Dec. 9, 2003 – V.I. Port Authority Executive Director Darlan Brin said Monday that he will not be stepping down from his post before the end of the year, contrary to his abrupt August announcement of plans for early retirement.
In fact, he was not clear on when he will retire, but it doesn't sound like any time soon. Though cordial and willing to discuss other topics, Brin declined to disclose his reasons for staying or leaving. In August he had declined to elaborate on his reason for leaving, saying that he would "make a statement at the appropriate time." See "Darlan Brin to step down from VIPA post."
Speaking from his office Monday evening, Brin did say that he has lots of work in front of him. "They can't tire me out," he said, "I have lots of energy, staying power." But that was that.
Brin has a more than 30-year career in the V.I. government, with 20 years at the authority. The VIPA board unanimously named Brin executive director at a December 2002 meeting, to take over the first of the year following Gordon Finch's retirement.
After earning bachelor's and master's degrees in business and economics and another master's in city planning, Brin worked at the then V.I. Planning Office, where he was assistant director of planning from 1973 to 1979. He was commissioner of the Conservation and Cultural Affairs Department (now Planning and Natural Resources) from 1979 to 1982 before joining the Port Authority.
Brin has had several projects come to fruition under his watch; it's hard to say whether the Enighed Pond commercial port on St. John or the Crown Bay project on St. Thomas would take precedence if the authority had a trophy counter. Both projects have been on the books for decades, fraught with legal, environmental and funding problems.
Both Finch and Brin have played key roles in bringing the projects to reality. For Finch, an engineer, the Crown Bay development was probably the highest-profile project on his desk for three years. Brin worked with Finch intensively both on the Crown Bay project and on the Enighed Pond port project. Both projects are scheduled for completion next year — Enighed Pond in June and Crown Bay in July.
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