Nov. 2, 2001 — The St. Croix Environmental Association has thrown its support behind a petition seeking to get the Turnbull administration to study the feasibility of a unique sewage treatment system.
The petition was spurred by the agricultural group St. Croix Farmers in Action in support of a proposal by Carib Infra-Tech Inc., a St. Croix-based company headed by Onaje Jackson. The proposed plan would entail pumping 1 million to 3 million gallons per day of "marginally" treated sewage discharge from the Public Works Department’s wastewater treatment plant next to the Anguilla dump to constructed wetlands in the mid-island area of St. Croix, Jackson has said. That would eliminate discharge into the ocean and allow for the wastewater to be reclaimed for a variety of uses, Jackson claims.
The petition is seeking to have Gov. Charles Turnbull establish a commission to study constructed wetlands, which SEA said in a press release on Thursday are a "viable, documented and efficient way to treat wastewater and provide usable water for agriculture and other positive projects."
In a story in the Source last week, Jackson said the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency supports the idea of constructed wetlands. Such man-made wetlands are designed and constructed to utilize the natural processes involving wetland vegetation, soils and their "associated microbial assemblages" to assist in treating wastewater, according to the EPA.
Bill Turner, executive director of SEA, said the organization supports the idea for two reasons. First, SEA wants to see all available options of waste disposal studied. Second, the constructed wetlands proposal would take millions of gallons of wastewater that would be otherwise discharged into the sea and reclaim it for other uses.
"We believe if this petition can gain momentum … people will force the government to look at this issue," Turner said. "We want the government to look into this as a viable option."
Turner said SEA is seeking like-minded individuals and businesses to distribute the petition. For more information, contact the SEA office in Gallows Bay at 773-1989.

Nov. 1, 2001 – Even Columbo can't save "Corky Romano." If you want your Peter Falk fix, go rent some old "Columbos." At least, if one is to listen to the Internet reviewers. Try as we might, we can't find one civil word of congratulation on this film about mob outcast Romano (Chris Kattan), a veterinarian who has left his criminal family until he is called on by his mafia daddy (Falk), cleverly called "Pops," who needs a favor from him.
The Toronto Globe and Mail reviewer called it a "rather bad movie," and that's about as charitable as the critics get.
Kattan is a veteran "Saturday Night Live" performer. Somehow, they never seem to take to the big screen, unless you go 'way back to Ackroyd and Belushi. Anyhow, "Pops" needs sonny boy to pose as an FBI agent and destroy some incriminating files which are to be used against him in a trial coming up in two weeks.
Oh, dear, a displaced SNL, disguised as a vet, disguised as a displaced FBI agent. What drama, what pathos, what bathos. According to one reviewer, even the obligatory flatulence scene flunked. Flatulence seems to be endemic to this sort of movie – is it a new genre?
Directed by Rob Pritts, the film also features Richard Roundtree, Chris Penn and Vinessa Shaw. It is about an hour and a half long and is rated PG-13 for drug, sex-related humor and language. It's playing at Market Square East on St. Thomas.

Nov. 1, 2001 – Even Columbo can't save "Corky Romano." If you want your Peter Falk fix, go rent some old "Columbos." At least, if one is to listen to the Internet reviewers. Try as we might, we can't find one civil word of congratulation on this film about mob outcast Romano (Chris Kattan), a veterinarian who has left his criminal family until he is called on by his mafia daddy (Falk), cleverly called "Pops," who needs a favor from him.
The Toronto Globe and Mail reviewer called it a "rather bad movie," and that's about as charitable as the critics get.
Kattan is a veteran "Saturday Night Live" performer. Somehow, they never seem to take to the big screen, unless you go 'way back to Ackroyd and Belushi. Anyhow, "Pops" needs sonny boy to pose as an FBI agent and destroy some incriminating files which are to be used against him in a trial coming up in two weeks.
Oh, dear, a displaced SNL, disguised as a vet, disguised as a displaced FBI agent. What drama, what pathos, what bathos. According to one reviewer, even the obligatory flatulence scene flunked. Flatulence seems to be endemic to this sort of movie – is it a new genre?
Directed by Rob Pritts, the film also features Richard Roundtree, Chris Penn and Vinessa Shaw. It is about an hour and a half long and is rated PG-13 for drug, sex-related humor and language. It's playing at Market Square East.

