Officials at the Guam Housing and Urban Renewal Authority answered questions from the community as they launch their Fix in Six program months ahead of schedule.

From residents displaced by Typhoon Mawar to village mayors advocating for mitigation projects, with more than a half-billion dollars in the pipeline, GHURA's Fix in Six team answers questions from potential applicants during an outreach event at the Guam Museum Theater on Monday. 

Fix in Six program public information officer Tyler Matanane Mortera says the team is currently developing the policies to get ready to go live for the public. She said, "Currently, we’re doing several outreach events from now until December. It’s really to allow the public to get informed on what criteria we’re going to be looking at, what are considered eligible activities under CBDG-DR, and basically to let them prepare themselves and the needed documents that would be required when we open up the applications."

whether it’s questions on housing, public infrastructure, or mitigation projects, GHURA is encouraging the community to take part in their outreach events to learn more about what the Fix in Six initiative can do for them. 

One Chamorro Land Trust recipient asked how the program can help him as he shared his struggle with accessing federal assistance after his family lost their home to Mawar. He said, "We did approach the Chamorro Land Trust office for some type of title to verify the property. But all we received was the roundabout or saying that it's not public information." He said he was unable to get documentation from the CLTC, and was ultimately denied FEMA assistance to repair his home. 

"They did not honor the mayor's verification, they did not honor– we had to go through legal counsel, a bunch of us, and were still denied. So time goes on and whatnot and there’s still no assistance available," he explained.

in response, GHURA deputy director Fernando Esteves says following an inquiry made to their federal counterpart back in March, HUD confirmed last week that the program can support CLTC properties. "After the settlement agreement with the Department of Justice, that opened up the door in changing of the language with CLTC," Esteves confirmed. "And we just wanted to clear that up because historically the Chamorro Land Trust and the Fair Housing Act have been oil and water."

Esteves says it’s information like this from the community that GHURA needs to know as they create their policies, to prevent any barriers once applications roll out next year. "While for a traditional homeowner, there may be a deed or certificate of title. For a trustee, they may have a certificate from the Land Trust giving them the right of. That’s the kind of information we need so we can write that in our policy, that way there’s no question when you go apply and that we honor those things," he said.

The application period is expected to open up in January 2026.  The community is encouraged to attend another outreach event, again at the Guam Museum Theater, on Tuesday from 6pm-7pm. 

"Maybe they have some damage on their homes that wasn't covered by FEMA assistance or something under any of the federal assistances that were offered to Guam after Typhoon Mawar," Mortera said. "This is a great opportunity for them to be able to learn what this project offers them and to learn if they can even qualify underneath the Fix in Six program."

For more information about the program, you can email fixinsix@ghura.org.