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Palacios: nearly $1 billion in infrastructure investments, new homes and major road projects underway
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Summary
The governor outlined road, housing and school projects he said restarted or advanced under his administration, citing multimillion-dollar roadworks, housing grants and federally funded school facilities.
Governor Arnold I. Palacios told lawmakers that his administration has accelerated infrastructure projects, from major road overhauls to new homes built with FEMA and CDBG‑DR funds.
Palacios listed projects including a $28,000,000 overhaul of Beets Road, a $1,300,000 revamp of Industrial Drive near the seaport, and a $15,000,000 Phase 2 of Route 36 connecting Talofofu and Marpi. He said the CNMI Office of Planning and Development completed designs for a $21,000,000 Ulea Sports Complex and a cultural tourism enhancement project.
The governor credited the Northern Marianas Housing Corporation (NMHC) with $254,000,000 in CDBG‑DR funds allocated to 23 infrastructure projects and said NMHC set aside $138,000,000 for the rehabilitation, reconstruction and new construction of almost 200 residential homes. Palacios said the administration directed NMHC to convert certain CDBG‑DR home funding from loans to grants to expand homeownership.
He highlighted school and workforce investments: a $4,000,000 ARPA‑funded Hopwood Middle School modular building with 20 classrooms, a planned $23,000,000 campus, a $12,000,000 EDA‑funded career technical education facility at Marianas High School and NM Tech’s planned workforce training facility with $8,600,000 in EDA funding. Palacios said FEMA and CDBG‑DR money helped build hundreds of typhoon‑resilient homes.
Speakers from the construction and housing sectors addressed the session and described their roles in projects. John Saludez, president of HBR International Inc., emphasized private‑sector contributions to public infrastructure. Mike Sablan of Triple J Enterprises described prior affordable‑housing projects developed in partnership with NMHC.
Palacios described the total infrastructure investment as "almost a billion dollars."