Nov. 1, 2001 – Stumble onto a corpse in the fog … not everyone's cup of tea, but it's enough to send Johnny Depp on an adventure "From Hell," the signature used by the legendary 18th century London madman murderer Jack the Ripper.
The many-times-told tale is brought to life under the direction of an unlikely contemporary pair, Alan and Albert Hughes ("American Pimp," "Menace II Society"). To Albert, "This is a ghetto story … these characters happen to be white, but all poor people have the same problems." Alan adds, "Previous accounts of this story have been told from the eyes of the prim upper class," a standard the brothers disregard. Their perspective is that of the people who lived it, and the squalor they lived it in.
Inspector Frederick Abberline (Depp) ventures into the murky venues of London's back mews as well as the equally murky venues of his mind, addled by an opium addiction. He believes his hallucinations aid him in his search for the elusive and maniacal killer whose grisly methods of killing suggest a sophisticated surgical skill.
Jack the Ripper, in case you have forgotten, was the infamous killer of prostitutes in 1888 Whitechapel London, a killer never caught, and never entirely forgotten.
Mary Kelly (Heather Graham) is a "bawdy, impoverished and touchingly independent" prostitute who finally breaks down and aids Abberline in his search. One critic calls her performance "the most radiant since 'Boogie Nights.'"
One reviewer labeled the movie's slightly more than two hours a "gore-fest," but another called it "an entrancingly literate mystery … a horror film of genuine artistry and excitement," although the review says the Hughes brothers "are hardly ones to step back from operatic mayhem."
Ian Holmes plays Sir William Gull, a physician to the royal family, who along with Robby Coltrane as the good Sgt. Godley keeps Abberline on track in his crusade to catch the sadistic and sinister killer.
The film is rated R for strong violence, gore, sexuality, language and drug content, and that must about cover R ratings. It is playing at Sunny Isles Theaters.

Nov. 1, 2001 – Stumble onto a corpse in the fog … not everyone's cup of tea, but it's enough to send Johnny Depp on an adventure "From Hell," the signature used by the legendary 18th century London madman murderer Jack the Ripper.
The many-times-told tale is brought to life under the direction of an unlikely contemporary pair, Alan and Albert Hughes ("American Pimp," "Menace II Society"). To Albert, "This is a ghetto story … these characters happen to be white, but all poor people have the same problems." Alan adds, "Previous accounts of this story have been told from the eyes of the prim upper class," a standard the brothers disregard. Their perspective is that of the people who lived it, and the squalor they lived it in.
Inspector Frederick Abberline (Depp) ventures into the murky venues of London's back mews as well as the equally murky venues of his mind, addled by an opium addiction. He believes his hallucinations aid him in his search for the elusive and maniacal killer whose grisly methods of killing suggest a sophisticated surgical skill.
Jack the Ripper, in case you have forgotten, was the infamous killer of prostitutes in 1888 Whitechapel London, a killer never caught, and never entirely forgotten.
Mary Kelly (Heather Graham) is a "bawdy, impoverished and touchingly independent" prostitute who finally breaks down and aids Abberline in his search. One critic calls her performance "the most radiant since 'Boogie Nights.'"
One reviewer labeled the movie's slightly more than two hours a "gore-fest," but another called it "an entrancingly literate mystery … a horror film of genuine artistry and excitement," although the review says the Hughes brothers "are hardly ones to step back from operatic mayhem."
Ian Holmes plays Sir William Gull, a physician to the royal family, who along with Robby Coltrane as the good Sgt. Godley keeps Abberline on track in his crusade to catch the sadistic and sinister killer.
The film is rated R for strong violence, gore, sexuality, language and drug content, and that must about cover R ratings. It is playing at Market Square East on St. Thomas.

Nov. 1, 2001 – Stumble onto a corpse in the fog … not everyone's cup of tea, but it's enough to send Johnny Depp on an adventure "From Hell," the signature used by the legendary 18th century London madman murderer Jack the Ripper.
The many-times-told tale is brought to life under the direction of an unlikely contemporary pair, Alan and Albert Hughes ("American Pimp," "Menace II Society"). To Albert, "This is a ghetto story … these characters happen to be white, but all poor people have the same problems." Alan adds, "Previous accounts of this story have been told from the eyes of the prim upper class," a standard the brothers disregard. Their perspective is that of the people who lived it, and the squalor they lived it in.
Inspector Frederick Abberline (Depp) ventures into the murky venues of London's back mews as well as the equally murky venues of his mind, addled by an opium addiction. He believes his hallucinations aid him in his search for the elusive and maniacal killer whose grisly methods of killing suggest a sophisticated surgical skill.
Jack the Ripper, in case you have forgotten, was the infamous killer of prostitutes in 1888 Whitechapel London, a killer never caught, and never entirely forgotten.
Mary Kelly (Heather Graham) is a "bawdy, impoverished and touchingly independent" prostitute who finally breaks down and aids Abberline in his search. One critic calls her performance "the most radiant since 'Boogie Nights.'"
One reviewer labeled the movie's slightly more than two hours a "gore-fest," but another called it "an entrancingly literate mystery … a horror film of genuine artistry and excitement," although the review says the Hughes brothers "are hardly ones to step back from operatic mayhem."
Ian Holmes plays Sir William Gull, a physician to the royal family, who along with Robby Coltrane as the good Sgt. Godley keeps Abberline on track in his crusade to catch the sadistic and sinister killer.
The film is rated R for strong violence, gore, sexuality, language and drug content, and that must about cover R ratings. It is playing at Market Square East.

