THE permitting process for Tinian Diamond Casino’s wastewater treatment facility is expected to be completed in two weeks, which will pave the way for the grand opening of the casino hotel at the Tinian port, Commonwealth Ports Authority Board Chairwoman Kimberlyn King-Hinds said.
The Big Investment Group or BIG has tentatively scheduled the casino-hotel opening, but King-Hinds said it may not open until either the third quarter of the year or this coming summer.
The investor is leasing CPA property for a project which includes a hotel, a casino and a ferry terminal.
One of the issues that are being addressed right now, King-Hinds said, is the wastewater facility. “From all accounts, they have completed or are in the process of completing the permitting requirements for the wastewater treatment facility,” she said adding that the casino investor is now waiting for the final inspection to be conducted by the Bureau of Environmental and Coastal Quality.
Once the permitting process is done, she said, “there is expectation that the casino facility will open.”
King-Hinds also said that CPA has received notification that BIG has been hiring workers for the ferry operation.
She said it is a roll-on/roll-off ferry that will serve commuters traveling between Saipan and Tinian.
While waiting for BIG’s official notice to start the ferry operation, CPA has started working on “some issues” including where the ferry will load and unload commuters and those traveling with their vehicles, King-Hinds said.
BIG has renewed its casino license twice. A portion of the latest payment, $254,000, has been appropriated by Tinian Local Law 22-7 for the Tinian Mayor’s Office, the Tinian Municipal Council, the Tinian Municipal Scholarship Program, and the Tinian Casino Gaming Control Commission.
In light of the new casino opening and the ongoing military activities on Tinian, Variety learned that several local and foreign investors have been reaching out to private property owners, and have expressed interest to lease land.
