Oct 23, 2024 | Island News
Advance Power LCC sought legislative approval of two leases that would allow the company to develop two alternative energy sites. Senators approved the $160 million investment for microgrids on St. Thomas and St. Croix; projects expected to offset 23% of territory’s fossil fuel use and create 150 jobs during construction phase according to the VI Consortium. The wind energy sites project has won Senate approval. It is part of the territory’s ongoing effort to create alternative and renewable energies to support our Water and Power Authority.
This proposed investment into the U.S. Virgin Islands could employ 150 people during the two year construction phase. For the full article, go to VI Consortium.
Oct 16, 2024 | Island News
Senator Samual Carrion, St. Croix, is working to write legislation to allow ride-sharing service to be licensed in the territory. The process will take some time. Ride-sharing, such as Uber and Lyft, is available in every U.S. state, but not in USVI. According to a recent St. Croix Source article, many people agree it would benefit residents, visitors, and the economy. The article also said One compelling reason in favor of ride-sharing is the lack of public transportation after 6 p.m., residents say. Taxi-vans do not run unless contracted by individuals for transportation. Workers cannot get home if they don’t have access to a vehicle. Visitors who want to see the island often say they don’t want to drive on the left side of the street or on two-lane roads littered with potholes. There have been reports of travelers stranded at the airports because visitors thought taxis or Uber would be available.
The article also said several people are setting up ride-sharing businesses, but have not actually begun operations. One company has already been providing the service.
Read the full article from St. Croix Source here.
For other stories about ride-sharing on St. Croix recently, check out:
VI Consortium’s May 2024 story about Digicab here.
WTJX’s September 2024 story here.
GoToStCroix’s Taxi & Rideshare page here.
Oct 16, 2024 | Island News
FEMA has announced a significant $3.2 billion investment in the U.S. Virgin Islands, with one of the most substantial projects being the island-wide road paving initiative in St. Croix according to the VI Consortium. $1.75 billion in funding is allocated to repair over 481 miles of roads, including the addition of ADA-compliant ramps, curbs, and culverts where required.
The article also said FEMA has allocated $1.25 billion to overhaul St. Croix’s potable water distribution system. This project will see the replacement of pump stations, water tanks, pipes, and fire hydrants in Christiansted and Frederiksted, modernizing the island’s water supply to meet current industry standards.
This is great news for St. Croix! There are additional projects such as electric metering replacement, upgrades to potable water and wastewater systems, and educational facility repairs. Read the full article here.
Photo courtesy of VI Consortium
Sep 16, 2024 | Island News
Thanks to the approval of a Coastal Zone Management permit on Tuesday, the once popular Hibiscus Beach Hotel on St. Croix, which was built in 1992, closed in 2009, and demolished in the 2017 hurricanes, will be resurrected over the next few years according to St. Croix Source. The article also reported that in the Coastal Zone Management report, upon on completion of all three phases of construction planned, the hotel will be transformed into a sophisticated and fashionable establishment which will feature all amenities associated with a boutique hotel including a bar, a gym, a restaurant, a large pool and 115 adequate parking spaces, The establishment will boast 103 guest rooms.
Christie and I remember going to the Hibiscus Hotel many years ago beginning when we first came to St. Croix in 2002. When the Hibiscus Hotel was in full operation there were meetings, events, good food, and drinks. We have very fond memories of the beach and the beachfront bar and restaurant. It was a great scene!
We know there are development details that need to be worked out about neighborhood impact, site drainage, runoff, and beach access for residents as highlighted in the article, but we wish the developers the best of luck!
Read the full article here.
Photo by Susan Ellis of St Croix Source.
Sep 9, 2024 | Island News
Coral propagation can happen in different conditions. According to the VI Daily News, despite the many factors in play, researchers can identify the windows in time when corals are most likely to release gametes. Over the past week, teams of Nature Conservancy divers scoured the waters off The Deep End and Cane Bay for those gametes while others monitored the corals at TNC’s Coral Innovation Hub in Estate Little Princess. The researchers found a smaller number of colonies than they hoped for. The effects of the bleaching event in fall of 2023 is still being felt. The recent slight yield followed another disappointing spawning season in May, when another brain coral species The Nature Conservancy monitors showed the effects of last fall’s severe bleaching and heating event. When corals bleach, they exhaust their food reserves and find themselves with little energy to procreate according to researchers.
While bleaching does occur naturally, warming oceans means it’s starting earlier, ending later and more intense, giving corals less opportunity to recover according to the researchers in the article. The Nature Conservancy’s St. Croix work — which this week included late nights diving in worm-ridden waters or peering over dimly-lit aquariums — is meant to restore coral reefs by, eventually, churning corals out at scale.
Read the full article about the researchers work here.
Photo by Kat Macavoy of VI Daily News
Aug 22, 2024 | Island News
Crucian Heritage and Nature Tourism Inc. (CHANT) has begun revitalization efforts of seven historic homes on Hospital Street on St Croix. CHANT is working with the property owners to renovate seven homes in the Free Gut area of Frederiksted that were originally built by freed slaves. These homes will be renovated into rental units as part of a preservation training program offered by CHANT. The nonprofit has provided educational and art programming as well as workforce development training to the island’s youth. The training is focused on preserving some of the wooden homes that are still standing on Hospital Street that were built by freed slaves during the Danish colonial era. The trainees learn woodworking, masonry, and other transferrable skills related to historic restoration and preservation. Read articles on WTJX here and on St. Croix Source here.
Photo from WTJX features trainees enrolled in a preservation training program offered by CHANT
