Sept. 26, 2001 — Two weeks after the terrorist attacks on the mainland, cruise line industry officials are keeping an optimistic eye on the start of the cruise season in November.
The International Council of Cruise Lines is a non-profit trade association based in Virginia that represents the interests of 16 cruise lines in the North American market. Its president, Michael Crye, told the British Broadcasting Company on Wednesday that despite terrorism's crippling effects on mass travel, he doesn’t believe Caribbean cruises will be severely impacted in the coming months.
"We anticipate that the ships that will be going from South Florida and San Juan to the Caribbean destinations should not be affected substantially," Crye said.
Because of the perception that the Caribbean is a traditionally friendly region, Crye said, American vacationers won’t be as averse to leaving home to go that route. And to circumvent the new fear of flying and the logistical complications of doing so, he said, two major cruise lines, Carnival and Royal Caribbean, will be setting sail from new "drive-up markets," such as Galveston and Houston in Texas, New Orleans and Tampa.
This approach, Crye said, will not only ease the need for cruise passengers to fly to their embarkation points and back, but also reduce the overall cost of a cruise because no airfare will be involved.
The Caribbean "will be one of the best vacations," Crye said.
Adding to the industry’s rosy picture for the region are recent capacity reports from major cruise lines. For departures Sept. 19-23, Carnival Corp. ships operated at an occupancy level of 97.7 percent, according to the company. During this period, the company's six fleets — Carnival, Holland America, Windstar, Seabourn, Costa and Cunard — carried a total of 58,718 guests.
"The strengthening in occupancy levels is very encouraging and clearly indicates that consumers are resuming their vacation plans, including returning to the airways," Carnival Corp. chairman Micky Arison said in a release. Despite the increased security at airports and seaports, he said, delays have been less than anticipated, and consumers are demonstrating a desire to begin traveling again.
"It's apparent that, based on these numbers, Americans are heeding the advice of our elected officials and returning to their normal activities, which includes taking vacations," Arison said.
Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. announced that occupancy on its Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises ships was 92 percent for Sept. 20-24. And it was 97 percent for the company’s seven-night Caribbean cruises, according to a company release.
"Concerns regarding the safety of traveling are easing on a daily basis," Richard Fain, chairman of Royal Caribbean Cruises, said. "We will do whatever we can as a company to speed that recovery."
That recovery is crucial to the Virgin Islands, particularly the St. Thomas-St. John district, where earlier projections envisioned 1.9 million passengers visiting this calendar year, with two million expected in 2002. Those passengers and the ships' crew pump $1.2 billion into the islands' economy, mainly in the retail and tour sectors.
On Tuesday, one cruise line halted all operations and filed for federal bankruptcy protection — but it was a company offering itineraries in the Mediterranean and the South Pacific, not in the Caribbean. Renaissance Cruises, a privately held firm based in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., operated eight ships.
It was the second indication this week that the Mediterranean and Asia's loss as a result of heightened security concerns may be the Caribbean's gain. On Monday, it was announced locally that the Norway, which had been scheduled to leave the Eastern Caribbean after two decades to begin service in Asia this winter, will instead return to the region for at least another year, continuing to call weekly at St. Thomas and St. John.
There are 719 cruise ship calls scheduled for St. Thomas-St. John this coming season, while St. Croix is expected to see about 110.
DOUMENG: HOTEL CANCELLATIONS ARE STAGGERING
Sept. 26, 2001 – A subdued and attentive luncheon crowd listened Wednesday as Richard Doumeng, president of the St. Thomas-St. John Hotel and Tourism Association, told them the stark facts of the territory's current tourism crisis.
"My talk was originally scheduled before Sept. 11 — and even at that time the situation was grim," Doumeng said. "I was prepared then to say we were experiencing the worst September and October in our history." The months are traditionally the slowest time of year for tourism in the territory.
"Today," he told his audience, the weekly meeting of Rotary II at Marriott Frenchman's Reef Beach Resort, "you could take all the tourists on St. Thomas and St. John and put them into the Reef's 500 rooms and probably have rooms left over."
Graphically describing the territory's plummeting economy since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the U.S. mainland, Doumeng said, "It's worse than a hurricane. It's devastating, but you can't see the devastation yet." Then, he added, "There are some who seem to refuse to admit there's something wrong.
"There is something wrong."
Doumeng said the emphasis right now within the territory's hospitality sector is on surviving the next 90 days. From an occupancy standpoint, "No hotel in the territory should be open now, but what would the message be if it got out that the V.I. hotels were closing?" he said.
In the last two weeks, at his property alone, he said, "We've had 500 room nights of cancellations. That's $60,000." He is the general manager of Bolongo Bay Beach Club and Villas, which is owned by his family. He and they have been in the hotel business on St. Thomas for more than two decades.
All told, "St. Thomas and St. John have received 23,000 room cancellations for September and October," he said. "That's 11,500 taxi rides, if the guests just use a taxi every other day." He added, "Some major properties on the island [of St. Thomas] could close."
And on St. Croix, he continued, the Divi Carina Bay Resort "had nine guests last night, out of 150 rooms."
Even in such dire straits, however, Doumeng was not without hope or suggested solutions. "The answer is partnering with the airlines and getting some temporary economic relief from the government," he said.
