Work on the long awaited Pago Pago Youth Center has begun, with local contractor Paramount Builders carrying out the work. The new Youth Center is being erected at the site of the former Korea House in Pago Pago.

Materials for the project and on-sight inspections are provided by the government, while the  Department of Youth and Women's Affairs (DYWA) is responsible for managing and maintaining the new structure.

The Indonesian government has pledged $300,000 to fund the construction of the new Youth Center and the American Samoa Government will be putting up $300,000 of its own for the project. ASG's share comes from the reprogramming of monies from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) for projects that did not meet certain deadlines. The project was estimated to cost $700,000, and the additional $100,000 was to come from the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG).

Last month the Dept. of Commerce announced that it was seeking to reprogram over $1 million from the CDBG program for program years (PY) 2011, 2012, and 2013. The reprogramming includes the $100,000 for the Youth Center project.

A DOC official explained, “there are so many issues surrounding the process.” For the Youth Center in particular, DOC was informed “that the project no longer needed funds from the CDBG.”

There were requirements that had to be met in order for the $100K to be released for the Youth Center project. For example, since HUD is the grantor, contractors have to be able to provide a 100% surety bond. In this case, Samoa News understands the surety bond requirement wasn’t something that would come easy and therefore, DOC was told that CDBG funds would no longer be needed for the project.

The Korea House was demolished two years ago in preparation for the construction of the new Youth Center, after engineers concluded that the structure was “unsafe” and in such a bad state that renovation work wouldn’t be enough.

It is hopeful that the Youth Center will be ready for dedication by July, in time for the celebration of Youth Month. The contractor has one year to complete the project, which commenced on Feb. 10