Oct. 31, 2001 – A formal agreement between the V.I. government and the Port Authority to apply for $17 million in GARVEE bonds represents progress on the Enighed Pond commercial port project, VIPA executive director Gordon Finch said Wednesday.
In a VIPA press release distributed late Wednesday, Finch said Gov. Charles W. Turnbull has approved the agreement.
Finch said the bond money will cover the projected $16 million cost of the Enighed Pond project plus $1 million worth of improvements to roads adjacent to the port.
The release did not say when the agreement was approved by the governor or when application for the GARVEE funds would be made. Port Authority spokeswoman Monifa Marrero could not be reached for additional information.
Finch said that, in light of the agreement, he is positive the Federal Highway Administration will approve advance construction funding through the GARVEE bonds.
GARVEE stands for Grant Anticipation Revenue Vehicles. States and territories can issue GARVEE bonds, which are backed by anticipated annual Federal Highway Administration funding. In the case of the Virgin Islands, they are to be issued by the Public Finance Authority, backed by the territory's annual $12.7 million transportation grants from the FHA.
As soon as the FHA approves the deal, Finch said, the Port Authority will send out requests for proposals to design and build the Enighed Pond commercial port — a project in the planning for the last three decades. He said bids will be advertised for two months, with the Port Authority having another two months to pick the contractor.
Finch said the Port Authority also will issue construction bids for the Red Hook marine terminal project.
In a complicated deal, he said, the Port Authority will turn over $4 million to the government's General Fund that was saved in a sinking fund toward the Enighed Pond project because the GARVEE bonds will pay the full cost of that project. Additionally, the government will advance $2.5 million to the Port Authority to fund part of the Red Hook marine terminal project, with the Port Authority to reimburse the government when money from the GARVEE bonds come in.
The Port Authority will pay for the rest of the $5 million Red Hook project, and the Port Authority and the Public Works Department will split the cost of improving roads for the marine terminal, estimated at $1 million.
The Port Authority and the V.I. government had initially agreed to share funding of the Enighed Pond project, but when the GARVEE bonds became available, they developed an alternative funding method.
"This is an excellent demonstration of how agencies within the V.I. government are working together toward the improvement of our islands," Finch said.
GARVEE AGREEMENT ADVANCES ENIGHED PROJECT
Oct. 31, 2001 – A formal agreement between the V.I. government and the Port Authority to apply for $17 million in GARVEE bonds represents progress on the Enighed Pond commercial port project, VIPA executive director Gordon Finch said Wednesday.
In a VIPA press release distributed late Wednesday, Finch said Gov. Charles W. Turnbull has approved the agreement.
Finch said the bond money will cover the projected $16 million cost of the Enighed Pond project plus $1 million worth of improvements to roads adjacent to the port.
The release did not say when the agreement was approved by the governor or when application for the GARVEE funds would be made. Port Authority spokeswoman Monifa Marrero could not be reached for additional information.
Finch said that, in light of the agreement, he is positive the Federal Highway Administration will approve advance construction funding through the GARVEE bonds.
GARVEE stands for Grant Anticipation Revenue Vehicles. States and territories can issue GARVEE bonds, which are backed by anticipated annual Federal Highway Administration funding. In the case of the Virgin Islands, they are to be issued by the Public Finance Authority, backed by the territory's annual $12.7 million transportation grants from the FHA.
As soon as the FHA approves the deal, Finch said, the Port Authority will send out requests for proposals to design and build the Enighed Pond commercial port — a project in the planning for the last three decades. He said bids will be advertised for two months, with the Port Authority having another two months to pick the contractor.
Finch said the Port Authority also will issue construction bids for the Red Hook marine terminal project.
In a complicated deal, he said, the Port Authority will turn over $4 million to the government's General Fund that was saved in a sinking fund toward the Enighed Pond project because the GARVEE bonds will pay the full cost of that project. Additionally, the government will advance $2.5 million to the Port Authority to fund part of the Red Hook marine terminal project, with the Port Authority to reimburse the government when money from the GARVEE bonds come in.
