“Community input will also be invited,” Fernandez said after she met with representatives of the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Office of Insular Affairs.
During their meeting, they discussed the progress of the federally funded capital improvement projects.
Last year, NMC received $800,000 in CIP money for the rehabilitation and renovation of old facilities, primarily roof replacements.
The grant was deemed urgent because of several aging and unsightly facilities that needed to be replaced or renovated, and in response to the Western Association of Colleges and School’s recommendation.
Fernandez said the discussion focused mainly on the project’s timing and implementation, which may be modified as the college is in the process of updating its facilities master plan.
OIA and NMC both agreed to defer the renovation of the roof because the new facilities master plan may call for the removal or demolition of existing buildings that are in dire need of repair, she added.
OIA officials supported adjusting the implementation of NMC’s facilities improvement project in the short-term to allow the college to complete its facilities master plan first, Fernandez said.
The college received $225,000 from OIA to fund the facilities master plan update.
“Students, faculty and staff deserve the best learning and teaching environment,” Fernandez said. “Our students deserve a state of the art facility equipped with modern technology.”
She said a new campus has been one of her priority initiatives.
“We will use the results from our ongoing program review processes to drive the facilities master plan process,” she added.
The college has announced a request for proposals and is already receiving several proposals.
A committee has been established to review the proposals, Fernandez said.
During the meeting with OIA, NMC shared copies of the signed National Environmental Protection Act letters from selected enforcement and local government agencies verifying that the proposed NMC projects can proceed.
These letters are a requirement for any federally funded construction project.
The letters were earlier submitted by NMC to the CNMI’s CIP office but OIA did not receive them.
NMC also provided a copy of the amended $800,000 CIP budget to comply with OIA’s instructions regarding administrative cost restrictions.
