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Saipan municipal council building to be built by March 2024
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Posted on Apr 20 2023
Members of the 17th Saipan Municipal Council, from left, chairwoman Marian Deleon Guerrero Tudela, secretary Carmen C. Pangelinan, and vice chairwoman Antonia M. Tudela, pose next to an artist’s rendition of the proposed Saipan and Northern Island Municipal Council building that is set to be built by March 2024 in Chalan Kanoa next to the U.S. Postal Service. (LEIGH GASES)
A modern building that will house both the Saipan Mayor’s Office and the Saipan and Northern Island Municipal Council is set to be built by March 2024 in Chalan Kanoa next to the U.S. Postal Service.
The new building, which will cost almost $1 million to build, will occupy 5,000 square meters on a lot on the east side of the U.S. Postal Service.
This was learned in a press conference yesterday morning at the Saipan and Northern Islands Leadership Kiosku Courtyard across the U.S. Postal Service, which was attended by Lt. Gov. David M. Apatang, some members of the CNMI Legislature, contractors, and others. Gov. Arnold I. Palacios and Saipan Mayor Ramon “RB” Camacho were not present.
Members of the17th Saipan Municipal Council—Marian Deleon Guerrero Tudela, Antonia M. Tudela, and Carmen C. Pangelinan—also unveiled an artist’s rendition of the proposed building.
Currently, the 17th Saipan Municipal Council does not have an office nor a building and holds their meetings temporarily at the Kiosku Courtyard.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency allocated $500,000 for the project, with the funding matched by the local government. Bidding proposals to contractors will be opened soon.
The project has been in the works since 2015, but was halted due to previous typhoons. After almost 10 years and several failed bids later, the project will now resume.
“We need [the new building]. It’s about time that we should have one,” said council chair Marian Deleon Guerrero Tudela.
Apatang is thankful that the project is finally pushing forward. “That’s always been my dream to make sure that we have a building that can house the Mayor’s Office and the [Municipal Council] and this is the right place—Chalan Kanoa is the capital of Saipan and this is where the mayor is supposed to be.”
