The Northern Marianas College is 95% finished with its facility master plan that will guide all of the college’s future construction projects. According to NMC president Dr. Galvin Deleon Guerrero, NMC aims to have the facility master plan finalized by August.
Once that is completed, talks on architecture and engineering, design, and construction will begin. Deleon Guerrero shared the college’s future plans with Gov. Ralph DLG Torres and Lt. Gov. Arnold I. Palacios during NMC’s meeting with the Torres-Palacios administration at the Office of the Governor conference room on Tuesday.
Saipan Tribune previously reported that NMC vice president Frankie Eliptico and Rachel Ann Fusco— who leads the college’s Capital Improvement Project team and facilities team— are the two leads in creating the master plan.
Deleon Guerrero said Tuesday that the ultimate goal, once all construction work is finished, is to create a “college town.” In line with this goal, Deleon Guerrero wants the future construction projects to “make sense for the future of the college” and reinvigorate the economies of the nearby As Terlaje and Dandan areas.
“We want to be sure that whatever we build is following that plan, and not just haphazard. We want to be sure that we’re really thinking of the future needs of the Commonwealth, as well as the future needs of the college,” said Deleon Guerrero.
As for as his office’s role in NMC’s future plans, Torres said that NMC was provided $10 million earlier last year through a portion of funds awarded to the CNMI through the American Rescue Plan Act and through previous funding awarded to his office. Moving forward, Torres said that NMC will be part of the recently formed Infrastructure Recovery Program, and that his office will dedicate a team for NMC to expedite assistance for the college’s future projects. “Anything that NMC needs, the administration can help. We’ll make sure that we provide [that] assistance,” said Torres.