The Port Authority will pay for the rest of the $5 million Red Hook project, and the Port Authority and the Public Works Department will split the cost of improving roads for the marine terminal, estimated at $1 million.
The Port Authority and the V.I. government had initially agreed to share funding of the Enighed Pond project, but when the GARVEE bonds became available, they developed an alternative funding method.
"This is an excellent demonstration of how agencies within the V.I. government are working together toward the improvement of our islands," Finch said.
In a VIPA press release distributed late Wednesday, Finch said Gov. Charles W. Turnbull has approved the agreement.
Finch said the bond money will cover the projected $16 million cost of the Enighed Pond project plus $1 million worth of improvements to roads adjacent to the port.
The release did not say when the agreement was approved by the governor or when application for the GARVEE funds would be made. Port Authority spokeswoman Monifa Marrero could not be reached for additional information.
Finch said that, in light of the agreement, he is positive the Federal Highway Administration will approve advance construction funding through the GARVEE bonds.
GARVEE stands for Grant Anticipation Revenue Vehicles. States and territories can issue GARVEE bonds, which are backed by anticipated annual Federal Highway Administration funding. In the case of the Virgin Islands, they are to be issued by the Public Finance Authority, backed by the territory's annual $12.7 million transportation grants from the FHA.
As soon as the FHA approves the deal, Finch said, the Port Authority will send out requests for proposals to design and build the Enighed Pond commercial port — a project in the planning for the last three decades. He said bids will be advertised for two months, with the Port Authority having another two months to pick the contractor.
Finch said the Port Authority also will issue construction bids for the Red Hook marine terminal project.
In a complicated deal, he said, the Port Authority will turn over $4 million to the government's General Fund that was saved in a sinking fund toward the Enighed Pond project because the GARVEE bonds will pay the full cost of that project. Additionally, the government will advance $2.5 million to the Port Authority to fund part of the Red Hook marine terminal project, with the Port Authority to reimburse the government when money from the GARVEE bonds come in.
The Port Authority will pay for the rest of the $5 million Red Hook project, and the Port Authority and the Public Works Department will split the cost of improving roads for the marine terminal, estimated at $1 million.
The Port Authority and the V.I. government had initially agreed to share funding of the Enighed Pond project, but when the GARVEE bonds became available, they developed an alternative funding method.
"This is an excellent demonstration of how agencies within the V.I. government are working together toward the improvement of our islands," Finch said.
CARNIVAL COMMITTEE BEACH JAM AT BREWERS
Oct. 31, 2001 – The V.I. Carnival Committee continues its 50th anniversary celebration with a beach jam and fun day on Monday, Nov. 12, at Brewers Bay Beach and the Reichhold grounds from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Everyone is invited for a day of beach volleyball, sack races, old-time games, face painting and water sports, a release said.
Imaginations Brass and Big Blue Productions will provide live entertainment, and food and drink will be on sale.
For more information, call the committee office at 776-3112.
There will be no through traffic on the John Brewers Beach Road from 9 a.m. until the function has concluded, according to a Police Dept. release. It is suggested that vehicles traveling in and out of the Bordeaux and Fortuna areas use the alternative Estate Pearl-Crown Mountain routes. No parking will be allowed on the beach.
Everyone is invited for a day of beach volleyball, sack races, old-time games, face painting and water sports, a release said.
Imaginations Brass and Big Blue Productions will provide live entertainment, and food and drink will be on sale.
For more information, call the committee office at 776-3112.
There will be no through traffic on the John Brewers Beach Road from 9 a.m. until the function has concluded, according to a Police Dept. release. It is suggested that vehicles traveling in and out of the Bordeaux and Fortuna areas use the alternative Estate Pearl-Crown Mountain routes. No parking will be allowed on the beach.
