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Tinian re-opens public market
From left, Sen. Steve Mesngon, Sen. Francisco M. Borja, Sen. Francisco Q. Cruz, Senate President Arnold I. Palacios, Tinian Mayor Joey Patrick San Nicolas, Municipal Council chair Antonio SN. Borja, Joe Borja of the Tinian Public Market, Municipal Council vice chair Edwin M. Hofschneider, Lands and Natural Resoruces Secretary Richard Seman, Tinian DLNR resident department head Guillermo Borja, and Fr. Rey Rosal. (Contributed Photo)
Tinian Mayor Joey Patrick San Nicolas officially opened the new Tinian Public Market open in a ribbon cutting held at the newly renovated facility near the Port of Tinian last Friday.
In attendance were Senate President Arnold Palacios (R-Saipan), Lands and Natural Resources Secretary Richard Seman, elected Tinian leaders, Saipan Farmer’s Market chair R.B. Camacho, as well as a host of Tinian farmers who are ready to market their produce.
The Tinian Public Market will be providing meat slicing and meat chilling services as well.
“We have two meat slicers and are working on rehabilitating the two walk-in chillers,” said TPM manager Joe Borja. “We will have hours for our ranchers to come in and request for the slicing of their frozen meat. We are looking forward to restarting operations.”
On Friday, on display at the market were radishes, tangerines, bananas, lettuce, tomatoes, eggplants, pumpkins, green onions, soursap, and pomelo, to name a few.
Tinian mayor chief of staff Allen Perez, a backyard farmer himself, said the market is intended to entice Tinian residents to go back to farming, not just as a hobby but also as a career.
“There are dozens of Tinian residents who have…agriculture lots. It is our hope that they will go back to farming on their lots and market their produce to our community. With our relationship with the Saipan Farmer’s Market we hope to ship and sell Tinian produce [on] Saipan,” said San Nicolas.
San Nicolas thanked the Tinian Legislative Delegation for appropriating $40,000 to the operation of the market and for the $75,000 appropriation for a new tractor for the DLNR.
In his closing remarks, Tinian Municipal Council chair Antonio SN Borja said the market will also provide access to healthy foods for the manhoben (youth) and man’amko (elderly). (PR)
