We’ve been away for a while on vacation. I’d hoped to return and blog about what a great time we had on Tortola and Anegada, but instead I feel the need to address the ludicrous decision made by the Coastal Zone Mismanagement Committee last week.

CZM denied a permit application to develop the Southgate Coastal Reserve submitted by the St. Croix Environmental Association (SEA). The CZM Committee voted to accept the CZM staff recommendation to deny the permit because it was “not consistent” with CZM regulations and policy. One has to wonder what is consistent with CZM’s regulations and policies. A study of previously approved permits would indicate that a complete lack of consideration for the environment and traditional uses of beachfront land is what CZM favors. SEA’s carefully considered plan to protect the rare wetland environment while allowing traditional family camping and other day uses of the property is clearly inconsistent with the CZM’s record.

Below is a copy of a letter I sent to CZM Commissioners after the public meeting in April, but prior to last weeks decision. Clearly, they couldn’t grasp the concepts, hopefully the general public will fair better.

Dear CZM Commissioners,

I attended the public meeting on Wednesday evening, May 2, regarding the development of Southgate Coastal Reserve proposed by the St. Croix Environmental Association (SEA). I was surprised by some of the testimony and questions. The objections to the proposed plan centered around three issues: not accommodating campers to their (the campers) satisfaction, controlling vehicle access, and the distance from the proposed parking lot to the beach.

SEA has spent the last six years studying the land donated to them in 2000 and 2001 and consulting, not only with experts, but with the public and recreational users of the land. They have not been working to circumvent, or change, Virgin Islands law to suit their needs and maximize profits for off-island investors, as have some would-be developers. Instead, they have been carefully crafting a plan to protect the natural environment and endangered wildlife on the property, as mandated by the Conservation Easement attached to the deeds of the land, while accommodating the widest possible use of the land for the enjoyment of all recreational users.

To my knowledge, the plan proposed by SEA is the first development of a major beach-front property in the history of the Virgin Islands to expressly accommodate, even encourage, the continuation of traditional public beach-side camping on the private property of the developing entity. There are only two projects that come close to the allowances SEA is proposing: The National Park campground at Cinnamon Bay and Maho Bay Camps on St. John. However, these campgrounds do not allow traditional camping “on the beach”, you must rent a tent site, tent, or cabin up the hillside from the beach. And guess what? You can’t drive up to your tent or park there. You have to park in a lot, often more than 600 feet from your cabin or tent, and haul your gear in.

On St. Croix there is no history of accommodating campers in development plans- not a single resort, hotel, condo or residential development has allowed camping on their property - nor have any current projects on the horizon have plans to accommodate campers, as far as I am aware. Had the condo development, planned for the Southgate property in the past, been built to completion, there is no doubt that camping would have been prohibited. But at the meeting Wednesday, some individuals would have had you believe that beach-side camping is now the sacred cow, and absolutely no restrictions should be placed on “traditional”camping.

The Environmental Assessment Report prepared by SEA, section 7.07 Recreational Use, states clearly, “At Southgate Coastal Reserve, SEA will endeavor to balance protection of wildlife, for whom this reserve was designated, with the need for natural recreation areas for the people of St. Croix. Camping will be accommodated to the extent that it is compatible with critical wildlife activity…SEA will provide fire rings, sanitary facilities and receptacles for trash disposal for those who wish to enjoy primitive camping.” Again, in accordance with its mandate to protect the wetlands area and wildlife of Southgate Coastal Reserve and to accommodate recreational use for all the people of St. Croix, SEA proposes to restrict some of the more recent, less “traditional” trends in beach-side camping that have a negative impact on the wetlands environment and the enjoyment of other recreational users.

To mandate that one group of users, campers, not be inconvenienced in ANY way, to the detriment of the wetlands, wildlife, and other users’ experience, is not only unfair and counter to the Conservation Easement of the deeds, but a violation of SEA’s rights as a property owner. The CZM committee made it clear that the decision of reasonable access is up to their sole discretion, but one would hope that discretion will be guided by the rule of law, precedence, and reason, not whim.

