THE green light has been given for the Guam Museum to be built at Skinner Plaza in Hagåtña as Gov. Eddie Calvo yesterday signed Bill 454-31 into law.

The bill transfers the property at Skinner Plaza from the ownership of the Guam Legislature to the governor of Guam for the construction of the museum.

The new museum will take up 30 percent of the current area, mainly the part facing the Plaza de España and the Cathedral Basilica. Current monuments in place will not be disturbed.

The museum is projected to be completed by 2014, with work to begin by next January. In total, $27 million in HOT bonds will be used for the project.

At the signing, Calvo explained that the museum will be the “cornerstone of revitalization” in Hagåtña, with future projects further revitalizing the village.

He recalled stories of a bustling capital city in the pre-war times told by his father and grandmother.

“It was the excitement of living in Hagåtña. It was the experience of listening to your grandmother and how things were back then,” the governor said. “Whatever we have today, we can consider it a ghost of what it was even 50 year ago.”

In addition, having the Guam Museum in Hagåtña will be economically beneficial to the capital and the island.

“There’s going to be a reinvestment of $50 million into our capital city. And this reinvestment will restore our pride. And also in the economic development standpoint it will increase the investor confidence within our capital city,” stated Karl Pangelinan, Guam Economic Development Authority administrator.

Showcase

“We can build out our portfolio to showcase off-island investors on the potential of reinvestment in Hagåtña,” he added.

Pangelinan stated that, according to surveys, tourists to Guam seek more cultural activities.

“We’re going to show there’s more to Guam than Tumon and there’s more to Hagåtña than Wednesday night (at the Chamorro Village),” Pangelinan stated.

Other potential locations had been suggested. One location was Fort Santa Agueda that overlooks Hagåtña. However, additional construction needed to meet requirements of building in the area would have cost an additional $7 million.

This $7 million that was saved by building the museum in Hagåtña will be used for other HOT bond projects.

There were several issues concerning the proposed location for the museum, such as parking and the fact that the area is in a flood zone.

Ken Baki, from the Property Management Office, assured those issues had been addressed. The current parallel parking will be made into angled parking spaces in order to accommodate 144 spaces.

The foundation of the museum will be built 11 feet above sea level, raising it above the flood zone.

The surrounding roadways will be converted into one-way streets to smooth out the flow of traffic in the area and to accommodate parking. In anticipation of traffic congestion that might occur because of an increase of tourist buses, a staging area for buses is being planned.

In addition, a new crosswalk from Chamorro Village will be created to ensure the safety of pedestrians.

Another option included Oka, the site of the former Guam Hospital. However, a covenant on the land states the land must be used for a medical facility. Also, compared with the scope of the project, the land is too generous. Only a portion of it would have been used for the project.