venetian Casino in Las Vegas and Resorts World Sentosa in Singapore. <\/p>\n This concept brings together shopping, gaming, hotel accommodations, housing development, meeting facilities, wedding chapel, spa facilities, restaurants, and family entertainment in an integrated development. <\/p>\n \u201cCritical to this approach is a license requirement for construction of a $100-million entertainment attraction that is a central focus of the resort,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Preliminary discussions on the type of themed entertainment include water attractions and theatrical productions. <\/p>\n \u201cBy integrating these different elements, you have much more than just a casino, and instead have a multidimensional project. The license agreement includes quality standards for all rooms, guest services, and shopping,\u201d Igisomar said.<\/p>\n Complex negotiations<\/strong><\/p>\n Igisomar said these were \u201ccomplex\u201d negotiations as the license is a long-term agreement that will have \u201cfar-reaching impact on our island community.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe negotiations were not simple and there was significant give and take between the parties, but overall, the Commission was pleased with the outcome. I want to personally thank Commission members Finance Secretary Larson, Commissioner Deleon Guerrero, and acting attorney general Birnbrich for the time and effort they committed to this process,\u201d Igisomar said.<\/p>\n The commission chairman said in order to ensure that the CNMI receives the most benefit from the agreement, it increased the requirements for development and required an \u201cexpedited implementation plan.\u201d<\/p>\n Under that plan, Imperial Pacific is required to develop an initial gaming facility consisting of a 5-star, 225-room hotel within 24 months.<\/p>\n Phase one of the improvements is required within 36 months.<\/p>\n These include an 800-room luxury hotel, a $100-million themed entertainment facility with amphitheater, 5,732 square meters of food and beverage outlets, 2,500 square meters of meeting space, 5,000 square meters of retail shops, a wedding chapel, 500 sqm of spa\/fitness area, 10,000 square meters of gaming area, and associated parking, site improvements, landscaping, furnishing, fixtures, utilities and infrastructure.<\/p>\n Other commissioners<\/strong><\/p>\n Birnbrich, as the CNMI\u2019s acting attorney general, said the license agreement is complex. <\/p>\n He said the agreement had to incorporate concepts of licensing, contracts, development requirements, statutory authority and the dual authority of the Lottery Commission and the yet to be established Casino Commission. <\/p>\n \u201cThe combination of these elements resulted in a lengthy agreement,\u201d Birnbrich said. \u201cWe were careful to separate development requirements, which will be under the authority of the Executive Branch, and oversight of gaming, which will be under the authority of the Casino Commission.\u201d<\/p>\n He said these two agencies have coordinated authority for license oversight and enforcement, \u201ceither of which can suspend or revoke the license for a material breach in conformity with the requirements of the Commonwealth Administrative Procedure Act.\u201d<\/p>\n Deleon Guerrero, the CNMI\u2019s public safety commissioner, said in a statement that he wants to \u201cassure the public that the foremost issue being considered by the commission was to protect the public interest.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAs DPS vommissioner, I wanted to ensure that the selection process met high standards of transparency and integrity. We approached the entire process of negotiating a license agreement that would be in the best interest of the people. The Northern Mariana Islands are my home and I realize that the decisions we would be making would have long term effects on our families and I want to protect and represent these interests,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Retirement, DB issues<\/strong><\/p>\n Larson, as Finance secretary, addressed the restoration of deferred pension checks, among other things.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are moving forward in an expeditious manner to transfer the $30-million licensee deposit, but this will take several steps,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Once the funds are received, processing of payments begins. <\/p>\n \u201cThis is a complex process that must be done carefully, so we ask for the public\u2019s patience in this matter but rest assured we recognize the need to move quickly,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n The governor, who is seeking election on Nov. 4, expressed relief that the negotiations were finally concluded.<\/p>\n He said the agreement will have a significant impact on the entire community. <\/p>\n \u201cIt will provide the funding necessary to pay interest to employees who withdrew their pension contributions and restore 25-percent reduction to retirees which was one of my primary objectives. However, just as important is that it provides a long-term boost to our economy that will result in the increase in wages, rental rates, property values, and use of local goods and services,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Inos also stressed that the agreement provides an economic future for the CNMI people, ensuring good-paying jobs, and provides an incentive for families to remain in the Commonwealth. <\/p>\n He said these last few years, he has witnessed the dispersal of many families who left the islands because of lack of opportunities and he is hoping that this will reverse that trend and provide an incentive to those who left to return. <\/p>\n \u201cOne of the key elements of our culture is our strong family bonds and we need to preserve and protect this element,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n The governor also said that although he is happy with the license agreement\u2019s signing, the CNMI needs to be cautious in its implementation to protect the environment and island culture. <\/p>\n \u201cI am happy that the Lottery Commission specifically identified this issue as an important duty of the licensee. We must work together with the Bureau of Environmental and Coastal Quality and the Zoning Office to ensure that the development balances environment issues with the need for economic development. These two elements can be in harmony, but it takes careful consideration by both the developer and government agencies,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n Sen. Pete Reyes (Ind-Saipan) said yesterday that the casino agreement \u201cwill mean considerable economic opportunity for the CNMI.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" A whopping $3.14 billion Saipan casino agreement between the Commonwealth Lottery Commission and Best Sunshine\u2019s…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":35,"featured_media":176431,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[94],"tags":[927,26,1091,928],"class_list":["post-176426","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-headlines","tag-casino-commission","tag-cnmi","tag-imperial-pacific","tag-lottery-commission"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176426","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/35"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=176426"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176426\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/176431"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=176426"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=176426"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saipantribune.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=176426"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}