SEA has at no time to this date blocked access to the beach at Southgate (such as the VI Government did at Lindquist Beach on St. Thomas for more than a year) to either day users or campers and has no plans to do so. It has proposed to control vehicle access to the beach through its property. There will be a road available for emergency vehicles, handicap access, loading and unloading of equipment for special events, and maintenance. For the general public, there will be a parking lot and open unrestricted access to foot traffic 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. The Open Shorelines Act, Title 12, Section 402, declares the public, individually and collectively, has the right to use and enjoy the shorelines of the Virgin Islands. Nowhere does it guarantee the right of the public to “drive up to” and “park on” the shoreline, and the history of permitting by CZM bears this out. Where established access routes preceded development, developers of shoreline areas have been required to allow “dedicated access” and “reasonable parking”.

Let’s take a look at some of those developments. At Turner Hole in Grapetree Bay the Divi Carina Bay Resort provides a parking lot a couple hundred feet from the beach, across a street that vehicles have been known to use at excessive speeds. You can not drive down to the beach, park there, nor pitch a tent to camp on their property. At Davis Bay, the Carambola Beach Resort built a public parking area, the initial entrance to which is now closed due to driveway deterioration and petty crime in the lot, several hundred feet, up multiple stairways, from the beach. The lot now allocated to the public is over 1000 feet from the beach, all uphill, the last couple hundred feet of which are at a steep grade exceeding 10%. This is to the nearest point of the beach, to reach a place to safely enter the water is approximately 700 feet further. You can not drive up to, park on, or camp on the beach. The Buccaneer Resort controls all access to the beaches on their property, public access to the beach may be rented for $6 per day per person. No camping is allowed on the beaches. The beach at Tamarind Reef may be reached from a parking lot a couple hundred feet away, there is no camping allowed. I could go on, but these examples should suffice, to my knowledge, no shoreline development has ever been required to provide public parking directly on the beach.

And the developments on the horizon? Seasonal camping takes place at both Robin Bay and the beach running south of Sprat Hole on the West End. Have the developers of the Robin Bay or William and Punch projects allowed for the continuation of traditional (or modern) beach-side camping at those locations? Does the CZM intend to mandate unrestricted vehicle access, beach-side parking, and camping on those properties?

Finally, I’d like to put the issue of distance to “reasonable parking” in perspective.
Six hundred feet…….. SIX…..…HUNDRED…….FEET… Whew! Sounds like a lot. For comparison, the public meeting Wednesday, May 2, took place in the conference room, upstairs, at the Henry E. Rohlsen International Airport. Anyone who has been to the airport lately knows that all the closest spaces in the parking lot are reserved for TSA, other airport offices, and rental car agencies. The public must park in the furthest spaces. Therefore, nearly every one of the dozens of people at that meeting had to walk more than 600 feet, and up a flight of stairs, from their parked car to the conference room. I didn’t hear a single complaint from those in attendance regarding their walk to the meeting.

The Government parking lot in Christiansted is, to my knowledge, further than 600 feet from all VI Government offices located in Christiansted. So, if you work for a government office, or have business to attend to at a VI Government office in Christiansted and park in the government lot, you have to walk more than 600 feet to conduct said business.

SEA’s proposal of a parking lot 600 feet from the beach with dedicated unrestricted wheel-chair friendly level access falls somewhere in the middle, distance-wise, and on the easy end of the difficulty scale, of what has been considered “reasonable access” at all other beach-front developments in the Virgin Islands. It meets the requirements of the Conservation Easement on the deeds, helps to preserve and protect the wetlands and wildlife of the Southgate Coastal Reserve, and does not impose an undue hardship on any recreational users, nor interfere with “traditional” beach-side camping. If anything, it enhances the “traditional” aspects of camping by restricting the modern non-traditional trends. If beach-side camping is at risk in the Virgin Islands, the camping crusaders would be wise to focus on developments planned for Robin Bay and Sprat Hole Beach. With the persistent pro-development climate, Southgate beach may well become the last place to experience traditional family beach-side camping on St. Croix, thanks to the generosity of an anonymous donor, the stewardship of the St. Croix Environmental Association, and the consideration and forethought of the St. Croix CZM committee in allowing SEA to manage the property in a way that will benefit ALL the people of St. Croix for generations to come.

Sincerely,

Michael Dance
Sally’s Fancy, St. Croix

As far as I know St. Croix has not had a “Brand Name” hotel or resort since RockResorts was sold off in 1986. It appears thats about to change. Last year we reported the possibility that Marriot Corporation might be flagging the Carambola Beach Resort. It turns out Carambola will be managed under Marriots Renaissance flag - remember you heard it here first

Now the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, which operates Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut, has a majority interest in the William and Punch resort project north of Frederiksted. The Foxwood name will go a long way in pushing the project forward as well as bringing tourists to the Big Islands if/when the resort opens.

