Dear Source,
I am really quite upset over Ms. Goggins' cease-and-desist order for the Peterborg Road AT&T cable laying, supposedly for environmental reasons.
I'm perplexed why someone from St. Croix would file a suit on such a small project in St. Thomas. I'm a resident of Peterborg and would like to see them finish it asap! Also Bill, my husband, was one of the CZM commissioners who reviewed the cable laying permit and was quite satisfied that there were little environmental impact involved. The CZM Commission was more concerned about safety and AT&T agreed to cutting back the bush and filling the pot holes (even the ones they didn't create) which I think was quite generous of them. I know I'm not the only one who feels this way. Vitelco, by the way, managed to install its fiber optic trenches on Peterborg without going through the same CZM permit process.
Don't you think that one of us living out here would have complained or done the same had we thought it to be environmentally hazardous? Actually two of the three CZM commissioners live on Peterborg. One of them, Albert Paiewonski, has been the Chairman of the CZM for many years. And if you look at the CZM's track record it's obvious that the Commission has been very, very strict about protecting the Magen's Bay area, including the denial of several major projects and negotiating the donation of a large parcel of land to the Nature Conservancy.
I can only assume that Ms. Goggins' suit has nothing to do with the environment of Peterborg and has more to do with a long time dispute between AT&T and Vitelco of which I don't understand. In the mean time the residents of Peterborg have to suffer with a half-finished project and an unpaved trench in the road.
Frannie Newbold
P.S. – I confirmed this morning that even after all the rain there was absolutely no evidence of any silt reaching Magen's Bay, even at its closest point!