Last Friday, representatives of the territory's four major business associations, the two Chambers of Commerce and the two Hotel and Tourism Associations, took an emergency disaster relief proposal to the executive branch. On Wednesday morning, Doumeng told the Rotarians, representatives of the four groups had a follow-up meeting with Tourism Department officials and the administration's top financial officers. "It was a good cross-section," he said. "I'm more encouraged today than I was yesterday."
To date, no statements solidarity with or proposals of assistance for the territory's hospitality industry have been forthcoming from Government House, the Tourism Department or the Legislature. Gov. Charles W. Turnbull did not attend Friday's meeting and is in New York City this week.
Doumeng said those at Wednesday morning's meeting discussed getting some kind of a relief package from the government for the hotel industry. "We need some kind of tax relief, or a moratorium on WAPA payments," he said. "We're looking to people who hold our insurance policies and the banks who hold our mortgages."
On Friday, the business leaders proposed a four-month postponement on the payment WAPA bills and gross receipts taxes.
However, he noted, the government is bound by the $300 million bond indebtedness the administration took on two years ago to bail the territory out of an economic crisis. "Because of that, we can't waive taxes," he said.
"I'm not a finance guy," Doumeng continued, "but everything is tied up in the bond issue of the past. We have leveraged our future. It's trickier to do something now because of our bond obligations."
He expressed dismay at actions in the Legislature this week. On Tuesday, the body added an extra $2.8 million to the record $551 million Fiscal Year 2002 budget through overrides of earlier Turnbull vetoes. "Where do they think the money is coming from? When are they going to look at the numbers and see what they're doing?" he asked.
"Look at other governments all around the country. They're cutting back. And they're working together."
For the local private sector, working with the airlines to get people to the territory is "what we have to do," Doumeng said. "We have to locally find ways to help American Airlines and others to keep the flights we have coming into the territory."
It's still too soon after the terrorist attacks to start an aggressive marketing campaign, he said. But "when the time is appropriate, we will extend an offer to the rescue workers in New York to come to the territory. We will work with airline partners to try to finance 500 hotel rooms with 1,000 paid airline tickets."
While other Caribbean islands such as St. Kitts and Nevis have already announced such free stays to New York and Washington firefighters and police officers and their families, he said, they "aren't offering airfare. The difficulty is absorbing that cost. But we will do this, somehow."
Another initiative under consideration, he said, is an idea borrowed from the cruise lines, which offer passengers free airfare to their ports of embarkation. "They're great promotions," he said. "We'll do something similar. Say, if you book two passengers, the second one flies free, with the second one paid for by the government."
He said he has established a "dialogue" with Sen. Alicia "Chucky" Hansen, who chairs the Senate Finance Committee, and he hopes she will be receptive to the private sector's ideas.
"We've got to promote the infrastructure in the V.I.," Doumeng said. "There was a time when I got sick of hearing constantly 'America's Caribbean.' Now, we've got to use it. We have to show that the infrastructure is in place, we have the U.S. Coast Guard, we are a safe American destination."
After his speech, Doumeng was asked about Labor Commissioner Cecil Benjamin's public remarks to the effect of the hotels laying people off to take advantage of the mainland tragedy. Doumeng almost couldn't answer. "That is so profoundly beyond what is going on," he said. "Don't these people look around? The hotels are empty. It's certainly not a political move."
"My talk was originally scheduled before Sept. 11 — and even at that time the situation was grim," Doumeng said. "I was prepared then to say we were experiencing the worst September and October in our history." The months are traditionally the slowest time of year for tourism in the territory.
"Today," he told his audience, the weekly meeting of Rotary II at Marriott Frenchman's Reef Beach Resort, "you could take all the tourists on St. Thomas and St. John and put them into the Reef's 500 rooms and probably have rooms left over."
Graphically describing the territory's plummeting economy since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the U.S. mainland, Doumeng said, "It's worse than a hurricane. It's devastating, but you can't see the devastation yet." Then, he added, "There are some who seem to refuse to admit there's something wrong.
"There is something wrong."
Doumeng said the emphasis right now within the territory's hospitality sector is on surviving the next 90 days. From an occupancy standpoint, "No hotel in the territory should be open now, but what would the message be if it got out that the V.I. hotels were closing?" he said.
In the last two weeks, at his property alone, he said, "We've had 500 room nights of cancellations. That's $60,000." He is the general manager of Bolongo Bay Beach Club and Villas, which is owned by his family. He and they have been in the hotel business on St. Thomas for more than two decades.
All told, "St. Thomas and St. John have received 23,000 room cancellations for September and October," he said. "That's 11,500 taxi rides, if the guests just use a taxi every other day." He added, "Some major properties on the island [of St. Thomas] could close."
And on St. Croix, he continued, the Divi Carina Bay Resort "had nine guests last night, out of 150 rooms."
Even in such dire straits, however, Doumeng was not without hope or suggested solutions. "The answer is partnering with the airlines and getting some temporary economic relief from the government," he said.
Last Friday, representatives of the territory's four major business associations, the two Chambers of Commerce and the two Hotel and Tourism Associations, took an emergency disaster relief proposal to the executive branch. On Wednesday morning, Doumeng told the Rotarians, representatives of the four groups had a follow-up meeting with Tourism Department officials and the administration's top financial officers. "It was a good cross-section," he said. "I'm more encouraged today than I was yesterday."
