A city on pause: Guam’s capital awaits a plan, a budget and political will
- Admin
- Aug 13
- 5 min read
By Ron Rocky Coloma
The Hagåtña Restoration and Redevelopment Authority, or HRRA, has been around for nearly three decades, yet its mission to revitalize Guam’s historic capital city is still stuck at the starting line.
Now, Executive Director Jillette T. Leon Guerrero is trying to change that.
Leon-Guerrero, who stepped into the role in October 2024, is the latest person to inherit a government agency created in 1997 but historically underfunded and poorly supported. “It’s like a failure to launch,” Leon-Guerrero said. “Sometimes it had money. Sometimes it didn’t. It just floated.”
After years of inertia, HRRA is trying to build a foundation—one that can attract outside investment, unite public and private stakeholders and bring long-dormant plans to life.
Earlier in July, the agency hosted a weeklong visit from the Local Initiatives Support Corp., or LISC, a national nonprofit working with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The goal: assess whether HRRA can receive technical help under HUD’s Distressed Cities Technical Assistance Program.
“This is only the second territory they’ve worked in after Puerto Rico,” Leon-Guerrero said. “We’re excited because their support could be the difference between another stalled decade and actual implementation.”
HRRA was created in 1997 by public law, but it wasn’t funded until 2003. For years, it operated inconsistently, shifting between agencies and struggling with unclear mandates and scarce resources. It was originally intended to be an autonomous agency of the government capable of applying for grants, managing its own projects and even generating revenue but it never fully realized that structure.
Its signature product, a master plan for Hagåtña’s redevelopment, has had a similarly bumpy path. The first draft was initiated in 2005 but was never finalized. A second attempt in 2018 produced a rough draft. The current plan, completed by Matrix Design Group in 2021 under a $1 million contract with the government of Guam, was approved by the HRRA Board of Commissioners on Dec. 2, 2021, and submitted to the 36th Guam Legislature in January 2022.
That’s where it stalled again.
By law, the legislature had 45 calendar days and two legislative days to act. Those days came and went. No vote was taken.
“The issue is that the legislature believes there’s a different definition for ‘legislative days,’” Leon-Guerrero said. “So, they argued that the deadline didn’t elapse. But there was no action.”
She sent another letter in January 2025 asking for clarity. The speaker’s response: The timeline had not expired. HRRA now hopes to resubmit the plan for legislative approval.
Still, Leon-Guerrero is adamant that this document, which she describes as a framework, not a construction blueprint, is essential.
“There’s no plan right now. If we have a plan, it would be easier to attract investors. Something that is solid,” she said.
To help clarify the dense, technical language of the plan, she condensed it into a three-page flyer highlighting its guiding principles. She also emphasizes that the plan outlines policies and goals, not immediate ground-breaking or implementation.
If there’s a theme emerging in HRRA’s reboot, it’s clarity. Bringing people together. Defining what Hagåtña’s restoration should actually look like.
To that end, Leon-Guerrero and the LISC team brought together government agencies, business owners, historians and nonprofits for several days of stakeholder meetings. The discussions exposed several long-standing issues that must be addressed before meaningful development can occur.
First, flooding. Hagåtña’s geography makes it prone to water damage, both from typhoons and rainfall. Debris from storms can clog the river and backup drainage systems. HRRA is now working with the Army Corps of Engineers and the Department of Public Works to inspect and rehabilitate postwar storm drains.
Second, burial sites. “If you dig somewhere and find a burial, the whole project can stop,” she said. “That happened with the lot next to Pulantat. It was supposed to be the Land Resources building.” HRRA is coordinating with the Historic Preservation Office to find a path forward that respects cultural heritage.
Third, land ownership. Much of Hagåtña’s land was re-parceled after World War II to fit a layout modeled after Santa Monica, California. The change fragmented traditional CHamoru landholdings and created tangled property rights.
“These are fractional lots. After the war, families were relocated. Some lots were lost completely,” she said. “It’s one of the biggest complications.”
To untangle this, HRRA is building the Hagåtña Barrio Project. Using 1933 cadastral maps and 1940 census data, they’re reconstructing a visual database of who lived where. Users will eventually be able to search by family name, click a lot on an interactive map and view historical photos, census records and oral histories.
“It’s about rebuilding the neighborhood in people’s minds,” Leon-Guerrero said. “Younger generations don’t know the stories. We want them to.”
Community engagement is the next phase. HRRA has launched three surveys—one for residents, one for businesses and one for the general public—to gather opinions about Hagåtña’s future. The surveys are being distributed both online and in person, including at the Historic Site Revitalization Festival on Aug. 1.
Leon-Guerrero said the early feedback is promising. “Even from the first few responses, people are saying, ‘Yes, this is what we’ve been needing.’”
The survey results will feed into future focus groups and help shape a long-term implementation strategy. HRRA is also coordinating with agencies like the Guam Visitors Bureau and Guam Economic Development Authority, as well as forming a cultural heritage coalition with groups like the Guam Preservation Trust and Pacific Historic Parks.
The website OurHagatna.org is in development as a central hub for these efforts, featuring historic timelines, photos, barrio histories, oral histories and eventually, small-business registries and a cultural events calendar.
The LISC partnership could help. It brings not only access to funding but also expertise in planning, policy writing and long-term sustainability. Their assessment is the first step in an 18-month process that may include further assistance phases if HRRA is selected.
In the meantime, the agency is identifying “low-hanging fruit”—small-scale community development ideas—such as artistic corridors or training programs to help residents monetize local crafts or agriculture.
Leon-Guerrero is hopeful that, with the right support, HRRA could begin visible improvements within five years.
“Best case, maybe groundbreaking by then. Maybe earlier,” she said. “But it depends on funding and cooperation.”
One longer-term priority is the restoration of the Palacio, the historic governor’s palace. Floor plans already exist. What’s needed now is land clarification, interagency coordination and capital.
Leon-Guerrero insists none of this can happen without a plan.
“If we build without direction, it’s going to be chaos,” she said. “We need to do it in the proper order.”
Hagåtña was once the heart of Guam—politically, culturally and socially. Before the war, it was home to thousands. After the war, most families were displaced.
Some never returned.
“This city is older than any in Australia or New Zealand. It’s one of the oldest inhabited capitals in the United States,” Leon-Guerrero said. “We should be proud of that.”
She wants people to know that the agency’s mission isn’t just about buildings. It’s about identity.
“What tourists want is the Guam experience. But what our own people want is to remember where they came from.”
She hopes HRRA becomes a place where both can happen. A city that honors its history while planning responsibly for its future. “I just want to do it,” she said. “I don’t know how else to say it. I really believe this is possible. We just need to start.”
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