DOG DAZE: AGENCIES ARGUE OVER WHOSE JOB IT IS
Oct. 31, 2001 – "Dead dog day 4." So read signs posted Wednesday outside Charlotte Amalie High School, where an animal carcass had been rotting for that long, creating a formidable odor on the adjacent campus while government agencies passed the buck on who was to pick it up and when.
The carcass, reported to authorities Tuesday, poses a health hazard and has caused one class to relocate to the school auditorium. Edney Freeman, CAHS Art Department chair, said it was he who called June Archibald on the WVWI Radio "Morning Mix" talk show Tuesday after getting no satisfaction from the usual "chain of command."
He said he had reported the situation to CAHS assistant principal Barbara Callwood on Monday and she had said it would be taken care of, but on Tuesday it was still there.
And, despite calls to five government agencies, on Wednesday afternoon it was still there, by that time covered with lye and in the company of two hand-lettered signs provided by Freeman. Throwing up his hands, the art teacher said, "This is unacceptable — hundreds of kids walk by it every day. It is affecting the students and the teachers."
Freeman continued, "I couldn't conduct classes here yesterday. I had to take the students to the auditorium." The carcass is right outside his classroom.
"What about the passerby?" he asked. "Garbage trucks go by here all the time. Why can't they stop put it in a bag and take it away?" He said he had not gotten a response when he had called the Health Department's Environmental Health Division on Tuesday.
The situation was made more poignant for Freeman by the fact that he had to have his 12-year-old German shepherd put to sleep Tuesday. "I took him for a walk on Vessup Bay, his favorite beach, first," he said, near tears, "and then when I came here, to see that dog still here, it's just too much. It is inhumane."
Ethlyn Joseph, Environmental Health Division director, expressed astonishment Wednesday when informed the carcass was still at the high school. "I went to the school this morning and I sat in the principal's office, and she told me the dog was removed," Joseph said. "She called someone while I was sitting there."
Joseph said she had been in meetings Tuesday and didn't hear about the situation until the afternoon. She also said dealing with the problem is the responsibility of the Public Works Department. On Tuesday, at the suggestion of a staff member of the V.I. Agriculture Department, which picks up only live animals, the Source had called Public Works, to be told that it was not their responsibility.
Joseph said her agency had given Public Works a truck for the purpose of removing dead animals. "We are short staffed, and we don't have anybody to do it, but Public Works does," she said. "Then they told me the truck was in the shop because it overheated. I told them they had to remove the dog. I thought it had been done Tuesday."
Also on Tuesday, Juel Anderson, Education Department public information officer, had said she had called Environmental Health and was told that division would take care of the matter.
Enter Louis Hill, St. Thomas-Water Island administrator, who had been contacted by the Education Department. He, too, said he was astounded to find that the situation hadn't been dealt with.
"This is totally unacceptable," Hill said Wednesday. "I called Wayne Callwood (Public Works commissioner) Tuesday afternoon and spoke with his secretary. There is no reason whatsoever why this animal hasn't been picked up. They've been aware of it since yesterday. How can so many government agencies not get this taken care of?"
A short time later, Hill told the Source, "I have just spoken with Callwood. He said he was already aware of the situation, and he has sent someone to pick it up."
He added, "I am so embarrassed to the public that we [the government] should have allowed this situation to occur. It shouldn't have happened."
The carcass, reported to authorities Tuesday, poses a health hazard and has caused one class to relocate to the school auditorium. Edney Freeman, CAHS Art Department chair, said it was he who called June Archibald on the WVWI Radio "Morning Mix" talk show Tuesday after getting no satisfaction from the usual "chain of command."
He said he had reported the situation to CAHS assistant principal Barbara Callwood on Monday and she had said it would be taken care of, but on Tuesday it was still there.
And, despite calls to five government agencies, on Wednesday afternoon it was still there, by that time covered with lye and in the company of two hand-lettered signs provided by Freeman. Throwing up his hands, the art teacher said, "This is unacceptable — hundreds of kids walk by it every day. It is affecting the students and the teachers."