To date, no statements solidarity with or proposals of assistance for the territory's hospitality industry have been forthcoming from Government House, the Tourism Department or the Legislature. Gov. Charles W. Turnbull did not attend Friday's meeting and is in New York City this week.
Doumeng said those at Wednesday morning's meeting discussed getting some kind of a relief package from the government for the hotel industry. "We need some kind of tax relief, or a moratorium on WAPA payments," he said. "We're looking to people who hold our insurance policies and the banks who hold our mortgages."
On Friday, the business leaders proposed a four-month postponement on the payment WAPA bills and gross receipts taxes.
However, he noted, the government is bound by the $300 million bond indebtedness the administration took on two years ago to bail the territory out of an economic crisis. "Because of that, we can't waive taxes," he said.
"I'm not a finance guy," Doumeng continued, "but everything is tied up in the bond issue of the past. We have leveraged our future. It's trickier to do something now because of our bond obligations."
He expressed dismay at actions in the Legislature this week. On Tuesday, the body added an extra $2.8 million to the record $551 million Fiscal Year 2002 budget through overrides of earlier Turnbull vetoes. "Where do they think the money is coming from? When are they going to look at the numbers and see what they're doing?" he asked.
"Look at other governments all around the country. They're cutting back. And they're working together."
For the local private sector, working with the airlines to get people to the territory is "what we have to do," Doumeng said. "We have to locally find ways to help American Airlines and others to keep the flights we have coming into the territory."
It's still too soon after the terrorist attacks to start an aggressive marketing campaign, he said. But "when the time is appropriate, we will extend an offer to the rescue workers in New York to come to the territory. We will work with airline partners to try to finance 500 hotel rooms with 1,000 paid airline tickets."
While other Caribbean islands such as St. Kitts and Nevis have already announced such free stays to New York and Washington firefighters and police officers and their families, he said, they "aren't offering airfare. The difficulty is absorbing that cost. But we will do this, somehow."
Another initiative under consideration, he said, is an idea borrowed from the cruise lines, which offer passengers free airfare to their ports of embarkation. "They're great promotions," he said. "We'll do something similar. Say, if you book two passengers, the second one flies free, with the second one paid for by the government."
He said he has established a "dialogue" with Sen. Alicia "Chucky" Hansen, who chairs the Senate Finance Committee, and he hopes she will be receptive to the private sector's ideas.
"We've got to promote the infrastructure in the V.I.," Doumeng said. "There was a time when I got sick of hearing constantly 'America's Caribbean.' Now, we've got to use it. We have to show that the infrastructure is in place, we have the U.S. Coast Guard, we are a safe American destination."
After his speech, Doumeng was asked about Labor Commissioner Cecil Benjamin's public remarks to the effect of the hotels laying people off to take advantage of the mainland tragedy. Doumeng almost couldn't answer. "That is so profoundly beyond what is going on," he said. "Don't these people look around? The hotels are empty. It's certainly not a political move."
CALVERT C. MARSH DIES ON ST. JOHN
Sept. 26. 2001 – Funeral arrangements are pending for Calvert C. Marsh, who died Monday on St. John. A native St. Johnian, he was 55.
Marsh, a building appraiser with the Tax Assessor's Office, started work in that agency in the 1970s. Before that, he worked as a police officer. "He was a dedicated worker. He was very soft spoken but firm," Tax Assessor Roy Martin said from his St. Thomas office.
Marsh's sister, Eglah Clendinen, said that her brother was always willing to bring the family together and to help people." He was a good, kind-hearted person," she said.
St. John resident Robert O'Connor recalled Marsh as a "regular guy." He said the two of them played baseball together and that Marsh served several times as president of the St. John Lions Club.
Longtime friend J. Brion Morrisette said that Marsh was a person who made the transition from the old St. John to the new. Born in Coral Bay, he grew up in a time when horses were the only land transportation from there to Cruz Bay.
"He had his feet in both worlds," Morrisette said, adding that his friend had the social graces typical of old-time St. Johnians, but the business skills needed for today's world.
As St. John moved into a tourism-based economy, Marsh became an entrepreneur, opening a restaurant called The Still on the Coral Bay waterfront. When the establishment closed, he leased the property, and Morrisette said he had recently converted part of it to short-term rental apartments. "He had wonderful business vision," Morrisette said.
Marsh is survived by his wife, Augusta Marsh; son David Marsh; daughter Liz Yvonne Tanner Marsh; brothers Kenneth and Meredith Marsh; sisters Eglah Clendenin, Myrine Hodge, Minerva Marsh Jacobs and Joan Marsh Krigger; and many other relatives and friends.
Funeral arrangements are by Creque's Funeral Home.
Marsh, a building appraiser with the Tax Assessor's Office, started work in that agency in the 1970s. Before that, he worked as a police officer. "He was a dedicated worker. He was very soft spoken but firm," Tax Assessor Roy Martin said from his St. Thomas office.
Marsh's sister, Eglah Clendinen, said that her brother was always willing to bring the family together and to help people." He was a good, kind-hearted person," she said.
St. John resident Robert O'Connor recalled Marsh as a "regular guy." He said the two of them played baseball together and that Marsh served several times as president of the St. John Lions Club.
Longtime friend J. Brion Morrisette said that Marsh was a person who made the transition from the old St. John to the new. Born in Coral Bay, he grew up in a time when horses were the only land transportation from there to Cruz Bay.
"He had his feet in both worlds," Morrisette said, adding that his friend had the social graces typical of old-time St. Johnians, but the business skills needed for today's world.
