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CDA chair supports school’s relocation
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Posted on Dec 27 2005
Commonwealth Development Authority board chair Tom Glenn Quitugua expressed his support for the proposed relocation of Garapan Elementary School to give way to the economic development in the area.
“The place is at the heart of Garapan and it’s ideal as a business district. The school has to be constructed in a new site, a more suitable area, away from the business district,” said Quitugua.
The board chairman, who is also a member of the Northern Marianas Housing Corp. board, said that he has always supported the idea of converting the Garapan school’s lot into a high-end residential area or a commercial or entertainment center.
“I call it urban revitalization. We need to focus on revitalizing the business area to boost economic development,” he said.
The outgoing Babauta administration proposes to relocate the school to Navy Hill, and transform the area into a business center.
The Public School System said it has yet to thoroughly review the proposal.
Earlier, Saipan Chamber of Commerce outgoing president Alex Sablan favored the conversion of the Garapan area into a full-blown commercial district. Sablan said this is needed to be able to create more attractions for tourists.
He said that, besides the beach and island tours, Saipan needs to have malls, convention centers, and other facilities to offer tourists while they are here.
The CNMI is experiencing a decline in tourist arrivals, especially from Japan—its major tourism market—due to the recent pullout of Japan Airlines.
JAL used to bring in some 150,000 tourists to the CNMI annually.
