Flowering plants on pathway leading to seaport stolen

Twenty-five flowering plants called Ixora Nora Grant and around 30 bougainvillea plants were stolen from the Puerto Rico pathway leading to the Saipan seaport, prompting those involved in Saipan beautification projects to appeal for community help in putting a stop to landscaping vandalism.

The Port to Path landscaping and maintenance is one of the Saipan beautification projects funded by the Tournament of Champions whose main sponsors are DFS Saipan Ltd., Lao Lao Bay Golf Resort, and the Marianas Visitors Authority.

“It’s very unfortunate that it happened. We’re upset that it happened, and we hope whoever took them won’t do it again,” Ben Babauta, chairman of the Tournament of Champions and assistant general manager of DFS Saipan Ltd., told Saipan Tribune yesterday.

Babauta, who is also president of the Rotary Club of Saipan, said TOC will be replacing the stolen plants.

“It is important for us to replace them. As you know we have been seeing visitors from military ships, cruise ships, the annual Japanese ships, other tourists and the community in general, and we want them to be able to see—from the moment they step out of the seaport—that Saipan is beautiful,” said Babauta.

Maintenance crew from Tropical Gardens, the contractor for the Port to Path landscaping and maintenance, discovered the missing 25 Ixora Nora Grant plans on Wednesday at 9am when they were about to do their regular ground maintenance.

The incident was reported immediately to the Department of Public Safety.

Francisco LG. Aldan, president of Tropical Gardens, said the cost of replacing the 25 Ixoa Nora Grant plants is $350, which includes the plant materials and installation.

Aldan said upon closer inspection by Tropical Gardens crew, around 30 bougainvillea plants on the entranceway were also missing.

The cost of replacing the bougainvillea plants, including installation, is also $350, he said.

“We need to put a stop to this. We ask the community’s help. If they see someone stealing the plants, we hope they list down the plate number of the car and report to the police right away. These are bad times and we have to make an effort to beautify our islands. We are competing with Guam, the Philippines and other places in attracting tourists,” Aldan said in a telephone interview.

Babauta said TOC will continue its landscaping and beautification projects, including the median in front of Hopwood Junior High School in San Antonio and across the road from Saipan World Resort in Susupe, as well as replacing and maintenance of trees on the median in front of Microl Corp.

“We’re also looking at the Garapan area, especially the Paseo de Marianas and the Japanese Cultural Center,” he said.

In November last year, TOC donated $13,000 to landscape three medians on Saipan, as well as to do the monthly landscape maintenance on the Port to Path Walkway.