As St. John moved into a tourism-based economy, Marsh became an entrepreneur, opening a restaurant called The Still on the Coral Bay waterfront. When the establishment closed, he leased the property, and Morrisette said he had recently converted part of it to short-term rental apartments. "He had wonderful business vision," Morrisette said.
Marsh is survived by his wife, Augusta Marsh; son David Marsh; daughter Liz Yvonne Tanner Marsh; brothers Kenneth and Meredith Marsh; sisters Eglah Clendenin, Myrine Hodge, Minerva Marsh Jacobs and Joan Marsh Krigger; and many other relatives and friends.
Funeral arrangements are by Creque's Funeral Home.
TOURISM'S UNRETURNED CALLS MAY BE COSTLY
Sept. 26, 2001 – When her telephone rings with messages about exposure opportunities for the territory, Tourism Commissioner Pamela Richards doesn't call back, say two people who have been frustrated in their efforts to set up events on St. Thomas that could reach a wide audience of potential visitors.
"We need the enthusiastic endorsement of the Tourism Department," said Mike Gautreaux, who didn't get it.
Gautreaux hoped to film a segment of the Billfishing Xtreme Release League tournament here in August. But when Richards failed to call him back with a decision on the Tourism Department's help, he moved the segment to Tortola.
The tournament, filmed on location at five different sites, is in the midst of airing on ESPN. Each show lasts a half hour.
"The real benefit is that it repeats over and over," said Michael Bornn, a former acting Tourism commissioner, who made the initial contact with Gautreaux. Bornn said the people who watch such television shows come from all walks of life, and they are people who might book a trip to the Virgin Islands after seeing footage on television. "It lights their fire," he said.
Gautreaux said he started trying to work with Tourism in January on plans for the fishing tournament. He met once with Assistant Commissioner Monique Sibilly-Hodge in May, but when Richards failed to follow through with a decision by July, he changed the locale.
"I couldn't wait any more," he said, adding that the British Virgin Islands government was very receptive to his proposal.
He said that when he learned about the Tourism Department's dire financial straits from other sources, he was willing to cut a deal that called for three shows to air this year and three next year. While he needed $40,000 from the department to make it happen, the money could be paid after the start of the next fiscal year on Oct. 1. He said the money was needed for airline transportation and tournament expenses.
Gautreaux said he would love to shoot a fishing tournament segment on St. Thomas, but it will take cooperation from the Tourism Department to make it happen.
Nels Hawkinson is going ahead with plans to hold the University of the Virgin Islands Paradise Jam Men's and Women's Basketball Tournaments, but he's doing it with no help from the Tourism Department.
"They haven't even bothered to return one phone call," he said, adding that he called Richards at least six times.
He said this was especially bothersome given the state of the tourism industry since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
The tournaments will run Nov. 17-26. Eleven women's teams and six men's teams, all from mainland colleges, will play at the new UVI Sports and Fitness Center. Hawkinson said that video coverage of the games will air on television stations in the hometowns of the 17 teams. The areas include major markets from the East Coast to the central states.
"This is unbelievable advertising for the Virgin Islands," he said, adding that ESPN is touting the tournament.
Hawkinson said he wanted to do joint local marketing with Tourism in order to sell local tickets to the tournament games. And he hoped the department would help with finding donors of goods and services to help defray expenses.
Richards' response to the comments made by Hawkinson and Gautreaux would not surprise them. She didn't return a phone call to the Source, either.
"We need the enthusiastic endorsement of the Tourism Department," said Mike Gautreaux, who didn't get it.
Gautreaux hoped to film a segment of the Billfishing Xtreme Release League tournament here in August. But when Richards failed to call him back with a decision on the Tourism Department's help, he moved the segment to Tortola.
The tournament, filmed on location at five different sites, is in the midst of airing on ESPN. Each show lasts a half hour.
"The real benefit is that it repeats over and over," said Michael Bornn, a former acting Tourism commissioner, who made the initial contact with Gautreaux. Bornn said the people who watch such television shows come from all walks of life, and they are people who might book a trip to the Virgin Islands after seeing footage on television. "It lights their fire," he said.
Gautreaux said he started trying to work with Tourism in January on plans for the fishing tournament. He met once with Assistant Commissioner Monique Sibilly-Hodge in May, but when Richards failed to follow through with a decision by July, he changed the locale.
"I couldn't wait any more," he said, adding that the British Virgin Islands government was very receptive to his proposal.
He said that when he learned about the Tourism Department's dire financial straits from other sources, he was willing to cut a deal that called for three shows to air this year and three next year. While he needed $40,000 from the department to make it happen, the money could be paid after the start of the next fiscal year on Oct. 1. He said the money was needed for airline transportation and tournament expenses.
Gautreaux said he would love to shoot a fishing tournament segment on St. Thomas, but it will take cooperation from the Tourism Department to make it happen.
Nels Hawkinson is going ahead with plans to hold the University of the Virgin Islands Paradise Jam Men's and Women's Basketball Tournaments, but he's doing it with no help from the Tourism Department.
"They haven't even bothered to return one phone call," he said, adding that he called Richards at least six times.
He said this was especially bothersome given the state of the tourism industry since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
The tournaments will run Nov. 17-26. Eleven women's teams and six men's teams, all from mainland colleges, will play at the new UVI Sports and Fitness Center. Hawkinson said that video coverage of the games will air on television stations in the hometowns of the 17 teams. The areas include major markets from the East Coast to the central states.
