by Jolene Toves

Guam - The Tiyan Parkway has been years in the making and while the project has met several bumps in the road the funds are finally available and the project is finally getting off the ground.

Department of Public Works director Carl Dominguez said, "As of this afternoon we have an invitation for bid that is out and it went out on October 29 and the bid opening is scheduled for December 4."

As we reported Phase I of the Tiyan Parkway will begin at Cars Plus in Maite and extend past the old GPD buildings, however the Federal Aviation Administration and the Guam International Airport Authority is requiring Public Works have funding to secure properties needed for Phase II of the project. "If all goes well we should start the project you know with doing the contract and permitting and that sort of thing I think somewhere in the July 2014 time frame," he said.

Dominguez adds he would like to move that date up, but for now that is what is scheduled, adding, "We still have to acquire some property but we have some concrete developments on that I just today have received the draft purchase agreement."

He says he must review the draft which he hopes he can complete within the next two to four weeks. "At least for one to three of the properties but we haven't technically acquired them yet but in the meantime we are going through the bid process anyway in anticipation of starting construction," he said.

Although progress is slow, Dominguez is confident that by this time next year construction will be well underway for Phase I.