Freeman continued, "I couldn't conduct classes here yesterday. I had to take the students to the auditorium." The carcass is right outside his classroom.
"What about the passerby?" he asked. "Garbage trucks go by here all the time. Why can't they stop put it in a bag and take it away?" He said he had not gotten a response when he had called the Health Department's Environmental Health Division on Tuesday.
The situation was made more poignant for Freeman by the fact that he had to have his 12-year-old German shepherd put to sleep Tuesday. "I took him for a walk on Vessup Bay, his favorite beach, first," he said, near tears, "and then when I came here, to see that dog still here, it's just too much. It is inhumane."
Ethlyn Joseph, Environmental Health Division director, expressed astonishment Wednesday when informed the carcass was still at the high school. "I went to the school this morning and I sat in the principal's office, and she told me the dog was removed," Joseph said. "She called someone while I was sitting there."
Joseph said she had been in meetings Tuesday and didn't hear about the situation until the afternoon. She also said dealing with the problem is the responsibility of the Public Works Department. On Tuesday, at the suggestion of a staff member of the V.I. Agriculture Department, which picks up only live animals, the Source had called Public Works, to be told that it was not their responsibility.
Joseph said her agency had given Public Works a truck for the purpose of removing dead animals. "We are short staffed, and we don't have anybody to do it, but Public Works does," she said. "Then they told me the truck was in the shop because it overheated. I told them they had to remove the dog. I thought it had been done Tuesday."
Also on Tuesday, Juel Anderson, Education Department public information officer, had said she had called Environmental Health and was told that division would take care of the matter.
Enter Louis Hill, St. Thomas-Water Island administrator, who had been contacted by the Education Department. He, too, said he was astounded to find that the situation hadn't been dealt with.
"This is totally unacceptable," Hill said Wednesday. "I called Wayne Callwood (Public Works commissioner) Tuesday afternoon and spoke with his secretary. There is no reason whatsoever why this animal hasn't been picked up. They've been aware of it since yesterday. How can so many government agencies not get this taken care of?"
A short time later, Hill told the Source, "I have just spoken with Callwood. He said he was already aware of the situation, and he has sent someone to pick it up."
He added, "I am so embarrassed to the public that we [the government] should have allowed this situation to occur. It shouldn't have happened."
AGENCIES PASS MUSTER IN AIRPORT DISASTER DRILL
Oct. 31, 2001 – If you wondered about all the racket on Veterans Drive Wednesday morning — sirens screaming, fire trucks barreling along — none of it was real, a real disaster, that is. It was the Port Authority's airport mock disaster drill.
A release from the Port Authority Wednesday afternoon called the drill, an exercise required periodically by the Federal Aviation Administration, a success. Barbara Ricketts, Cyril E. King Airport manager, said, "There were a few areas that needed improvements, but in general things went smoothly. Any concerns I had with our primary response agencies were squashed today."
The exercise began around 9:30 a.m. with two simulated plane crashes — one on land, the other 15 minutes later on the water, both with injured and dead passengers.
Agencies participating in the drill included V.I. Fire Services, the V. I. Territorial Emergency Management Agency, Emergency Medical Technicians, the local chapter of the American Red Cross and the Planning and Natural Resources Department — along with VICAR, a voluntary water rescue team from Tortola.
A release from the Port Authority Wednesday afternoon called the drill, an exercise required periodically by the Federal Aviation Administration, a success. Barbara Ricketts, Cyril E. King Airport manager, said, "There were a few areas that needed improvements, but in general things went smoothly. Any concerns I had with our primary response agencies were squashed today."
The exercise began around 9:30 a.m. with two simulated plane crashes — one on land, the other 15 minutes later on the water, both with injured and dead passengers.
Agencies participating in the drill included V.I. Fire Services, the V. I. Territorial Emergency Management Agency, Emergency Medical Technicians, the local chapter of the American Red Cross and the Planning and Natural Resources Department — along with VICAR, a voluntary water rescue team from Tortola.