"This is unbelievable advertising for the Virgin Islands," he said, adding that ESPN is touting the tournament.
Hawkinson said he wanted to do joint local marketing with Tourism in order to sell local tickets to the tournament games. And he hoped the department would help with finding donors of goods and services to help defray expenses.
Richards' response to the comments made by Hawkinson and Gautreaux would not surprise them. She didn't return a phone call to the Source, either.
TOURISM'S UNRETURNED CALLS MAY BE COSTLY
Sept. 26, 2001 – When her telephone rings with messages about exposure opportunities for the territory, Tourism Commissioner Pamela Richards doesn't call back, say two people who have been frustrated in their efforts to set up events on St. Thomas that could reach a wide audience of potential visitors.
"We need the enthusiastic endorsement of the Tourism Department," said Mike Gautreaux, who didn't get it.
Gautreaux hoped to film a segment of the Billfishing Xtreme Release League tournament here in August. But when Richards failed to call him back with a decision on the Tourism Department's help, he moved the segment to Tortola.
The tournament, filmed on location at five different sites, is in the midst of airing on ESPN. Each show lasts a half hour.
"The real benefit is that it repeats over and over," said Michael Bornn, a former acting Tourism commissioner, who made the initial contact with Gautreaux. Bornn said the people who watch such television shows come from all walks of life, and they are people who might book a trip to the Virgin Islands after seeing footage on television. "It lights their fire," he said.
Gautreaux said he started trying to work with Tourism in January on plans for the fishing tournament. He met once with Assistant Commissioner Monique Sibilly-Hodge in May, but when Richards failed to follow through with a decision by July, he changed the locale.
"I couldn't wait any more," he said, adding that the British Virgin Islands government was very receptive to his proposal.
He said that when he learned about the Tourism Department's dire financial straits from other sources, he was willing to cut a deal that called for three shows to air this year and three next year. While he needed $40,000 from the department to make it happen, the money could be paid after the start of the next fiscal year on Oct. 1. He said the money was needed for airline transportation and tournament expenses.
Gautreaux said he would love to shoot a fishing tournament segment on St. Thomas, but it will take cooperation from the Tourism Department to make it happen.
Nels Hawkinson is going ahead with plans to hold the University of the Virgin Islands Paradise Jam Men's and Women's Basketball Tournaments, but he's doing it with no help from the Tourism Department.
"They haven't even bothered to return one phone call," he said, adding that he called Richards at least six times.
He said this was especially bothersome given the state of the tourism industry since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
The tournaments will run Nov. 17-26. Eleven women's teams and six men's teams, all from mainland colleges, will play at the new UVI Sports and Fitness Center. Hawkinson said that video coverage of the games will air on television stations in the hometowns of the 17 teams. The areas include major markets from the East Coast to the central states.
"This is unbelievable advertising for the Virgin Islands," he said, adding that ESPN is touting the tournament.
Hawkinson said he wanted to do joint local marketing with Tourism in order to sell local tickets to the tournament games. And he hoped the department would help with finding donors of goods and services to help defray expenses.
Richards' response to the comments made by Hawkinson and Gautreaux would not surprise them. She didn't return a phone call to the Source, either.
"We need the enthusiastic endorsement of the Tourism Department," said Mike Gautreaux, who didn't get it.
Gautreaux hoped to film a segment of the Billfishing Xtreme Release League tournament here in August. But when Richards failed to call him back with a decision on the Tourism Department's help, he moved the segment to Tortola.
The tournament, filmed on location at five different sites, is in the midst of airing on ESPN. Each show lasts a half hour.
"The real benefit is that it repeats over and over," said Michael Bornn, a former acting Tourism commissioner, who made the initial contact with Gautreaux. Bornn said the people who watch such television shows come from all walks of life, and they are people who might book a trip to the Virgin Islands after seeing footage on television. "It lights their fire," he said.
Gautreaux said he started trying to work with Tourism in January on plans for the fishing tournament. He met once with Assistant Commissioner Monique Sibilly-Hodge in May, but when Richards failed to follow through with a decision by July, he changed the locale.
"I couldn't wait any more," he said, adding that the British Virgin Islands government was very receptive to his proposal.
He said that when he learned about the Tourism Department's dire financial straits from other sources, he was willing to cut a deal that called for three shows to air this year and three next year. While he needed $40,000 from the department to make it happen, the money could be paid after the start of the next fiscal year on Oct. 1. He said the money was needed for airline transportation and tournament expenses.
Gautreaux said he would love to shoot a fishing tournament segment on St. Thomas, but it will take cooperation from the Tourism Department to make it happen.
Nels Hawkinson is going ahead with plans to hold the University of the Virgin Islands Paradise Jam Men's and Women's Basketball Tournaments, but he's doing it with no help from the Tourism Department.
"They haven't even bothered to return one phone call," he said, adding that he called Richards at least six times.
He said this was especially bothersome given the state of the tourism industry since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
The tournaments will run Nov. 17-26. Eleven women's teams and six men's teams, all from mainland colleges, will play at the new UVI Sports and Fitness Center. Hawkinson said that video coverage of the games will air on television stations in the hometowns of the 17 teams. The areas include major markets from the East Coast to the central states.
