Senators to Unveil New Capital Improvement Plan

Senators to unveil new capital improvement plan
Monday, 18 August 2008 00:00 by Therese Hart
Variety News Staff

SPEAKER Judi Won Pat and Sen. Tina Muna Barnes today will announce a two-phase capital improvement plan that will address various challenges facing the community including the construction of a new building for John F. Kennedy High School, the rehabilitation of existing schools and the expansion of other government offices.

The senators will hold a press conference today at 2 p.m. in the Legislature's public hearing room to unveil the plan.

"It's innovative in a way and I think it's timely, especially with all the different plans regarding JFK and what's happening with students having to double session at George Washington," Won Pat said yesterday.

Phase two will include the construction of a public safety building, refurbishment and expansion of the Guam Memorial Hospital Authority, improvements to the Guam Community College and the University of Guam, a dedicated building for the Department of Revenue and Taxation, as well as the construction of land resource building for the Chamorro Land Trust Commission, the Department of Land Management, Ancestral Lands and other government entities dealing with land. It will also include the construction of the Guam Museum.

"Guam must prepare for the inevitable military buildup. I'm hoping that this two-phase CIP plan will evolve into a master plan that will run parallel to the buildup as we move forward to renovating and upgrading our government-wide facilities, as well as improving our overall effectiveness and efficiency in serving the needs of our island community," Muna-Barnes said.

"It's going to take money and it's going to take committed public servants to make this a reality. Speaker Won Pat and I are asking for our colleagues' support because this isn't about the Republican Party or the Democratic Party. Rather, this is a coming together of public servants who desire to prepare Guam and her people for the future," Muna Barnes added.