Nov. 1, 2001 – After an absence of more than a month, the U.S. Postal Service van will resume serving Coral Bay on Monday, Postmaster Louis Jackson said Thursday.
He said the mobile post office service was stopped because the Cruz Bay Post Office was understaffed and the van clerks were having to work at the Cruz Bay facility. That problem has been solved, he added, but a dead battery in the van has caused further delays.
East End resident Barbara Alpern was relieved to learn the van would be returning. She mails boxes of hand-painted Sloop Jones clothing, which is produed on the East End, every other day, and for her the van in Coral Bay was a boon.
"I have to drive 40 minutes one way to Cruz Bay, as opposed to 10 minutes to Coral Bay," Alpern said. Also, she noted, the Cruz Bay facility suffers from the parking shortage that plagues the rest of the town, but the area around the Coral Bay van is wide open. She can drive her car right up to the van, which makes it easy to unload the boxes.
"I really appreciate that it's there," she said, a sentiment shared by other East End residents. She said she even has seen Cruz Bay residents posting mail at the van, perhaps because it was less stressful than struggling to find a place to park in Cruz Bay and then waiting in line in the post office.
How long the Postal Service will continue operating the van service in Coral Bay remains to be seen. Jackson said he's monitoring how much revenue it generates — and it hasn't been all that much. He acknowledged that the service is needed but did not say whether that would be a consideration.
The van started serving Coral Bay in April of 2000, open Monday through Friday from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and Saturday from 8:30 a.m. to noon. Alpern said clerks taking unannounced lunch breaks is sometimes a problem, and it would be helpful if they kept consistent lunch hours and posted them on the van so customers could plan their visits accordingly.

Oct. 31, 2001 – For anyone on a tight budget, a Veterans Day weekend outing at the V.I. National Park may be just the ticket. For starters, the park, like all of the 384 others in the National Park Service system, will waive admission fees Nov. 10-12. At the St. John park, that means free admission to Trunk Bay beach and the Annaberg Plantation, the only areas where fees are charged.
The national parks across the country normally have free admission on Founder's Day, which is Aug. 25. This year, Interior Secretary Gale Norton also has designated the Veterans Day weekend as a time of fee-free days, to "encourage solace and healing" in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the mainland.
"Our nation's parks, monuments and memorials are an inspiration to the freedoms all Americans cherish," Norton said in a press release.
V.I. National Park Supt. John King said he hopes local residents will take advantage of the opportunity to explore Trunk Bay and Annaberg without having to pay admission. Staff at the Cruz Bay Visitor Center will be handing out free bookmarks, too.
The normal combined admission fee for Trunk Bay and Annaberg is $4 for those 16 years of age and older. Children 16 and under are always admitted free. (Annual passes are available — $15 for families and $10 for individuals.)
For those who really want to make a weekend of it, there are other incentives, too. At the park's Cinnamon Bay Campground, sleeping accommodations will be half the normal price, dropped to $12.50 a night for bare sites, $40 for tents and $52.50 to $67.50 for cottages. To further sweeten the pie, the campground is offering 50 percent off snorkel rentals and 25 percent off meals at the T'ree Lizards Restaurant on the property.
"It's to drive some visitorship into the park," said Brian Young, manager at Caneel Bay Resort, which holds the park concession to manage Cinnamon Bay Campground.
Maho Bay Camps, also located with the park boundaries, has extended its half-price summer locals' rate to Nov. 15. That means two people can sleep in one of the campground tent cottages for $37.50 a night. Also until Nov. 15, up to children under 16 stay free, so make that two adults and two kids for a total of $37.50 a night. The deal also is good at the Concordia Eco-tents, located near Salt Pond. Both properties are owned by Stanley Selingut, an internationally recognized ecology-oriented developer.
For those uninterested in tenting and camping, Caneel Bay Resort is offering a locals' rate of $125 a room for two people until Dec. 15. Other hotels, guest houses and inns around St. John also have locals' rates. A telephone call to any of them will provide deals and details.
Norton suggested that anyone planning an outing over the Veterans Day weekend consider taking advantage of the opportunity to visit a park for free. The National Park system includes parks, monuments, battlefields, historic sites, lake- and seashores, recreational areas, scenic rivers and trails in every state but Delaware, as well as in Washington, D.C., American Samoa, Puerto Rico and, of course, the Virgin Islands.
The V.I. National Park oversees operations not only at the park on St. John but also at the new Coral Reef National Monument located off St. John, on Hassel Island in the St. Thomas harbor, and at the Christiansted National Historic Site, Buck Island Reef National Monument and the joint territorial and federal Salt River National Park and Ecological Preserve on St. Croix.
On St. Croix, the only National Park Service facility with an admission fee is Fort Christiansvaern, which charges $2 per person over the age of 16. For Nov. 10-12, that fee will also be waived.
For overnight information and reservations, call Cinnamon Bay Campground at 776-6330, Maho Bay Camps and Concordia Eco-tents at 776-6226 and Caneel Bay Resort at 776-6111.