KIDS, CRITTERS ENJOY COOKIE-SHOP HALLOWEEN
Oct. 31, 2001 – It was Dr. Billy Biscoe's first Halloween party, and he was joined by 28 of his closest friends at a cookie shop to celebrate.
His friends were not much taller and not much older than Dr. Biscoe. He was in his green surgical scrubs, and they were dressed up as lady bugs and pumpkins, princesses and fairies, flower children and scarecrows. And they had their own real, live clown, along with, also live, rabbits, a cockatiel and a fluffy white West Highland terrier named for another holiday — Valentine.
Dr. Biscoe is 18 months old, and his nurse, Avian Biscoe, who doubles as his mother, decided to inaugurate the tradition of an annual Halloween party for Billy this year. And what better place than her friend Sandra Marie Davis's sweet treats emporium, Grandma Sandy's Island Cookie Company? The clown, Steve Prosterman, doubles as a marine science instructor at the University of the Virgin Islands.
"Sandy's an old friend," Avian Biscoe said. "I love her cookies, and this place is so child-friendly." Grandma Sandy's is decorated with teddy bears in high chairs and low tables with coloring books. For Wednesday's do, bright orange balloons, streamers and cupcakes added a Halloween hue.
Billy's father, the real doctor, is Dr. Byron Biscoe, an opthalmologist at Pearle Vision in Nisky Center.
His friends were not much taller and not much older than Dr. Biscoe. He was in his green surgical scrubs, and they were dressed up as lady bugs and pumpkins, princesses and fairies, flower children and scarecrows. And they had their own real, live clown, along with, also live, rabbits, a cockatiel and a fluffy white West Highland terrier named for another holiday — Valentine.
Dr. Biscoe is 18 months old, and his nurse, Avian Biscoe, who doubles as his mother, decided to inaugurate the tradition of an annual Halloween party for Billy this year. And what better place than her friend Sandra Marie Davis's sweet treats emporium, Grandma Sandy's Island Cookie Company? The clown, Steve Prosterman, doubles as a marine science instructor at the University of the Virgin Islands.
"Sandy's an old friend," Avian Biscoe said. "I love her cookies, and this place is so child-friendly." Grandma Sandy's is decorated with teddy bears in high chairs and low tables with coloring books. For Wednesday's do, bright orange balloons, streamers and cupcakes added a Halloween hue.
Billy's father, the real doctor, is Dr. Byron Biscoe, an opthalmologist at Pearle Vision in Nisky Center.
CALDWELL ART SHOW TO OPEN
A reception opening an exhibition of new pastels and watercolors by St. John artist Carolyn Caldwell will take place at Wicker Wood and Shells in Mongoose Junction. The opening, which will include complimentary wine and champagne, will be held in conjunction with the annual Fall Evening in the Courtyard celebration at the shopping complex. For details, call 776-6909.
LAB TEST RESULTS DELAYED IN TRACY MURDER TRIAL
Oct. 31, 2001 – Potentially key forensic evidence is not yet available and may not become available before the scheduled Dec. 10 start date for the murder trial of Ian Tracy.
On Wednesday, Territorial Court Judge Ishmael Meyers ordered Lofton Holder, assistant attorney general, to contact FBI laboratory technicians to find out when test results from blood samples and DNA evidence will be known.
The judge said he wanted the evidence within 45 days, but Holder indicated that the results may not be ready for 60 to 90 days.
The blood samples and DNA evidence were in Police Department possession for more than six months before being sent to an FBI laboratory, Holder said, adding that he did not know the reason for the delay.
Defense attorney Treston Moore has said he wants independent testing of the evidence, and Meyers ordered that additional samples be made available for that purpose.
Tracy, a former Antilles School honor student and senior class president who attends Middlebury College in Vermont, has been charged with the murder of his 18-year-old former girlfriend, Adassa Rolle.
