NMC rids itself of La Fiesta

The Northern Marianas College finally got some breathing space yesterday after Gov. Juan N. Babauta signed an agreement with the college that transfers responsibility over the La Fiesta shopping mall to the CNMI Executive Branch.

Under the memorandum of agreement, the Governor’s Office will relieve NMC of all obligations over La Fiesta starting Oct. 1. These obligations include the annual $200,000 land lease and the mall’s operation, which averages $30,000 monthly after payment from tenants.

The college will now arrange meetings with Hotel Nikko Saipan and Coco’s Lagoon Development Corp.—the original sellers of La Fiesta—for them to concur with the agreement. Representatives of the governor are expected to attend the meetings.

NMC Board of Regents chair Kimberlyn King-Hinds expressed relief about the transfer. The Western Association of Schools and Colleges, which has placed the college’s accreditation on warning status, has expressed concern about the financial and logistical burdens caused by NMC’s operation of La Fiesta.

“NMC will no longer have to deal with [the Western Association of Schools and Colleges] regarding La Fiesta and NMC will no longer be burdened with the operation of La Fiesta, financial or otherwise,” she said.

With the transfer of responsibility, King-Hinds said NMC will now be in a better position to work with the Governor’s Office in using the San Roque facility to develop education as a major industry in the Commonwealth.

“NMC will continue focusing on its mission to provide the best quality…post-secondary and adult educational opportunities for the purpose of improving the quality of life for the individual and the community as a whole,” King-Hinds said.

Press secretary Peter Callaghan said in a Monday interview that the governor’s taking over La Fiesta was a necessary step in order to help NMC keep its accreditation.

“What the governor has done is he’s given the [NMC Board of Regents] as part of this agreement the opportunity to take a long look at the options for La Fiesta without having to worry about the monetary stuff, and come back to him at a future date and show him a plan for the use of La Fiesta,” Callaghan had said.

A provision in the agreement states that the governor will allow NMC to lease the facility for $1 a year, should the college come up with a proposal for the use of the land or the mall.

Nevertheless, Callaghan maintained that the governor stands firm in his plan to develop La Fiesta into an educational facility that is part of NMC.

“The overall Pacific Gateway Project is still a good plan. It’s still a viable way for us to bring additional revenues into the CNMI, and [to develop] education as an industry. I don’t think the governor is going to let a few, short-term bumps make him deviate from his dream of turning La Fiesta into a beautiful college,” he said.

The agreement was executed at the NMC Board of Regents conference room at 5:30pm, two hours later than the scheduled signing. The regents were all gathered at the venue at 3:30pm when the governor asked King-Hinds and acting NMC president Jack Sablan to meet him on Capitol Hill.

King-Hinds later said that the Governor and his staff, including some lawyers from the Attorney General’s Office, wanted to conduct a final review of the agreement. The AGO did not get to look at the draft agreement until last Monday.

On June 19, 2003, the Governor’s Office entered into a memorandum of agreement with NMC where he committed $3.5 million of grant funds for the acquisition of the La Fiesta facilities and the San Roque real property that the mall sits on.

Since last January, NMC has been operating the mall at a substantial loss, requiring the Governor’s Office to offset the losses to date. The funds from the Executive Branch, however, will last only until Sept. 30, when the current fiscal year ends.

NMC has asked the Legislature for additional funding for the operation of La Fiesta, but the request was disapproved. This left NMC without money to run the facility beginning Oct. 1.

Last Saturday, the College Council, Faculty Senate, Staff Senate, and the Associated Student of NMC submitted the proposal recommending that the Board of Regents transfer ownership of the property to the CNMI government and that the Executive Branch assume management of the facility.