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PORT AUTHORITY ECONOMIC STUDY AIMS AT ACTION

May 11, 2001 – Another study of the woeful local economy will soon be unleashed on the people of St. Croix. But the instigator of the latest plan -– the V.I. Port Authority –- swears that, unlike past exercises, this one will lead to action.
Port Authority officials and members of the agency’s consulting firm outlined the plan Thursday night at a public meeting in Frederiksted. What is different about the Port Authority plan, the agency executive director, Gordon Finch, said, is that it focuses only on St. Croix.
And it focuses particularly on land adjacent to a property for which the Port Authority has oversight — the Henry E. Rohlsen Airport.
An initial study will determine what industries are best suited for the island. The objectives of that study are to:
– Identify the island's assets.
– Develop a marketing and promotional plan to attract new, high-tech industries.
– Create more jobs.
– Diversify the economy.
– Develop 100 acres of land adjacent to the airport into an business park for light industry.
The price tag for the project is $430,000, with $300,000 of it to come from the U.S. Economic Development Administration and the balance from the Port Authority. The plan is to be completed by the end of September.
Its purpose, Finch said Thursday, is to help "figure out what about St. Croix needs to be changed and what about St. Croix needs to be defined, redefined or developed" so the island can become a "sustainable economic jurisdiction."
Richard Moore, a local economist working with Triad, the plan consultant, noted that at least three other V.I. economic viability studies have been done in the last decade, including one unveiled earlier this week by Sen. Adelbert Bryan. Thus, the idea of yet another study was cause for skepticism.
George Cannon, a local attorney, said that if it weren’t for the involvement of Finch and the Port Authority, a semi-autonomous government agency, he would write the effort off as just another waste of money.
"I’m fed up with the concept of plans. What I need now is some action," Cannon said, adding that the September deadline is important. "You can’t emphasize the plan –- de-emphasize that. Emphasize there is going to be action here."
Finch was adamant that, with the cooperation of the private and public sectors, the effort will produce tangible results. But he cautioned that an industrial park is not a guarantee if the study finds there is little or no demand for it.
"If the numbers aren’t there for the project, it’s not going to get built," he said. "We’re not going to build a white elephant that’s going to put [the Port Authority] back in the red."
The team behind the plan is meeting Friday with private- and public-sector stakeholders. It is to issue a draft report about midway through the study process.

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