Oct. 31, 2001 – For anyone on a tight budget, a Veterans Day weekend outing at the V.I. National Park may be just the ticket. For starters, the park, like all of the 384 others in the National Park Service system, will waive admission fees Nov. 10-12. At the St. John park, that means free admission to Trunk Bay beach and the Annaberg Plantation, the only areas where fees are charged.
The national parks across the country normally have free admission on Founder's Day, which is Aug. 25. This year, Interior Secretary Gale Norton also has designated the Veterans Day weekend as a time of fee-free days, to "encourage solace and healing" in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the mainland.
"Our nation's parks, monuments and memorials are an inspiration to the freedoms all Americans cherish," Norton said in a press release.
V.I. National Park Supt. John King said he hopes local residents will take advantage of the opportunity to explore Trunk Bay and Annaberg without having to pay admission. Staff at the Cruz Bay Visitor Center will be handing out free bookmarks, too.
The normal combined admission fee for Trunk Bay and Annaberg is $4 for those 16 years of age and older. Children 16 and under are always admitted free. (Annual passes are $15 for families and $10 for individuals.)
For those who really want to make a weekend of it, there are other incentives, too. At the park's Cinnamon Bay Campground, sleeping accommodations will be half the normal price, dropped to $12.50 a night for bare sites, $40 for tents and $52.50 to $67.50 for cottages. To further sweeten the pie, the campground is offering 50 percent off snorkel rentals and 25 percent off meals at the T'ree Lizards Restaurant on the property.
"It's to drive some visitorship into the park," said Brian Young, manager at Caneel Bay Resort, which holds the park concession to manage Cinnamon Bay Campground.
Maho Bay Camps, also located with the park boundaries, has extended its half-price summer locals' rate to Nov. 15. That means two people can sleep in one of the campground tent cottages for $37.50 a night. Also until Nov. 15, up to children under 16 stay free, so make that two adults and two kids for a total of $37.50 a night. The deal also is good at the Concordia Eco-tents, located near Salt Pond. Both properties are owned by Stanley Selingut, an internationally recognized ecology-oriented developer.
For those uninterested in tenting and camping, Caneel Bay Resort is offering a locals' rate of $125 a room for two people until Dec. 15. Other hotels, guest houses and inns around St. John also have locals' rates. A telephone call to any of them will provide deals and details.
Norton suggested that anyone planning an outing over the Veterans Day weekend consider taking advantage of the opportunity to visit a park for free. The National Park system includes parks, monuments, battlefields, historic sites, lake- and seashores, recreational areas, scenic rivers and trails in every state but Delaware, as well as in Washington, D.C., American Samoa, Puerto Rico and, of course, the Virgin Islands.
The V.I. National Park oversees operations not only at the park on St. John but also at the new Coral Reef National Monument located off St. John, on Hassel Island in the St. Thomas harbor, and at the Christiansted National Historic Site, Buck Island Reef National Monument and the joint territorial and federal Salt River National Park and Ecological Preserve on St. Croix.
On St. Croix, the only National Park Service facility with an admission fee is Fort Christiansvaern, which charges $2 per person over the age of 16. For Nov. 10-12, that fee will also be waived.
For overnight information and reservations, call Cinnamon Bay Campground at 776-6330, Maho Bay Camps and Concordia Eco-tents at 776-6226 and Caneel Bay Resort at 776-6111.

Nov. 1, 2001 – The public is invited to join Miss Virgin Islands Senior America, Carol Tuohy, and former queens and contestants and members of the Cameo Club at their first Red, White and Blue Tea on Veterans Day, Nov. 11.
The event starts at 5 p.m. at the American Legion Hall of the Patrick U. George Command Post in Sub Base on St. Thomas. Tickets are $15, Finger foods and coffee, punch and tea will be served.
Rita King, Cameo Club treasurer and an organizer of the event, said it will honor four local military veterans: Maj. Gen. Cleve A. McBean of the V.I. National Guard, Louis P. Hill, Greta Hart and Leslie Richardson.
King said the event also is a fundraiser to help send Tuohy to the national Miss Senior America pageant in Las Vegas in December and to fund club activities, which include visiting homebound senior citizens.
For more information and tickets, call King at 775-7792.