PNRS Reviews Fono Violation of Stop Order

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The Fono guest fale project, which has been built without a land use permit was on the agenda of meeting of the Project Notification and Review System Board today,

A stop work order that the PNRS issued was ignored by the project owner, in this case the Fono,.

The contractor, Paramount Builders, never stopped work on the fale construction after the stop notice was issued in early December.

Today, the project owner appeared before the Project Notification and Review System Board.

The Fono was represented at the hearing by Utaifeau Bill Kalasa, Toloa Letuli and Alfred Annandale.

The PNRS issued the stop work order December 8th after determining that the building is new construction rather than a renovation.

Project overseer Utaifeau Bill Kalasa explains when he was assigned to oversee the project, he noticed it lacked the proper permits and took immediate action to bring the project into compliance.

Toloa Letuli maintains the project was a renovation job and did not require a landuse permit.

He said the building exterior has been renovated while the interior remains untouched and intact and that no violation has been committed:

Acting chairman of the PNRS Board Marvis Vaiaga’e, told the Fono staffers that land use and building permits are required for the guesthouse construction.

He said the immediate issue at hand is the direct violation by the Fono of the stop work order.

Further discussions and meetings will take place with the project owner to address the stop order violation, and this may include fees and mitigation.

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