Despite rejection of his provisional casino license extension, Curtis Robinson is determined to build his Seven Hills Resort at Robin Bay. Purchase of the property on St. Croix’s south shore was allegedly finalized a few months ago and rumor is Sheraton may be flagging the future resort.

Then there is Golden. It was 29 days ago we last heard from Paul Golden, when he promised we’d know in 30 days which major chain would manage his planned resort. But don’t hold your breathe, its been over 1460 days since we were first told by the Golden crowd that the news would come within 30 days. And its been nearly six years they’ve been “putting the final touches” on the $125 million financing. Keep dreaming Paul!

If there’s one thing that irritates me (OK, there are a few things that irk me, but this is near the top of the list), its when I hear “There’s nothing to do on St. Croix”. Whether its Cruise Industry excuses, St. Thomians dissin’ the Big Island, or travel writing whiners repeating schlock without ever having visited, it drives me nuts.

For the naysayers, here’s our social report for the last two weeks. In my renewed blogging zeal I’ve already posted about a few of these tings and intended to write up all of them (and still might), but I just keep getting farther behind - too busy doing to write! So here’s the abridged version:

Monday, April 30 Dinner at [tag]Tuttu Bene[/tag] with Peter and Heike before Heike left for Germany visit.

Wednesday, May 2 Coastal Zone Management public meeting regarding [tag]St. Croix Environmental Association[/tag]’s proposed development of the [tag]Southgate Coastal Reserve[/tag] at Southgate beach and wetland area. Check back here for my letter to CZM regarding questions raised at this meeting.

Thursday, May 3 Sushi at the [tag]Deck Bar[/tag] - outdoors, overlooking [tag]Christiansted[/tag] harbor, Maggie serves up great sashimi and rolls. You can’t find fresher fish anywhere, the boats are docked right in front of you. Art Thursday - Christiansted Gallery Walk.

A Mocko Jumbie greets
revelers at Christiansted Jump Up.
Mocko Jumbie dem are
“false spirits”, people dressed up
as gods or spirits that “bless” events
by scaring away evil spirits.

Friday, May 4 Triathlon [tag]Jump-Up[/tag], Christiansted. A downtown block party covering about six square blocks (nearly all of C’sted). Music, dancing, [tag]Mocko Jumbies[/tag], steel pan, lobster kabobs, and limin’ in the streets. Meet new friends or catch up with ones you haven’t seen in months - young, old, residents, visitors - everybody is out at Jump Up. Served four times a year: February Valentines (or Terry’s Birthday, May Triathlon, July 4th, and December (sometimes late November) Pre-Christmas.

Lately, island favorite [tag]Kurt Schindler[/tag] has been performing his music magic in the Caravelle Arcade courtyard outside Caravelle Cafe (formerly Cafe Society, formerly de Bean Mon). He was there rockin’ away to a large and appreciative crowd Friday night.

Cinco de Mayo, Saturday, May 5 Finfolk [tag]Ocean Swim[/tag]. I think the scheduled swim was from one west end beach to another, but a small group of renegade non-triathlon participants met for a Cane Bay to Carambola beach route. The conditions were too perfect, so we opted to swim west from Carambola to [tag]Annaly Bay[/tag] and back. Visibility was great, I’ve never seen such calm waters at the western Davis Bay entry. Not too many spectacularly exotic species this trip, but we did see one small hawksbill turtle and a huge school of good sized bait fish of some type and the coral is this area is some of the healthiest around the island.

Dinner at [tag]Cafe Kaleidoscope[/tag] (at the former Southshore cafe location) before cross-island trek to see [tag]From Page to Stage[/tag] production of Hate Mail at the Good Hope School’s Savage Theater.

There were various Cinco de Mayo events around the island, but we didn’t get to any, just too much to do!

