Ada: NMHC is looking into Tottotville housing issue

The Northern Marianas Housing Corp. insisted yesterday that it does and continues to address the concerns raised by Tottotville homeowners about alleged defects in the construction of their homes.

In a statement, executive director Maria Lourdes S. Ada indicated that the complaints of homeowners have been brought to the attention of the responsible parties, which include SSFM and Telesource CNMI Inc.

“NMHC contracted SSFM and Telesource to design, manage the construction of, and construct the Tottotville homes,” she said. “As soon as questions and concerns were raised by homeowners, NMHC began submitting those questions and concerns to those responsible parties. This practice continues even today in an effort to quickly resolve any problems.”

Ada said the negative reports about the issue were “unfortunate” because NMHC has been working with the homeowners and architects “to identify and rectify the problems for sometime now.”

Further, Ada said that NMHC is willing to initiate and to stand beside the homeowners in filing any lawsuit against those responsible for the deficiencies and problems. However, she said it is in the best interest of everyone to first attempt a solution outside the court.

She disclosed that on Sept. 20, 2004, NMHC asked each homeowner for a complete report of any concerns and complaints. SSFM began evaluating and investigating those concerns and complaints on Oct. 22, 2004, after which, an initial report from SSFM was submitted to NMHC on Dec. 16, 2004. The report included recommendations on “what appear to be design-related deficiencies.”

Ada said that, after receiving the report, NMHC decided to hire an independent professional engineer to verify the findings of SSFM.

“Now, in the coming weeks and months, there will be meetings and negotiations in an attempt to finally resolve whatever problems remain,” she said. “It is and has always been the goal and mission of NMHC to provide decent and affordable housing; and NMHC will make sure that those it hires to design, manage and construct homes are held accountable so that each and every homeowner has a home they can be proud of and can fully enjoy.”

Documents obtained earlier by the Saipan Tribune indicated that homeowners have complained of leaks from ceilings, window sills, and exterior doors; water-damaged rear service doors due to lack of roof protection; rattling water pipe sounds on dry wall locations; peeling paint on concrete ceilings; and damaged roof tiles.

One homeowner said her family worries about returning home from work during rainy weather because of flooding; her family would have to dig trenches around the house to prevent water from flowing into their homes.

She said other homes are also faced with leaks in the middle of the houses that require owners to move furniture to prevent them from being damaged, and cited roofing tiles as well as fixtures in the bathroom as problems.

“All are very costly to repair because these are not available on the island,” she said. “A lot of people hire someone for repair, and it’s costing hundreds of dollars..”

Another homeowner said he has also experienced problems, including infestation of termites, deficient ventilation and closets, and cracks on concrete walls.

Another source, who also spoke on condition of anonymity, claimed that Telesource CNMI Inc., which was awarded the contract to build the housing units in Tottotville, reportedly subcontracted the project to groups, who, in turn, allegedly purchased “cheap” materials to construct the units.

The Saipan Tribune contacted Telesource for comment yesterday but was told that its president was off-island and that the person who could best comment on the issue was unavailable.

There are about 45 homeowners currently live in Tottotville, the first subdivision built by the NMHC in 2000 primarily for low- to moderate-income families. The units were awarded through a lottery conducted by NMHC a few years back.