DPL ready to award homestead lots on Pagan

The Department of Public Lands has completed its mapping work for the agricultural homestead program on Pagan and is now ready to award homestead lots to the island’s residents who want to go back there and cultivate their lots.

According to DPL Secretary Marianne Teregeyo, a recent three-week trip to map the Pagan agricultural homestead program came up with desirable results and that the agency is now ready to hold a raffle drawing for the program on Pagan.

It’s just that Teregeyo wants to meet first with Northern Islands Mayor Vicente Santos prior to giving out lots to families that originated from Pagan.

“I am holding off until I discuss with [Santos] to coordinate everything,” said Teregeyo, adding that this coordination is paramount prior to issuing agricultural homestead lots to families.

“We need to plan and make sure the issuance of lots are timely for the people [of Pagan] and that there is some sort of reliable transportation for their food supplies,” said Teregeyo, adding that vessels containing food supplies are currently being contracted by DPL.

“We are excited to move forward [with this],” she said.

Teregeyo has already informed legislators of this development, but has opted to wait for her actual discussion with Santos regarding the lots, which is scheduled this week.

According to Teregeyo, priority would be given to residents of Pagan or descendants of residents of Pagan. According to her sources, there are about 11 registered voters who are originally from Pagan.

In order for those coming from Pagan to be eligible for an agricultural homestead lot there, they must not own an agricultural homestead lot elsewhere in the CNMI.

However, those originating from Pagan “are eligible to have a village homestead and an agricultural homestead.”

Along with the payment of fees, an established residency in the CNMI, and being of Northern Marianas descent, people who originated from Pagan or have relatives that originated from Pagan are eligible to apply for an agricultural homestead on the island.

The administration of Gov. Ralph DLG Torres supports relocating people to Pagan, even against the U.S. military’s interest to use the island as a live-fire training facility.

In a statement by the Torres administration, it clarified that it does not support anything that “would do significant damage to a unique island environment.”

The administration added that it does not “… support anything that would prevent the people of Pagan from returning to their ancestral homeland through the agricultural homestead program.”