Sunday, May 6 [tag]St. Croix Ironman 70.3[/tag] (formerly St. Croix Half Ironman formerly St. Croix International Triathlon). Beginning in 1988 as an alternative off-season tourist attraction, the “little triathlon that could” has grown into a major international sporting event. Pros and challengers come from all over the world in an attempt to conquer “[tag]Beauty and the Beast[/tag]“. The triathlon is now a qualifying event for the Ironman World Championship (Kona, Hawaii), the Ironman USA (Lake Placid, NY) and Ironman Canada. We didn’t go this year, it came to us! Nearly every year, for the past six or more, Terry, myself, or both of us, have volunteered our massage skills to suffering triathletes down in the massage tent in the transition area. This year we took a break, took our dogs for walks and watched the competitors bike past once… twice… three times - the 56 mile bike loop(s) covers nearly the entire island and passes our little road 3 times, twice one way, once the other.

Monday and Tuesday, May 7-8 We caught our breathe and caught up on domestic things (riiiiiggggghhhht… well we tried, a little)

Wednesday, May 9 Dinner at the Deep End - Farewell to Peter, he’s headed for Germany and Paris vacation early next morning.

Thursday, May 10 Up at the crack of dawn, or a little before, to get Peter out to the airport for a 6:45 am flight - Incredibly, there are actually American Eagle employees behind the counter and a long line of travelers already checking in at 5:30 am, I didn’t figure they’d even open the airport before 6:00! I mean, nobody comes here right?

Thursday [tag]Luncheria[/tag] Night! We’ve become Thursday night regulars meeting our Land Rover Guru, Dave, his wife Michele, and their assorted (or is that sordid) friends.

Friday, May 11 After giving a couples massage on the beach in front of Sand Castle on the Beach in Frederiksted, we’ve got a few hours before next appointment. We enjoyed a snorkel/swim from Sand Castle south past Cottages by the Sea and the condo complex toward the public pool. A big barracuda passed us at a good clip, which can be a little worrisome. Usually they drift lazily along near schools of lunch. What was he after, or what was behind him?? Nothing scary turned up. Terry saw a small sea snake or eel, but I missed it.

Having worked up an appetite, we lunched at the [tag]Beachside Cafe[/tag] at Sand Castle. Terry started with french onion soup and followed up with a hummus platter. I had a cuban sandwich. The soup broth was thicker than usual and a little sweet. The hummus was “boring”, according to Terry. The cuban was alright, but pickle was on the side, not in it (carmelized onions in it instead) and though warm, it wasn’t press grilled the way I’m used to. I popped the pickle inside, and it was pretty good. All in all, not much to “blog about”. However, service was decent and the view is to die for.

Finished the day at [tag]Caribbean Community Theater[/tag]’s opening night performance of Niel Simon’s The Odd Couple. This is the final show of the regular season. All the cast were great, but Michael Armendariz and Lionel Downer were terrific as Felix and Oscar. And we enjoyed opening night champagne and cake with the cast after the show.

Photo © Dive Experience

Saturday, May 12 Now that the waters have warmed up and our season is slowing down we were able to join the finfolk for a second week in a row. The scheduled swim, from Robin Bay (Lobsta’ Shack) beach across Great Pond Bay to Howard Wall Boyscout Camp, was aborted again, this time due to Portuguese Man-o-War jellyfish sightings on the south shore during the previous week. Getting stung by jellyfish half-way through a 2 mile swim - Not Fun. We relocated to [tag]Tamarind Reef Beach[/tag] for a ’round Green Cay swim on the north east shore instead. Like last weeks swim at Davis Bay, this was the calmest water most of these veteran swimmers had seen for this swim. Ray Lutz spotted a couple [tag]Spotted Eagle Ray[/tag]s on the way over and again on the way back - it was a see Ray see sea rays kinda swim. No turtles this time.

Since we were right there, we stayed for breakfast at the [tag]Deep End Bar and Grille[/tag]. Its hard to screw up simple breakfasts, but special orders can be a different thing. Our dining companion eschews all foods yellow (or at least yellow dairy items) and ordered an egg-white only veggie omelette with white cheese. The Deep End kitchen came through with flying colors (or would that be flying colorless) and served up the omlette as ordered. We were also able to pick up a cube (4-5 gallons) of used veggie fryer oil for our Veggie Rover Biofuel Project. For the record, we’ve collected Waste Vegetable Oil from several area restaurants and the oil from The Deep End is consistently the cleanest oil we’ve collected. That can really tell you something about how a place keeps its kitchen.

We’re making a good attempt to get back on our massage-a-week (or every other week) program. I got a massage from Terry last week, so she got one today.

