FINANCE Secretary David DLG Atalig said his department employees are moving out of their current offices before the construction of the 40,000-square-foot “Economic Resiliency Center” begins.
The project is funded by a $19.6 million grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration.
“We’re moving along in trying to get [construction] started. We [expect the project to be] done within a couple of years,” Atalig said.
“The [government] buildings that we have here on Capital Hill are old and need repairs. The U.S. Passport Office leaks tremendously. Where our current Procurement Office is has been deemed by [the Department of Public Works] as unsafe. I had a demand letter addressed to me stating that we must vacate, and so we had to look at other places to move Procurement.”
Atalig said the Horiguchi Building in Garapan is currently housing these offices, as well as the Office of Information and Technology.
“The Office of Information and Technology has been centralized. All IT offices have been centralized in the executive branch. We have expanded and will be moving all IT-related personnel from all departments to be housed in one area so they can work as a team and to ensure security and that all systems for the CNMI government [are] intact,” he said, adding that a one-year agreement with Horiguchi Building has been signed.
“We most likely may extend, but in the meantime, I have to get these divisions out of their current locations so that we can work on the repairs of the facilities,” Atalig said. “All of the repairs and plans have been worked on for the last couple of years, and we’re at the stage where they need to vacate so that we can start the renovations [to ensure] that these facilities are safe working environments for our employees.”
Besides the Department of Finance, the newly established Infrastructure Recovery Office has also set up shop at the Horiguchi Building.
David DLG Atalig