"This is unbelievable advertising for the Virgin Islands," he said, adding that ESPN is touting the tournament.
Hawkinson said he wanted to do joint local marketing with Tourism in order to sell local tickets to the tournament games. And he hoped the department would help with finding donors of goods and services to help defray expenses.
Richards' response to the comments made by Hawkinson and Gautreaux would not surprise them. She didn't return a phone call to the Source, either.
FEDERAL GRANTS TO FIRE SERVICES NEAR $1M
Sept. 26, 2001 – V.I. firefighters received more good financial news, as the Federal Emergency Management Agency announced a new award of $415,754 to purchase firefighting equipment. Funds are for personal protective equipment, fire prevention programs, wellness and fitness programs, firefighting equipment and vehicles. V.I. Fire Services is among 158 fire departments to receive grants in the latest round of awards.
Two earlier FEMA awards totaling almost $500,000 for trucks and firefighting equipment were announced in August and early September. A U.S. Agriculture Department wildland grant of $138,000, to help with special problems of fighting fires in wild and rural areas, was announced last week. And Fire Services grants writer Donald Charles Sr. reports that a grant of $49,870 from the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department will go to retrofit the fireboat.
Charles is pleased with the success of grant applications and says the community will see the results in the coming months.
Delegate Donna Christian Christensen, in a release announcing the latest FEMA award, credited FEMA Region II officials with working with V.I. Fire Services to submit grant applications. "We have recently seen the importance that firefighters play in our communities," she said. "I am elated that they have been provided with this level of support."
Two earlier FEMA awards totaling almost $500,000 for trucks and firefighting equipment were announced in August and early September. A U.S. Agriculture Department wildland grant of $138,000, to help with special problems of fighting fires in wild and rural areas, was announced last week. And Fire Services grants writer Donald Charles Sr. reports that a grant of $49,870 from the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department will go to retrofit the fireboat.
Charles is pleased with the success of grant applications and says the community will see the results in the coming months.
Delegate Donna Christian Christensen, in a release announcing the latest FEMA award, credited FEMA Region II officials with working with V.I. Fire Services to submit grant applications. "We have recently seen the importance that firefighters play in our communities," she said. "I am elated that they have been provided with this level of support."
FEDERAL GRANTS TO FIRE SERVICES NEAR $1M
Sept. 26, 2001 – V.I. firefighters received more good financial news, as the Federal Emergency Management Agency announced a new award of $415,754 to purchase firefighting equipment. Funds are for personal protective equipment, fire prevention programs, wellness and fitness programs, firefighting equipment and vehicles. V.I. Fire Services is among 158 fire departments to receive grants in the latest round of awards.
Two earlier FEMA awards totaling almost $500,000 for trucks and firefighting equipment were announced in August and early September. A U.S. Agriculture Department wildland grant of $138,000, to help with special problems of fighting fires in wild and rural areas, was announced last week. And Fire Services grants writer Donald Charles Sr. reports that a grant of $49,870 from the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department will go to retrofit the fireboat.
Charles is pleased with the success of grant applications and says the community will see the results in the coming months.
Delegate Donna Christian Christensen, in a release announcing the latest FEMA award, credited FEMA Region II officials with working with V.I. Fire Services to submit grant applications. "We have recently seen the importance that firefighters play in our communities," she said. "I am elated that they have been provided with this level of support."
Two earlier FEMA awards totaling almost $500,000 for trucks and firefighting equipment were announced in August and early September. A U.S. Agriculture Department wildland grant of $138,000, to help with special problems of fighting fires in wild and rural areas, was announced last week. And Fire Services grants writer Donald Charles Sr. reports that a grant of $49,870 from the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Department will go to retrofit the fireboat.
Charles is pleased with the success of grant applications and says the community will see the results in the coming months.
Delegate Donna Christian Christensen, in a release announcing the latest FEMA award, credited FEMA Region II officials with working with V.I. Fire Services to submit grant applications. "We have recently seen the importance that firefighters play in our communities," she said. "I am elated that they have been provided with this level of support."
WOLF TRAP PRODUCTION SHOWS OFF ST. JOHN'S 'FACE'
Sept. 26, 2001 – The weekend before the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, St. John was the center of attention at a one-night event just outside the nation's capital that could have a positive impact in attracting visitors to the island for years to come.
While the dancers and musicians were the stars, the V.I. National Park served as the backdrop for the Sept. 8 "Face of America" performance at Wolf Trap, the only performing arts national park in the nation. Located in Vienna, Va., the facility is operated by the National Park Service and the Wolf Trap Foundation.
"It was pretty darn exciting," said V.I. National Park Supt. John King said.
Scenes shot on St. John in the spring were splashed across two large screens during live performances premiering new works by the dance troupes Donald Byrd/The Group and Ronald K. Browne/Evidence and jazz musician Steve Turre and his band Sanctified Shells. The program also featured a storyteller, Alice McGill, with tales based on Virgin Islands culture and a video presentation shot on St. John of a choreographed performance by members of the U.S. Olympic Synchronized Swim Team.
Those in attendance at the performance, King said, also included other park top brass, park staff, Friends of the Park staff, Friends members who live in the Washington area, former V.I. National Park Supt. Russ Berry and Delegate Donna Christian Christensen. They were in the company of some 3,300 other ticket holders, many of them likely candidates for a vacation in the Virgin Islands, King suggested.