Mother’s Day, Sunday, May 13 We had a lazy morning, then joined Terry’s daughter, Nicole, her boyfriend, Ian, and our friend Meredith for Brunch at [tag]Duggan’s Reef[/tag] out at Teague Bay. Our server started off a little scattered and nervous, but made a strong finish offering Meredith extra chocolate muffins to go. BTW, Meredith treated us all to brunch, so she deserved them. Thanks Meredith!

I got another massage from Terry - only a week apart, we’re on a roll. Though she readily admits it was only to speed up the queue to her next massage
Finished up Mother’s Day at [tag]The Terrace Restaurant[/tag] at The Buccaneer. I haven’t dined here since I used to manage their spa and was hosting a spa journalist. The view from the Terrace toward Christiansted and the harbor is unbelievable, hands down the best evening dining panorama on island. The sunset tonight wasn’t impressive, but the view still rocked. The food was fantastic, the service less consistent.

So there’s our two week round up. Keep in mind, this is after Easter, almost half-way through May, season is well into the downhill slide, but there is still too much to do. When season is in full swing every week-end (Wednesday through Sunday) is so chock full of events you have to really pick your favorites and abandon 2 or 3 per night. There’s no way to keep up with everything that’s going on.

Photo ©
Anchor Dive Center
Courtesy of
GotoStCroix.com

I’ve been in the islands for eight years, five on St. Croix. With all there is to do here, there’s still a list of things I haven’t gotten to. I haven’t dived “The Wall” off the north shore (I’ve snorkeled over it, but not dived. Come to think of it, I haven’t scuba dived yet - neither wall nor wreck, nothing. I haven’t learned to wind-surf ( I did take a lesson one day when camping at Maho Bay in St. John before moving here). I haven’t learned to kite surf ( again, took one lesson on St. Thomas one day, but there are folks here that can teach you to do it right from the beach, rather than take you out to the middle of a bay in a dinghy and try to drown you for an hour). I haven’t hiked even a fraction of the ruins on island with the St. Croix Landmarks Society Ruins Rambles. I haven’t gone horseback riding.

Photo © St. Croix
Landmarks Society

I haven’t been to the Lawaetz Family Museum at Little La Grange. I haven’t toured Fort Christiansvaern in the [tag]Christiansted National Historic Site[/tag], (I’ve been in Fort Frederik, in Frederiksted, volunteering for an art charity function, and had a chance to look around). I hadn’t even heard of the Estate Mt. Washington self-guided tour until just now (I chanced upon the listing in St. Croix This Week while looking up how to spell Lawaetz), so I’m sure there is plenty more to do that I’m not even aware of.

I invite those who claim there is nothing to do on St. Croix to come see for themselves and tell me that again… just as soon as they’ve finished doing all there is to do. See you next century!

St. Croix -

Naysayers -

Lately, Thursday night has become Luncheria night (more on that later), but this Thursday was special - the last [tag]Art Thursday[/tag] of the season. For three or four years now [tag]Christiansted[/tag] galleries and other businesses have been staying open late, and restaurants offering specials, for gallery-goers on the first Thursday of the month, November through May. Many of the participating galleries schedule special openings or shows for Art Thursday, offering wine and cheese and an opportunity for St. Croix’s art-lovers to get together and enjoy the wide array of talented local and visiting artists.

Untitled ~ Christina Frederick Gasperi,
Wayfindings at Maufe Gallery.

- Photo by Michael Dance

After some delicious sushi at the Deck Bar, we headed up Queen Cross St. mingling with friends and fellow art aficionados. Appropriately, we found our way to [tag]Maufe Gallery[/tag] and [tag]Christina Frederick Gasperi[/tag]’s opening “Wayfindings”. Christina describes wayfindings as the process by which we find our path through a combination of observation and intuition. There were some powerful pieces, most composed on driftwood or weathered barn boards and fence wood. My favorite was a composition of weathered cattle skulls, covering most of one wall, positioned in the shape of an angel, or possibly a cross. The piece was untitled, so let the viewer decide. From across the room, I could have sworn they were sections of actual skulls, but closer examination showed they were all painted on, you guessed it, wood. Other pieces were reminiscent of hand-painted signs on the sides of buildings, very much like what you might find around some corner on St. Croix, or elsewhere in the islands.

Christina’s show will be up until May 24th, she’s considering a “closing” sometime before the show actually comes down. Following her at Maufe will be [tag]Nii Ahene[/tag], an African artist now on St. Croix. Ahene’s multi-media work will be split between Maufe and [tag]Walsh Metal Works Gallery[/tag]. The opening at Walsh is scheduled for Friday, May 25, followed on Saturday, May 26, by the opening at Maufe.