Police accused Tracy of shooting Rolle in the head while they were at Green Cay Plantation in the early morning hours of Dec. 31, 2000. Tracy, then 19, was at home from college on holiday break at the time.
Tracy called police shortly after the shooting, and investigators found Rolle's body in the back seat of the sport utility vehicle Tracy was driving. Tracy told detectives that he and Rolle were parked in the isolated area when a man approached the side of the vehicle and stuck a gun through the window in an apparent robbery attempt. Tracy told police he struggled with the gunman and several shots were fired. Rolle was hit in the head by a bullet at close range, investigators said.
After Tracy's arrest, detectives said his version of events did not correspond with physical evidence. But Moore has said the evidence could well mesh with Tracy's account, and that by arresting him police have not pursued the real gunman.
Once received at the FBI lab, the blood and DNA samples were put in line for testing with evidence in other cases, Holder said. But before the testing could be done, the FBI's laboratories were swamped with work as a result of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Holder said he was confident the tests would be carried out as soon as possible but said he did not know if that would satisfy Meyers' order of Thursday.
On Wednesday, Territorial Court Judge Ishmael Meyers ordered Lofton Holder, assistant attorney general, to contact FBI laboratory technicians to find out when test results from blood samples and DNA evidence will be known.
The judge said he wanted the evidence within 45 days, but Holder indicated that the results may not be ready for 60 to 90 days.
The blood samples and DNA evidence were in Police Department possession for more than six months before being sent to an FBI laboratory, Holder said, adding that he did not know the reason for the delay.
Defense attorney Treston Moore has said he wants independent testing of the evidence, and Meyers ordered that additional samples be made available for that purpose.
Tracy, a former Antilles School honor student and senior class president who attends Middlebury College in Vermont, has been charged with the murder of his 18-year-old former girlfriend, Adassa Rolle.
Police accused Tracy of shooting Rolle in the head while they were at Green Cay Plantation in the early morning hours of Dec. 31, 2000. Tracy, then 19, was at home from college on holiday break at the time.
Tracy called police shortly after the shooting, and investigators found Rolle's body in the back seat of the sport utility vehicle Tracy was driving. Tracy told detectives that he and Rolle were parked in the isolated area when a man approached the side of the vehicle and stuck a gun through the window in an apparent robbery attempt. Tracy told police he struggled with the gunman and several shots were fired. Rolle was hit in the head by a bullet at close range, investigators said.
After Tracy's arrest, detectives said his version of events did not correspond with physical evidence. But Moore has said the evidence could well mesh with Tracy's account, and that by arresting him police have not pursued the real gunman.
Once received at the FBI lab, the blood and DNA samples were put in line for testing with evidence in other cases, Holder said. But before the testing could be done, the FBI's laboratories were swamped with work as a result of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Holder said he was confident the tests would be carried out as soon as possible but said he did not know if that would satisfy Meyers' order of Thursday.
NOVEMBER SPECIALS AT CHRIS SAWYER
Sunday Nov. 11 Wreck of the R.M.S. Rhone. This is a great day trip to the wreck site near Salt Island in the British Virgin Islands. We dive the bow section in about 80 feet of water and provide a lunch during the surface interval. The afternoon dive is on the stern section and then a lovely boat ride home. $140.00 includes dive, equipment, customs fees and lunch.
Monday Nov. 12 PADI open water courses start again on This class meets
evenings and weekends. A great way to become a certified diver and really
begin to enjoy the underwater world all around us. $98.00 plus the manual.
Don't miss our annual DIVE GEAR SALE Nov. 22 through Nov. 26. Many, many terrific brands like SeaQuest, Mares, Aqualung, Scuba Pro and more.
The best prices anywhere on all your scuba or snorkel gear needs.
Of course we have the Wreck of the Rhone dive every Friday.