"I can't help but believe this will influence their planning," he said.
A documentary on the making of the production may be in the works, Wolf Trap spokeswoman Danette Willis said. If it materializes, millions of people could be exposed to St. John's enticements. "We're trying to get a television series," Willis said.
Wolf Trap also plans to create a video using the footage shot on St. John. It will be shown at the National Park Visitor Center in Cruz Bay.
And while a picture of St. John scenery may be worth a thousand words, members of the national press corps and listeners to National Public Radio did hear about the performance, too, when Wolf Trap's director, Terrence D. Jones, spoke.
The St. John project was only the second for the "Face of America" series. The first, last year, focused on Yosemite National Park in California. Willis said Wolf Trap picked St. John's national park this time because, unlike Yosemite, it was one that few people had heard about.
Wolf Trap plans to continue its "Faces of America" series. "Just as our national parks showcase and preserve for future generations some of America's finest natural resources and places of cultural heritage, it is our unique role as America's national park for the performing arts to expand upon the artistic heritage with contemporary voices interpreting the world for future generations," Jones said in a press release.
He said the "Face of America" series supports the Wolf Trap park's commitment to the preservation of natural and cultural resources. It uses the performing arts to celebrate the diverse people, histories and landscapes that exist within America's national parks.
Sites announced to date for coming years are Kentucky's Mammoth Cave National Park in 2002, a three-site "Celebration of Flight" in 2003, three Hawaiian sites in 2004, the Southwest's Grand Canyon National Park in 2005 and Virginia's Shenandoah National Park in 2006.
One of the adjunct activities in connection with the development of this year's program was a contest to create a poster to promote the event. The winning entry, by Elizabeth Miles, a student at the Savannah College of Art and Design, is pictured here. Miles incorporated themes of the performances into her work, evoking the feel of the V.I. National Park and Coral Reefs National Monument on the island, the "Face of America" web site states.
Tourism Commissioner Pamela Richards did not return a telephone call requesting comment a about the program.
For more information about the Sept. 8 presentation and the series, see Wolf Trap's "Face of America" web site.
While the dancers and musicians were the stars, the V.I. National Park served as the backdrop for the Sept. 8 "Face of America" performance at Wolf Trap, the only performing arts national park in the nation. Located in Vienna, Va., the facility is operated by the National Park Service and the Wolf Trap Foundation.
"It was pretty darn exciting," said V.I. National Park Supt. John King said.
Scenes shot on St. John in the spring were splashed across two large screens during live performances premiering new works by the dance troupes Donald Byrd/The Group and Ronald K. Browne/Evidence and jazz musician Steve Turre and his band Sanctified Shells. The program also featured a storyteller, Alice McGill, with tales based on Virgin Islands culture and a video presentation shot on St. John of a choreographed performance by members of the U.S. Olympic Synchronized Swim Team.
Those in attendance at the performance, King said, also included other park top brass, park staff, Friends of the Park staff, Friends members who live in the Washington area, former V.I. National Park Supt. Russ Berry and Delegate Donna Christian Christensen. They were in the company of some 3,300 other ticket holders, many of them likely candidates for a vacation in the Virgin Islands, King suggested.
"I can't help but believe this will influence their planning," he said.
A documentary on the making of the production may be in the works, Wolf Trap spokeswoman Danette Willis said. If it materializes, millions of people could be exposed to St. John's enticements. "We're trying to get a television series," Willis said.
Wolf Trap also plans to create a video using the footage shot on St. John. It will be shown at the National Park Visitor Center in Cruz Bay.
And while a picture of St. John scenery may be worth a thousand words, members of the national press corps and listeners to National Public Radio did hear about the performance, too, when Wolf Trap's director, Terrence D. Jones, spoke.
The St. John project was only the second for the "Face of America" series. The first, last year, focused on Yosemite National Park in California. Willis said Wolf Trap picked St. John's national park this time because, unlike Yosemite, it was one that few people had heard about.
Wolf Trap plans to continue its "Faces of America" series. "Just as our national parks showcase and preserve for future generations some of America's finest natural resources and places of cultural heritage, it is our unique role as America's national park for the performing arts to expand upon the artistic heritage with contemporary voices interpreting the world for future generations," Jones said in a press release.
He said the "Face of America" series supports the Wolf Trap park's commitment to the preservation of natural and cultural resources. It uses the performing arts to celebrate the diverse people, histories and landscapes that exist within America's national parks.
Sites announced to date for coming years are Kentucky's Mammoth Cave National Park in 2002, a three-site "Celebration of Flight" in 2003, three Hawaiian sites in 2004, the Southwest's Grand Canyon National Park in 2005 and Virginia's Shenandoah National Park in 2006.
One of the adjunct activities in connection with the development of this year's program was a contest to create a poster to promote the event. The winning entry, by Elizabeth Miles, a student at the Savannah College of Art and Design, is pictured here. Miles incorporated themes of the performances into her work, evoking the feel of the V.I. National Park and Coral Reefs National Monument on the island, the "Face of America" web site states.
Tourism Commissioner Pamela Richards did not return a telephone call requesting comment a about the program.
For more information about the Sept. 8 presentation and the series, see Wolf Trap's "Face of America" web site.
JUDGE ROSS NOMINATED TO SECOND TERM
Sept. 26, 2001 – Territorial Court Judge Edgar D. Ross has been nominated to a second six-year term by Gov. Charles W. Turnbull.