Other Galleries and Shops participating in this years Art Thursday include: Whim Museum Store, IB Designs, The Goldworker, Maria Henle Studio, Danica Art Gallery, Yellow House Gallery, D&D Studio, Crucian Gold, and Twin City Coffee House and Gallery. The [tag]Christiansted Gallery Walk[/tag] will resume in the Fall on the first Thursday in November.

We hadn’t been to Tuttu in some time, so when Peter invited us, we couldn’t say no. For those who’ve not been on the island in a few years, downtown [tag]Christiansted[/tag]’s perennial favorite [tag]Tuttu Bene[/tag] has moved to new digs. They built a new place just east of town (about 3 blocks), its upstairs, but there’s a handicap accessible elevator. Same great food, still great service, but a larger custom designed kitchen and larger dining room. Yes, they’ve left the small kitchen and small dining space behind, so you can usually get a table when you want (though the new place filled quickly) and the kitchen staff can get the food out in reasonable time, even when crowded.

Unfortunately, despite obvious efforts with sound baffling on the ceiling, they couldn’t get away from the over-whelming acoustics. The noise can add to the lively atmosphere, but some patrons may find it hard to bear.

Our gracious hostess Jessica seated us in the corner just inside the door to the right, our own private little nook, for a while. It was pleasant and not too noisy there. We would have preferred the tables out on the veranda, but some unseasonably strong showers had left everything outdoors, even under cover, dripping, so we were encouraged to stay inside.

We started with a Taste of Tuttu Platter to share. Its practically a meal for four. There are a couple of Tuttu’s famous whole roasted garlic bulbs and crostinis, assorted olives, goat cheese, pepperchini, prosciutto, sausage, salami, some kind of confit, and I’m probably forgetting more goodies than I remember. Then Terry and I shared Tuttu’s signature Misto Salad and a fish special, fresh pan-seared rare wahoo with pineapple salsa over rice and baby veggies. I’d never had wahoo rare, but boy was it good - melted in your mouth like buttah. Peter and Heike had a shrimpy night, sharing a salad special, grilled shrimp over organic baby greens from our local [tag]Southgate Farms[/tag] and shrimp and roasted red peppers in a Gorgonzola cream sauce over pasta. Everything was delicious. After decimating the Taste of Tuttu, we couldn’t finish our meals, but somehow found room to share a Tiramisu and complimentary [tag]Sambuca con mosca[/tag], literally “Sambuca with flies” (three espresso beans representing health, wealth and happiness), an enduring Tuttu tradition.

Pros: Great food, lively atmosphere, friendly staff

Cons: a little loud, no longer right downtown on Company Street

Overall:

[tags]restaurant[/tags]

Its way past time to post about this adventure (experiment?) of ours.

In a nutshell, we’re working toward turning this:

…into this:

…to fuel these:

[tags]Biodiesel, WVO, SVO, Land Rover, Biofuels[/tags]

Note: I’m back. To get things rolling again, I’ve included a reprint of a letter I wrote to the editor of the St. Croix Avis. It appeared in the Sunday-Monday, September 24-25 edition:

All that glitters is not gold. In response to the editorial, “Silver lining”, published in the St. Croix Avis Wednesday, September 13, I’d like to discuss the myriad problems with the Golden Gaming project. The roadblocks encountered by Golden Resorts are not so much a testament to the difficulty of development on the big island as they are a testament to the disregard and contempt that Paul Golden and Golden Resorts has shown for Virgin Islands law, residents and environment.

The original CZM permit was granted because of a misunderstanding by the CZM board, then upheld on a technicality, despite glaring faults and against the recommendation of the CZM staff. It’s contrary to a covenant and restriction for the land in question, limiting development to 4 stories or less, that has been included in the VI code, so until the law is changed, the current permit is illegal. The new permit request is asking to allow buildings up to 8 stories, exceeding the limits set forth by the covenants and restrictions by 4 stories, as well as the limit of 6 stories set forth in the Casino Control Act. So the new permit, if granted, would violate two different sets of VI Code. Golden Resorts response to this is that they will deal with the various illegalities later. First they just want to get the permit for the height increase. If it is illegal for a blind man to operate a motor vehicle, would it make sense to grant him a license to drive today, based on the possibility he may succeed in changing the law in the future? I don’t think so.

