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Mañagaha lease expired since 2016
The Department of Public Lands is looking at either renewing or modifying its expired concession agreement with Tasi Tours for Managaha or awarding the agreement to another company.
The Mañagaha concession agreement with Tasi Tours expired in August 2016. Right now, Tasi Tours pays DPL a monthly fee.
“DPL is still looking at the existing agreement and looking at whether to modify it or RFP [request for proposal] it because this is a concession, not a lease. A lease is required to be RFP’d,” said DPL Secretary Marianne Teregeyo.
Teregeyo explained that the Mañagaha case is unique.
As she explained it, a lease requires issuing a request for proposal, or RFP. It entitles the lessee to have total authority over the property, including selecting those who have access to the property, setting the times the property may be entered, and even deciding whether the property is open to the public or not.
A concession agreement, on the other hand, allows the company to operate specific businesses within the lot. Concession agreements are open to the public as the lot is still under the jurisdiction of DPL.
“We are still reviewing the agreement,” Teregeyo said, adding that DPL has been in close contact with Tasi Tours about Mañagaha.
Currently, Mañagaha is still under Tasi Tours, while Tasi Tours pays a monthly holdover fee since the expiration of the agreement last August 2016. Teregeyo said DPL would issue a decision by this August.
“We are coming up with an analysis of the previous agreements and how we can change that to better benefit [the CNMI],” she said.
“If we choose to issue an RFP we would be advertising it. …If not, we would be notifying the people of DPL’s decision. Again, there are a lot of things being considered. A lot of the members of the Legislature are urging that we issue an RFP but because this is not a lease agreement, we don’t necessarily have to,” she added.
