THE Commonwealth Ports Authority board of directors, in its next meeting, will discuss Duty Free Shop-T-Galleria Saipan’s request to extend its concession agreement to operate a shopping mall at the Francisco C. Ada/Saipan International Airport.
The CPA board in a meeting last month gave DFS Managing Director Richard Gustafson and Consumer Marketing Manager Keiko Nakayama an opportunity to present their plan.
Earlier this month, DFS Saipan asked the CPA board to reconsider its prior determination not to pursue an extension of the concession contract. In his letter to the CPA board on Sept. 13, Gustafson noted several significant challenges DFS-Saipan was facing.
In his reply, CPA Executive Director Christopher Tenorio told Gustafson that the extent of these challenges, including the impact of Super Typhoon Yutu and Covid-19 pandemic on businesses, was evident. They also have a severe impact on the economy of the CNMI, its airport operations, and tourism, he added.
In light of these successive major challenges, and their far-reaching effect, Tenorio said it is reasonable for the CPA board to consider DFS’s request to extend its airport concession contract.
Tenorio added, “I understand that for DFS to retain and attract similar luxury brands, certain areas of the airport must be improved. I also understand that DFS is interested in making those improvements, but it would need a concession term of at least five years to justify new investments in the concession space.”
Christopher Tenorio