Supporters of the project always bring up the same two issues, jobs and tourist development. Like most critics of this project, I agree St. Croix could use more jobs, more economic development and more tourists. However, Great Pond is not the place for it. Has Mr. Golden ever gone swimming at the Great Pond Bay beach? Has he ever seen anyone swimming at the beach nearest to where he wants to build this monstrosity? Does anyone who lives on St. Croix ever go down to the west end of the Great Pond beach to go swimming? No. Why? Because it’s a terrible beach for swimming or bathing, arguably one of the worst on St. Croix.

I have been swimming in that bay and up to that beach. Far out in the bay it’s beautiful. The water is clear. There is sand and sea grass. You can see sea turtles, spotted eagle rays, sting rays, queen conch, on occasion, a shark. As you get closer to the beach you get bogged down with seaweed, silt, and muck. It is the messiest, smelliest beach to exit from a swim. In short, it’s fantastic for marine wildlife, terrible for tourists. Golden Resorts never mentions this. What are they going to do after they’ve built this massive casino hotel complex and no one wants to stay there? The beach will be muddy and mucky and covered with smelly seaweed. Wonderful southeast sea breezes will be blowing the sulfurous smell of the salt pond through the resort day and night – a Tropical Paradise! Where will the tourists be then? And where will the jobs be? Of course, by then, the VI Government will have spent $30 million from the taxpayers pockets to build a convention center no one want to use and Paul Golden will have spent all those millions of his investors dollars. Those will be the arguments used to justify dredging Great Pond Bay, trucking in sand, and further destroying this fragile ecosystem. What hasn’t yet been ruined by the silt run-off, noise and pollution of construction, choked from the algal bloom resulting from golf course pesticide and fertilizer run-off, will be dredged up or covered over, in the name of progress. By then, all that is now beautiful about the Great Pond will be gone. Our inheritance will be a carbon copy resort on an empty smelly beach and another casino that draws more local dollars out of the community that it does tourists to the territory.

There are some worthy development projects on the drawing boards for St. Croix. This is not one of them. I think Golden should be given a hearty slap on the behind and sent packing. It’s time to pull the plug on the Golden Resorts project. The re-zoning permit should be denied, the convention center should be partnered with another project, or with one of our existing resorts that already provide jobs in the community. The only silver lining here is that others might learn to take better care in choosing a location and planning their developments.

Don’t be Golden’s fool – protect Great Pond Bay.

Its a Miracle!
Our Miracle Fruit Seedling
begins to grow.

On our recent trip to the rainforest Terry and I took a quick tour of Robin’s Organic fruit tree farm, perched precariously on the steep uphill side of the road. After climbing several hundred feet up to his rental eco-cabin and back down to his house, we were rewarded with fresh fruit and some rare treats.

First we sampled sprouted coconut, the light airy “puffed up” insides of a coconut that has recently sprouted. I’m not a big fan of those dry flakey white shavings that are sprinkled on cakes and whatnot, but this stuff was really good. The big surprise was still to come.

Just to set us up, Robin had us try some sour grapefruit, and some limon. They were tasty, but certainly puckered your mouth. Then we each tried a small unremarkable red fruit about the size of a cherry that hadn’t quite reached maturity. It didn’t really taste like much of anything, and hardly had any meat on it. We pretty much sucked on the single seed. After this, we tried the grapefruit and limon again. Unbelievable! I’ve never tasted lemonade sweeter than this unadulterated limon.

The shriveled little berry from Africa turns out to be remarkable after all. Called The Miracle Fruit, it’s filled with molecules that block sour taste receptors. For an hour after eating one, you can taste all the natural sugars in otherwise sour fruits, beverages, or other dishes, but nothing sour.

We smuggled home two magic seeds, taking care to wash off any saliva that might hinder germination, planted them in little pots and waited. Eventually we had to stop holding our breath. After a couple weeks, still nothing. We got worried. Maybe we’d buried our miracle beans too deep. I started slowly escavating the top layers of potting soil. A tiny leafless stem appeared, maybe all was not lost! A few days later now, our miracle fruit tree has a few open leaves and is stretching toward the sun. The second one still hasn’t germinated, but we haven’t given up hope. And hey, Jack only needed one beanstalk, right!

Tags: St. Croix
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