Delegate to Congress Stacey Plaskett and Chair of the House Committee on Natural Resources Raúl M. Grijalva wrote the following letter to David Bernhardt, Secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior:
Dear Secretary Bernhardt,
As you know, the term of the current Retained Use Estate for the Caneel Bay resort in the Virgin Islands National Park on St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands, is scheduled to expire on September 30, 2023. We understand that the Department of the Interior (Department) has come to an agreement with the owner of the resort, CBI Acquisitions LLC, to begin formal and good faith negotiations over the future operation and management of the resort.
The House Committee on Natural Resources believes that the rebuilding and future operation of the Caneel Bay resort and the structure of its relationship with the National Park Service to be very important, not only for the Virgin Islands but also because the resort is a key component of the National Park Service’s collection of resorts. While each resort is unique, the structure of the continued operation of Caneel Bay will be instructional for other agreements.
The Committee on Natural Resources has the authority to request and review proprietary information related to its legislative jurisdiction over national parks and federal lands generally, including entry, easements, and grazing thereon. On behalf of Congresswoman Stacey Plaskett, we ask that you please provide the term sheet that has been agreed to between the Department and the resort owner to begin negotiations for continued operations at Caneel Bay after September 30, 2023, as well as a briefing on these negotiations at your earliest convenience.
We look forward to hearing from you.
