Delegation presses zoning on blight enforcement, junk cars and urgent school rebuild; Hopwood told to submit conditional-use application

Members of the House delegation pressed zoning officials on steps the office is taking under the Nuisance Abatement and Blighted Properties Maintenance Act of 2018 to address government and private blighted properties, abandoned vehicles and hazardous sites.

Theresa Gumrow, zoning administrator, reviewed the act’s enforcement provisions: notices must describe the nuisance and the allowed abatement period; owners may file a written appeal to the Commonwealth Zoning Board within 30 days; the Commonwealth may abate a nuisance and recover costs if an owner fails to act. Gumrow said the adopted regulation requires priority enforcement on highways, properties within 300 feet of schools, playgrounds or daycares, properties in tourist districts and village areas.

Nut graf: Delegation members pressed for faster, more consistent enforcement and clearer interagency pathways when public lands or government-owned parcels are involved. They also raised specific, near-term concerns that illustrate enforcement challenges: a former ball field used as parking at Savicente, multiple junk-car lots that may cause soil contamination, and the large IPI casino property in Garapan where falling facade material has created a safety hazard.

Minority Leader Roy Ada asked whether zoning enforces blight on government buildings; Gumrow said the same procedures apply to government properties and pointed to a Navy Hill property shown in staff photos. Members asked how penalties are assessed and when fines begin; zoning said the abatement clock begins on the date a property owner receives notice or the property is posted if the owner cannot be located. Gumrow said nonresidential properties receive a 60-day notice period; residential properties receive 90 days without penalties, after which fines begin at a minimum of $200 and can reach up to $1,000 per day for later offenses.

Several members raised the practical problem of removing junk vehicles. Zoning said it coordinates with the mayor’s office for vehicle removal but does not have a boom truck; staff “stop the clock” on enforcement while awaiting the mayor’s removal schedule. Delegation members urged zoning to use ANEC and to strengthen coordination with environmental regulators such as DEQ to address potential soil contamination without protracted permission processes.

On the IPI casino site in Garapan, a delegation member said marble and facade elements are falling and that zoning has been in compliance meetings with a representative from the property. Gumrow said the property is on the enforcement list and that staff are pursuing compliance meetings.

Hopwood school: multiple members including Senator Manny Castro and other legislators described an urgent situation: the Public School System has approximately $20 million in FEMA funds to rebuild a campus, and the Hopwood site is currently zoned tourist resort. Gumrow and board staff told members that schools in some zoning districts are conditional uses and that PSS has been advised to submit a conditional-use application so work can proceed more quickly than a rezone. Gumrow said conditional-use applications will be entertained as soon as the application is submitted; staff expect to process cases on the board’s next hearing schedule. The board and members discussed spot-zoning concerns and said rezoning entire districts — rather than single lots — is the cleaner long-term approach, but that conditional use offers a faster path to allow construction on an existing school site while a larger map amendment is considered.

Ending: Zoning said it will follow up with delegation members by providing the current code and map, logging enforcement concerns into ANEC and working with PSS to expedite any conditional-use filings needed to meet FEMA deadlines.