For information or to book any of our dives or classes call 777-7804 or check the website at www.sawyerdive.vi
Or you can email sawyerdive@islands.vi
Monday Nov. 12 PADI open water courses start again on This class meets
evenings and weekends. A great way to become a certified diver and really
begin to enjoy the underwater world all around us. $98.00 plus the manual.
Don't miss our annual DIVE GEAR SALE Nov. 22 through Nov. 26. Many, many terrific brands like SeaQuest, Mares, Aqualung, Scuba Pro and more.
The best prices anywhere on all your scuba or snorkel gear needs.
Of course we have the Wreck of the Rhone dive every Friday.
For information or to book any of our dives or classes call 777-7804 or check the website at www.sawyerdive.vi
Or you can email sawyerdive@islands.vi
DISCRIMINATION ISN'T THE BE-ALL FOR BLAME
Dear Source,
An answer to Eric Roeske [see "More federal money won't solve V.I. problems" ]:
1. While I don't condone corruption, Mr. Roeske is hardly on some high horse from which to pontificate. I attribute most forms of political corruption in the Virgin Islands to behaviors learned from mainland political organizations. He speaks of the corruption going back 30 years and he is right — the rise of it directly coincides with the affiliation of local political parties with the national Democratic and Republican Parties.
Read Earle B. Ottley's "Trials And Triumphs" for a good historical perspective from someone who should have known. Further, we do not have any special or idiosyncratic form of corruption in the Virgin Islands; it is the same thing one sees in Milwaukee or Palatka, Fla. I dare say that New York City is the bastion of political corruption in the U.S.
2. I am not suggesting any solutions to the corruption problem other than vigorous prosecution to deter and punish it. In response to Mr. Roeske's contention that it will stop when people stop voting their self interests: Well, hello! It is a cornerstone of American representative government to vote your self interests. Isn't that what Congress does? Does not Sen. Jesse Helms block every tobacco bill in the Senate? Even though it is a known killer, tobacco also is the largest agricultural product of his home state. Senators and representatives do this daily. Wasn't Sen. John McCain reprimanded for the savings and loan scandals several years ago? How soon we forget — or hide our heads in the sand.
3. I agree there should be no bailout of the local businesses. This will teach us a lesson in economic diversification — something many local politicians have been espousing for years, but the tourism lobby (which, incidentally, is not controlled by Virgin Islanders) has continually prevailed.
4. I agree with him that responsibility for economic turn-around has been, is now and always should be a local one.
5. The Virgin Islands should undertake local initiatives such as sales taxes, increased service fees, attrition in some departments and probably elimination of some, local government in each district, expansion of the private sector beyond tourism into labor-intensive, non-polluting industries, contraction of the public sector, and more.
6. I agree with much of what Mr. Roeske is saying. However, I strongly disagree with his reasons for such. As for racism, or discrimination, that is rampant here on the mainland. Of course, it has taken on more subtle forms. The great state of North Carolina is now about to pass a redistricting plan that will effectively eliminate more than half of the minority representation in the General Assembly. Also, the City of Durham implemented a plan that has reduced its city council, but at the expense of two of the poorest districts in the city.
The Virgin Islands is a small place, and people tend to deal with people they know. This is a fact of life of small communities. I live in a small, church-owned university town, and it is a well-known fact that the president of the university runs the show — even to the point where university groups shy away from using the local bank because of allegations of siphoning of funds by the administration, which uses the same bank.
I find that the facts tell a different tale. Since 1969, the Virgin Islands has elected or appointed the following persons to office: Lt. Gov. David E. Maas (white), Delegate Ron de Lugo (white), Sen. Lorraine Berry (white), Sen. Holland Redfield (white), Sen. Bent Lawaetz (white), Sen. Brit Bryant (white), Sen./Lt. Gov./Gov. Juan Luis (Puerto Rican), Sen. David Jones (Dominican), Sen. St. Clair Williams (non-native), not to mention the first female leader of a legislature, Senate President Ruby M. Rouss, and numerous other females and non-natives. This is not an exhaustive list.
