Plans underway for the paving of Kagman III secondary roads

Kagman III residents will soon be seeing some progress in the paving of the village’s secondary roads, which have been a longstanding problem in the area.

According to Rep. Larry Deleon Guerrero (Ind-MP) yesterday, after the appropriation of some $2.7 million last month, he, other lawmakers, and government agencies have been working together to address the $600,000 that was appropriated to Precinct 5.

Deleon Guerrero told Saipan Tribune that he met Friday with the Department of Public Works to discuss the paving of Kagman roads.

In an earlier interview, Deleon Guerrero said that DPW had told him the money was with the Commonwealth Development Authority and there wasn’t any meeting yet and said that he would contact CDA and DPW to come up with a plan.

“[On Wednesday], DPW, CDA and the Office of Management of Budget settled everything and came up with a request for proposal that will probably be advertised next week,” Deleon Guerrero said.

He said the three secondary roads that will be targeted for the project are Pine Drive, Chopak Drive, and Mangga Street.

“When the RFP comes out, it’s going to be a sealed bid. We want to prioritize major thoroughfares first,” he said.

Deleon Guerrero said the project is still in the early stages and that designs are in progress for the roads, architecture, and engineering.

“We will try to get in touch with the Department of Public Lands if they already have a design so we don’t mix up designs,” he said.

Deleon Guerrero said that Vicky Villagomez of the Office of Management and Budget broke down the financials of the project and $400,000 is what’s left for construction.

“But we will be using leftovers from the other part of the money we’ll be using for other purposes. If there’s any left, it will go to construction as well,” he said.

He noted that he will confer with the Saipan Mayor’s Office to clear the roads of potholes in the meantime.

“The only issue is that they have no grader and so does DPW, so we might try to rent, but we’re trying our best for our community,” Deleon Guerrero said.

The Saipan Mayor’s Office said that lawmakers have been asking them to clear Kagman roads of potholes and debris but they couldn’t do it as they have no equipment and no available funds to rent one.

“But we will try and do our best to address the clearing of the roads,” the mayor’s office said.