More apartments for island’s strong renter base now on the way

Ironwood Saipan broke ground yesterday on an 80-unit apartment complex project in Gualo Rai that will bring solar-powered and modernized living arrangements to the area. The project is expected to be completed by Nov. 15, 2015.

John Hand, principal partner of the project and a founder of Ironwood in Guam, said his company is excited to bring housing to “one of the most beautiful place on earth.”

Ironwood started building homes in Guam in 2005, he said. Now, after two years of hard work and tight schedules, Hand extended his thanks to the CNMI’s public and private support in bringing Ironwood to Saipan.

“It took much longer than anyone had anticipated. Thank you for sticking by and seeing us through this,” he said to the crowd of dignitaries, partners, and employees in the audience.

The 2-, 3-, and 4-bedroom apartments will feature solar-powered heaters, insulated walls and ceilings, low-emissivity windows, and energy efficient lighting. Ironwood estimates this would result in 70 percent utility savings for residents.

Hand said the energy efficient construction will help CNMI working families. “More of their paychecks will go to the essentials they need,” he said.

Hand also hopes the tax revenue from the project will help the CNMI economy.

Along with 100 full-time jobs during construction, Ironwood is projected to raise $2.5 million in tax revenues for the CNMI, according to Hand.

Three to four permanent on-site jobs will also be created once the apartments are complete, Hand said.

He said local businesses will benefit too as the housing will need pest control, insurance, ground maintenance, security, and air-conditioning appliances, among other things.

Ironwood, he said, hopes to bring a quality product to the island that will “stand the test of time and typhoon.”

‘Good renter base’

The project is financed by Low Income Housing Tax Credits granted by the Northern Marianas Housing Corp.

Jessie Palacios, corporate director of NMHC, said that about $44 million of tax credits were invested in the project.

“Behind me will be a housing community that will enhance the aging house-stock” in the CNMI, he told the crowd.

As a project financed by LIHTC, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development sets income limits for those who would be eligible for the housing.

A family of four, Palacios said, must be at or below 60 percent of these limits. In dollar terms, that’s $36,660 per year.

That would be wages equivalent to $17 per hour, he said.

“This income threshold is not really low-income for Pacific island standards,” he said.

But this means there are more families and individuals eligible to call Ironwood home, he said.

He called Saipan a “good renter base,” with 10,500 of Saipan households being renters based on the 2010 Census. This is 72.9 percent of households, Palacios said.

On top of this base, he is sure foreign hotel workers for upcoming hotel projects on Saipan will also need homes.

He called the project “historic” as Goldman Sachs is one partner in the project.

He hopes this will bring other tax-credit investors to “look our way.”

Lt. Gov. Jude U. Hofschneider also spoke at the ceremony. He thanked Ironwood partners for expressing interest in the CNMI in their “quest to improve the economy.”