Public Lands Secretary John S. Del Rosario Jr. on Friday said he is now working on 200 quadruplex units in Koblerville and 100 on Tinian.
Each house is a two-story unit designed for three or two bedrooms.
“If you really need housing this is the program,” Del Rosario said. “If you want to engage in a personal real estate business that will enrich yourself this is not the program.”
Del Rosario said the housing project will cost $256 million, which will cover basic infrastructure — sewerage, power installation and road construction.
Of this figure, $56 million is for the development of basic infrastructure on Tinian, he said.
The developers and not the government, which has no funds for the project, will pay for these costs, he added.
“This is the answer to the homestead program,” Del Rosario said, adding that the program that has become a source of “corrupt acquisitions” by certain individuals.
He said DPL has repossessed some of the homestead lots awarded to beneficiaries who sold them to other individuals.
This week, DPL will invite bidders interested in developing the new housing units and the basic infrastructure for the new project, he said.
By December, he added, they can start reviewing the bids, award contracts and prepare for the groundbreaking of the project.
The beneficiaries of the project must meet the income requirements, Del Rosario said.
On Tinian, he added, there are 400 applicants for homestead who can be eligible for the new housing program.
“We may have a problem accommodating all of them,” he said.