Ross has served in several government positions during his legal career. He was Attorney General during the administration of Gov. Cyril E. King. He served as General Counsel of the Territorial Court, U.S. District Court Clerk/Magistrate, and Senior Sitting Judge of the Territorial Court. He was an elected member of the 20th Legislature. A Frederiksted native, Ross holds a law degree from Howard University School of Law.
Ross's term of office ends October 9, 2001. In transmitting the nomination to the Legislature, Turnbull said, "Your prompt confirmation will allow the Court to continue to meet its busy agenda without interruption."
Ross has served in several government positions during his legal career. He was Attorney General during the administration of Gov. Cyril E. King. He served as General Counsel of the Territorial Court, U.S. District Court Clerk/Magistrate, and Senior Sitting Judge of the Territorial Court. He was an elected member of the 20th Legislature. A Frederiksted native, Ross holds a law degree from Howard University School of Law.
Ross's term of office ends October 9, 2001. In transmitting the nomination to the Legislature, Turnbull said, "Your prompt confirmation will allow the Court to continue to meet its busy agenda without interruption."
SONY SUES ICC OVER CABLE-TV EQUIPMENT DEBT
Sept. 26, 2001 – Sony Broadcast Corp. has filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court on St. Thomas against ICC-TV and its parent company, Innovative Communication Corp., claiming that ICC has failed to make payments on about $5 million in broadcast equipment purchased in May 2000.
ICC-TV, or Innovative Cable TV, was formerly known as St. Thomas-St. John Cable TV and St. Croix Cable TV.
In the lawsuit, filed Sept. 14, Sony claims that it informed ICC that it was in default in August of this year, when ICC failed to make payments of $872,967 on the equipment.
The suit asks the court to order ICC to sell the equipment in order to pay off the debt, and to make other payments to make up any deficit that may remain.
ICC, owned by St. Croix businessman Jeffrey Prosser, has not yet filed legal papers in response to the lawsuit, but Holland Redfield II, the company's vice president for corporate affairs, said it is not unusual for a large company with many subsidiaries to get sued sometimes.
ICC also is the parent company of Innovative Telephone (the former V.I. Telephone Corp. — Vitelco), four other Caribbean cable companies; Innovative Wireless; and the Virgin Islands Daily News.
"Obviously, there are sometimes lawsuits and disputes. We get sued from time to time," Redfield said. "There is a disagreement, and we'll handle it in a court of law."
He declined to comment on any specifics of the matter, as the case is in litigation. But he noted that a lawsuit against a company should not be taken as a sign that the company could be having financial problems.
"A lawsuit doesn't mean a company's in trouble," he said, adding that ICC considers the outlook optimistic for its companies and for the overall economy of the Virgin Islands.
The lawsuit, filed by Gregory Hodges of the Dudley, Topper and Feuerzeig law firm, states that Sony entered into an agreement in May 2000 to sell ICC-TV two television production suites and two remote broadcast vans for about $5.1 million. The agreement was later modified to drop one of the vans and add a cancellation charge for that order, the suit states.
The agreement stipulated that Sony would hold a security interest in the equipment that was sold to ICC-TV, according to the lawsuit. ICC's failure to pay the principal owed on the equipment plus interest and other costs constitutes a default, Sony claims in its suit.
Redfield noted that any dispute has at least two sides to it, and that ICC had not had a chance to make a legal response to Sony's claims.
ICC-TV, or Innovative Cable TV, was formerly known as St. Thomas-St. John Cable TV and St. Croix Cable TV.
In the lawsuit, filed Sept. 14, Sony claims that it informed ICC that it was in default in August of this year, when ICC failed to make payments of $872,967 on the equipment.
The suit asks the court to order ICC to sell the equipment in order to pay off the debt, and to make other payments to make up any deficit that may remain.
ICC, owned by St. Croix businessman Jeffrey Prosser, has not yet filed legal papers in response to the lawsuit, but Holland Redfield II, the company's vice president for corporate affairs, said it is not unusual for a large company with many subsidiaries to get sued sometimes.
ICC also is the parent company of Innovative Telephone (the former V.I. Telephone Corp. — Vitelco), four other Caribbean cable companies; Innovative Wireless; and the Virgin Islands Daily News.
"Obviously, there are sometimes lawsuits and disputes. We get sued from time to time," Redfield said. "There is a disagreement, and we'll handle it in a court of law."
He declined to comment on any specifics of the matter, as the case is in litigation. But he noted that a lawsuit against a company should not be taken as a sign that the company could be having financial problems.
"A lawsuit doesn't mean a company's in trouble," he said, adding that ICC considers the outlook optimistic for its companies and for the overall economy of the Virgin Islands.
The lawsuit, filed by Gregory Hodges of the Dudley, Topper and Feuerzeig law firm, states that Sony entered into an agreement in May 2000 to sell ICC-TV two television production suites and two remote broadcast vans for about $5.1 million. The agreement was later modified to drop one of the vans and add a cancellation charge for that order, the suit states.
The agreement stipulated that Sony would hold a security interest in the equipment that was sold to ICC-TV, according to the lawsuit. ICC's failure to pay the principal owed on the equipment plus interest and other costs constitutes a default, Sony claims in its suit.
Redfield noted that any dispute has at least two sides to it, and that ICC had not had a chance to make a legal response to Sony's claims.
