Previous Story
BPL warns against land lease extension
|
Posted on May 07 1999
Public Lands Chairman Tomas B. Aldan yesterday warned legislators against a plan to approve extension of existing land lease for 15 years of a golf resort on Rota, saying the move may compromise the government position.
Members of the Senate as well as the House Natural Resources Committee are scheduled to hold a joint session today on Rota to decide on the lease of SNM Resort.
In a letter to committee chair Rep. Manuel A. Tenorio, Aldan expressed worry over the apparent rush on the decision to extend the lease to 15 years without consulting the Board of Public Lands.
“I am urging the Legislature to defer entertaining the request and to ask SNM Resort to first submit its application to the Division of Public Lands,” the BPL chair said.
He also stressed the board is currently reviewing the lease for compliance on the terms and conditions, adding there are issues of “vital importance to the Division involving lawsuits that must be addressed” by SNM.
Aldan, however, did not provide details of the lease. Tenorio could not be reached for comment on the letter which was sent to the representative yesterday after the public lands official heard the legislative meeting “through the grapevine and telephone.”
“We urge you and the full Legislature not to compromise the position of the government,” he said, asking Tenorio for a meeting to brief his committee of the need to defer action on SNM’s lease.
“Let’s not rush and later find out that the people’s land have been compromised by its leaders,” Aldan added.
