NMHC buys lot for planned middle school in Koblerville

The Northern Marianas Housing Corp. has already purchased the private lot in Koblerville where a new middle school will be built using the Community Development Block Grant.

Jeannie Mafnas, NMHC planner and grant writer, revealed in an interview on Tuesday that the acquisition, which had a price tag of about $1.1 million, was carried out in July 28.

Mafnas said that funding used to purchase the property were CDBG funds from previous years reprogrammed for this project.

Board of Education member Lucy Blanco-Maratita earlier said that the location is an ideal site to build a junior high school that fills the gap for a complete primary and secondary school while allowing the new middle school to possibly share resources and facilities with the high school.

The Public School System has also disclosed its plans to relocate 600 students of Hopwood Jr. High School, along with their teachers, to the new school once it is constructed.

According to Mafnas, the construction of the junior high school is the only project to be funded by CDBG for program year 2010, which has $824,363 in CDBG funds.

Mafnas said they received about 10 other proposals seeking funding through the formula grant administered by the NMHC that provides financial support for community development projects. However, the new middle school project was chosen over the other projects.

“We made that commitment that if we’re going to acquire the land, we’re going to assist in constructing the school,” she told Saipan Tribune.

Mafnas noted that funding for one program year would not be enough to construct the school or, at the least, a “usable facility” such as the school cafeteria or library, thus prompting them to finance the project for the next two program years.

“We have to have a usable facility if we’re going to use CDBG funding. At the end of the program year, there must be a usable facility whether or not the whole school is complete,” she said.

At present, Mafnas said they are still in the planning stage of the project with the PSS and are in the process of getting costing. “We have to obtain contractor’s estimates then we start bidding.”

Mafnas said the other proposers were informed that all projects will be put on hold “until we fulfill this construction.”

“After two years, we can go back and maybe entertain the other proposals,” she said.