A crowd of about 30 people gathered under the trees near Shed 4 at Magens Bay Beach Saturday morning, with many more attending online, for a community meeting of the Friends of Fairchild at Magens Bay, a nonprofit formed to protect, preserve and promote the natural resources of the park that was gifted to the people of the Virgin Islands by Arthur S. Fairchild in 1947.
Top of mind for all in attendance was a recent proposal for a “glamping” operation at the beach, which local businessman Kyle Sexius presented last month at a meeting of the Magens Bay Authority board that governs the property as well as Smith Bay Park on the East End of St. Thomas.
According to his presentation, Sexius would start with about 15 to 20 dome-style tents secured to wooden platforms, ranging in size from 10 by 10 to 20 by 20 feet, nestled off trails in the woods across from the beach. Smaller units would have a shared bath — an environmentally friendly shower, sink and toilet — while the larger ones would have private amenities. In the event of a storm, everything could be removed, said Sexius, adding there would be 24-hour security.
Sexius — who is working on a similar proposal on private land at Neltjeberg beach on the North Side of St. Thomas that he has declined to discuss with the Source just yet — presented the board with booklets outlining his plans with renderings but would not share one with the media, saying everything is still preliminary and proprietary.
While the board was receptive to his proposal, they also cautioned that layers of approval would be required, including from fire, police and Department of Planning and Natural Resources officials. Additionally, when Arthur Fairchild deeded Magens Bay to the people of the Virgin Islands for use as a park, he stipulated that no hotels be built. The worry is that “people will say we are allowing a hotel to be built,” board Chairperson Barbara Petersen told Sexius, even though the structures would not be permanent.
Because his plans are still preliminary, Petersen told Sexius to keep in touch with General Manager Monique Simon, who will update the board and can arrange any future meetings on the proposal.
For those at Saturday’s Friends meeting, the question was why the board would entertain the proposal at all, they said, when it is clearly against Fairchild’s intent that the land be preserved for “use of the people of the Virgin Islands in perpetuity without discrimination of any kind as to race, color, creed, or natural origin.”
One attendee whose family goes back generations and claims indigenous ancestry, said she has seen the glamping operation being constructed at Neltjeberg, and “if that’s what he plans for here it can’t go! Can’t go! We can’t let that happen here, this is ours,” she said to a round of applause.
“We are on pins and needles because every time we turn around something new is proposed,” said another attendee. “Will the public ever be heard?” said another.
With more questions than there currently are answers about the glamping proposal, discussion turned to the seven-member board and how it operates, with many saying there needs to be more transparency, especially around who gets to serve and how decisions are made. They also called for the board to hold more town hall meetings to hear feedback from the public they serve.
The Magens Bay Authority is a self-funded semi-autonomous agency, and while the board issued a request for resumes from interested applicants when longtime member Elliott “Mac” Davis died in September 2021, it is not required to do so under its bylaws and in fact chose Jason Charles to replace Davis on the recommendation of the governor, Petersen said when asked about the process last year when the board voted 4-3 to oust long-serving member Katina Coulianos.
Charles is also chair of the West Indian Company Limited and worked for the Economic Development Authority and Alpine Securities before joining Southland Gaming as a marketing executive. Last September, Assistant Tourism Commissioner Alani Henneman was chosen to replace Coulianos.
The bylaws are, and continue to be, the controlling authority regarding the nomination and vote of new members to the board, Petersen said at the time. “There is no provision which compels a specific process for placing the names of persons in nomination for service on the board of directors.”
For many at Saturday’s meeting, that’s a heavy concentration of members connected to the government and tourism. Also serving on the board are former first lady Cecile de Jongh, Dayle Barry and Robert Moron, who has shepherded the park’s Hurricane Irma rebuilding through an onerous approval process. Island Administrator Kevin Rodriguez is the governor’s representative.
General Manager Simon dropped by the meeting while working Saturday and sought to reassure the gathering that “it’s the people’s beach. No way, no how is the Magens Bay Authority going to do something to disrupt nature.”
At the same time, “it takes a lot of time and money to run the beach, and manpower,” so there are some commercial operations, she said, such as the restaurant and bar, gift shop, chair rentals and paid activities such as paddleboarding, kayaking and sandcastle-building.
But just because somebody brings a proposal to the board “doesn’t mean it’s going to go through,” Simon stressed. “When you bring a proposal you are not telling us, you are asking us what can be done. It’s not set in stone. There’s a deed, there’s legal. We listen, but again, it’s for the people of the Virgin Islands,” she said.
If something is wrong, ask a question, Simon said, noting the board meets monthly at 9 a.m. at Shed 4, with the meetings announced in advance on their Facebook page and in the Source. “We try our best. Come to us. Facebook is tearing us apart for something that is a proposal,” she added, referring to the flood of social media comments around the glamping issue.
Fisherman Gene Brin Jr., president of the Friends board, reminded everyone that it is election season and urged them to also send their questions to the candidates, who he said need to “clearly tell us what their position is, and get it in writing. Register to vote. This is an election year and it’s a grassroots year.”
To join the Friends of Fairchild at Magens Bay or to learn more about their mission, visit their website. Email them at info@friendsmagens.org.