I think, despite our shortcomings, we have been a very pluralistic society. Too often, when someone sees a problem or encounters a difficulty, it is directly attributed to local prejudice, without even investigating the real causes. The mainland does not have a monopoly on efficient government, and we should not assume such; rather, we should look at what we are doing wrong for our citizens and correct it so that we can effectively serve.
Dwayne Henry
Harnett County, North Carolina
An answer to Eric Roeske [see "More federal money won't solve V.I. problems" ]:
1. While I don't condone corruption, Mr. Roeske is hardly on some high horse from which to pontificate. I attribute most forms of political corruption in the Virgin Islands to behaviors learned from mainland political organizations. He speaks of the corruption going back 30 years and he is right — the rise of it directly coincides with the affiliation of local political parties with the national Democratic and Republican Parties.
Read Earle B. Ottley's "Trials And Triumphs" for a good historical perspective from someone who should have known. Further, we do not have any special or idiosyncratic form of corruption in the Virgin Islands; it is the same thing one sees in Milwaukee or Palatka, Fla. I dare say that New York City is the bastion of political corruption in the U.S.
2. I am not suggesting any solutions to the corruption problem other than vigorous prosecution to deter and punish it. In response to Mr. Roeske's contention that it will stop when people stop voting their self interests: Well, hello! It is a cornerstone of American representative government to vote your self interests. Isn't that what Congress does? Does not Sen. Jesse Helms block every tobacco bill in the Senate? Even though it is a known killer, tobacco also is the largest agricultural product of his home state. Senators and representatives do this daily. Wasn't Sen. John McCain reprimanded for the savings and loan scandals several years ago? How soon we forget — or hide our heads in the sand.
3. I agree there should be no bailout of the local businesses. This will teach us a lesson in economic diversification — something many local politicians have been espousing for years, but the tourism lobby (which, incidentally, is not controlled by Virgin Islanders) has continually prevailed.
4. I agree with him that responsibility for economic turn-around has been, is now and always should be a local one.
5. The Virgin Islands should undertake local initiatives such as sales taxes, increased service fees, attrition in some departments and probably elimination of some, local government in each district, expansion of the private sector beyond tourism into labor-intensive, non-polluting industries, contraction of the public sector, and more.
6. I agree with much of what Mr. Roeske is saying. However, I strongly disagree with his reasons for such. As for racism, or discrimination, that is rampant here on the mainland. Of course, it has taken on more subtle forms. The great state of North Carolina is now about to pass a redistricting plan that will effectively eliminate more than half of the minority representation in the General Assembly. Also, the City of Durham implemented a plan that has reduced its city council, but at the expense of two of the poorest districts in the city.
The Virgin Islands is a small place, and people tend to deal with people they know. This is a fact of life of small communities. I live in a small, church-owned university town, and it is a well-known fact that the president of the university runs the show — even to the point where university groups shy away from using the local bank because of allegations of siphoning of funds by the administration, which uses the same bank.
I find that the facts tell a different tale. Since 1969, the Virgin Islands has elected or appointed the following persons to office: Lt. Gov. David E. Maas (white), Delegate Ron de Lugo (white), Sen. Lorraine Berry (white), Sen. Holland Redfield (white), Sen. Bent Lawaetz (white), Sen. Brit Bryant (white), Sen./Lt. Gov./Gov. Juan Luis (Puerto Rican), Sen. David Jones (Dominican), Sen. St. Clair Williams (non-native), not to mention the first female leader of a legislature, Senate President Ruby M. Rouss, and numerous other females and non-natives. This is not an exhaustive list.
I think, despite our shortcomings, we have been a very pluralistic society. Too often, when someone sees a problem or encounters a difficulty, it is directly attributed to local prejudice, without even investigating the real causes. The mainland does not have a monopoly on efficient government, and we should not assume such; rather, we should look at what we are doing wrong for our citizens and correct it so that we can effectively serve.
Dwayne Henry
Harnett County, North Carolina
