Inos: Govt, UMDA poised to sign deal to rehab La Fiesta

Lt. Gov. Eloy S. Inos said yesterday that the government is about to seal an agreement with United Micronesia Development Association Inc. for the latter to revitalize the former La Fiesta Mall in San Roque, an idle facility that has been costing the government $200,000 in annual lease.

UMDA was one of three bidders that responded to a request for proposal to revitalize the former mall.

The two others were Island Ventures LLC and Pacific Entertainment Technology.

Besides re-establishing a commercial tourism center, the multimillion-dollar project will also ease the government’s annual lease payment of $200,000 for the property.

Inos, who oversees government finances, said UMDA has “good ideas” on how to revitalize La Fiesta to make it a tourist attraction once again.

“We’re close to executing a contract with a firm that will basically revitalize La Fiesta,” Inos said in an interview after he signed a proclamation yesterday morning declaring April 2012 Autism Awareness Month.

Besides retail shops, boutiques and restaurants, the facility will also feature video lottery terminals, said Inos.

“We’d like to do it right away,” Inos added.

Inos said this agreement is not so much about UMDA paying the government to use La Fiesta, but more about the government allowing UMDA to revitalize the area to make it a revenue-generating facility.

“Of course the only issue that we have is the annual rental payment, which is something we’re negotiating right now,” Inos said.

Gov. Benigno R. Fitial’s proposed fiscal year 2013 budget “zeroes out” the annual $200,000 lease payment for the La Fiesta property.

Inos said this is in anticipation of the agreement between the government and UMDA, wherein UMDA will take over the $200,000 annual payment of the lease.

“The public could expect economic development and employment,” he added.

UMDA chair Joe Lifoifoi referred questions yesterday about the La Fiesta matter to David Wickline.

Wickline, the UMDA executive negotiating the agreement with the government, is currently off island. As of last night, Wickline had yet to respond to media requests for comment.

UMDA owns the now-closed 313-room The Palms Resort across La Fiesta. It has been negotiating with foreign investors, including the Korean-based E-Land, for the purchase of the hotel.

Initial estimates placed the cost of renovating the La Fiesta Mall at $5 million, but this figure has turned out to be too conservative.

The CNMI government has been paying for the mall property lease at least since 2004, a year after the government bought the complex in 2003 initially for the Northern Marianas College’s Pacific Gateway Project but this did not take off.