The Economic Development Commission considered a request from a St. Croix hotel developer Thursday to alter its plans to build a hotel in Christiansted, which have been stymied by power and shipping delays and other issues.
The EDC granted Historic Heritage Holdings full tax benefits last summer to construct a boutique hotel with at least 66 rooms in Christiansted. Camila Devlin, the company’s chief financial officer, and majority owner Peter Zielke told Economic Development commissioners that the project’s timelines have shifted because of costly delays related to power, construction and permitting. On Thursday, they asked the commission to approve a phased approach to allow them to start with 25 hotel rooms and 10 full-time employees.
“Ultimately, this request is about feasibility and long-term success,” Devlin said. “The facts have changed, the timeline has shifted and the originally approved structure no longer aligns with the current realities of our project.”
Devlin said the phased approach would keep the company in compliance while it pays employee benefits and invests in the St. Croix community. Asked to more fully explain the delays, Zielke said he could think of few challenges they haven’t faced.
“Power is — some of the delays are incredibly long, like WAPA can take five or six months to hook up,” he said. “We’ve had some weather-related delays. We’ve had a great deal of shipping delays, where you’re missing a single part and then sometimes it could be a month or two until that part arrives.”
By way of example, Zielke said one part of the project was delayed for six weeks because a part for a diamond polisher got held up in shipping and at customs.
“So the truth is, there are very few things that we haven’t had significant delays on,” he said. “Sometimes we have people that need health care where, stateside, perhaps they could ordinarily just go to the doctor. And here, they end up having to take a couple weeks off and leave town and come back again.”
EDC board member Philip Payne lauded the company’s work so far and empathized with their struggles.
“We boast about how much better we are with permitting and services, and yet we get here and we hear ‘four months to turn on the power’ or five months,” he said. “It’s unrealistic, and it’s not right that we put up with this, and we continue to.”
Board members heard from another hotel developer during a subsequent public hearing of the Enterprise Zone Commission. Global Solutions VI discussed a long-sought 130-room, five-story hotel to be built on 10 acres directly across from the Henry E. Rohlsen Airport on St. Croix. The company’s founder and chair, Steven Boughner, said the project would include a rooftop restaurant — along with another on the ground floor — meeting areas and an event space.
“The concept of our development is not only a hotel to service the tourism business, but also to become a local event space,” he said. “There is no space comparable to what we’re proposing anywhere on the island, and we firmly believe that the concept of local involvement into the facility will generate the type of business that this development is designed to do.”
The company has a 40-year land lease with the V.I. Port Authority with a 10-year renewal option. Board members discussed a South Shore Trade Zone application from the company in executive session and later narrowly approved granting full benefits for 20 years.
The EZC also approved full tax incentives for Jabari Carrington for rehabilitation and construction at 7B Commandant Gade — part of the Garden Street-Upstreet Enterprise Zone — and modifications to a project at 12 Crystal Gade and 2E Bjerge Gade. Conn J. Davis II initially applied for incentives to operate a luxury event space and boutique bed-and-breakfast at the property. The approved modification changed the use to serve as a primary residence.
The Economic Development Bank approved Small State Business Credit Initiative guarantee requests for Antilles Consulting Group and SOS St. Croix.
