THE Department of Public Works stands to receive a total of $3.8 million from the federal government for CNMI road projects, U.S. Congressman Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan told DPW Secretary Ray N. Yumul.
In his letter to Yumul on Tuesday, Kilili said the federal funding for DPW’s four projects were included in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, which President Joe Biden signed into law on Saturday, March 9.
Kilili said he requested congressionally directed funding for the following projects:
1) Tapochao Road or Route 310 construction, $1,616,279.
2) Route 36 or San Juan-Bird Island Lookout, $850,000.
3) Beach Road improvement, $850,000.
4) Chalan Pale Arnold or Route 30 safety improvement project, $500,000.
Kilili thanked Yumul for providing his office last year with informative and persuasive descriptions for each of the projects.
The congressman told Yumul that the “success in obtaining community project funding is in large part due to the quality of your proposals. You should soon hear from the Federal Highway Administration regarding availability of funding for these projects.”
Kilili said when the U.S. Congress begins consideration of community project funding requests for fiscal year 2025 later this spring, he will consider the inclusion of additional highway projects that DPW already submitted for congressionally directed funding.
“Again, congratulations and thank you for continued partnership in improving the transportation opportunities for the people of the Marianas,” Kilili told Yumul.
Yumul, for his part, thanked his “hardworking staff for their great work.” He also thanked Kilili “for his support in these projects that [were] submitted by my team under the direction and guidance of Technical Services Division Director Tony Camacho, Highway Administrator Lorraine Villagomez, DPW engineers Gani Salazar and Henry Bautista, program coordinators Ken Aldan and Lauren Terlaje and others in the department.”
