RE:          Application  SAJ-2004-12518 (SP-JCM) – Coral Bay Marina
Email To Address:    jose.cedeno-maldonado@usace.army.mil

Mr. Jose Cedeno-Maldonado
Army Corps of Engineers
San Juan, PR

Dear Sir:

Please include this letter as one of the many comments on the proposed new mega marina, Summer’s End, at Coral Bay, St. John, USVI. I am a 34 years full time resident of the northeast coast of St. Thomas, USVI. I have been in real estate for 32 of those 34 years and in fact used to travel to St. John in the ‘old days’ and sell  real estate on both St. Thomas and St. John. I believe I have a unique perspective seeing the islands from both a personal point and real estate point over 3 decades.  I have listened to many of my friends and clients speak about this development since it was announced. Hands down I have NOT heard one person give it thumbs up. Their comments range from “keep Coral Bay the unique place it is” to “How can the area viably support the infrastructure required” to “the roads will be a further mess” to “what will the influx of constructions workers over such a long period of time do to the area” to “how will we be able to live with the noise and dust when and if construction starts”.  All of these concerns and more are valid.

I can tell you that property values will drop because the people that purchased in that area are unique. They chose to live on the eastern end of St. John, far from the hustle and bustle of Cruz Bay. They do without; they live comfortably without all the trappings of the residents of the rest of St. John. They have also been victims of poor roads maintenance and the primary school closing and no gas station. But they hung in there and chose the lifestyle that is signature Coral Bay. This proposed development will completely change everything.

I spoke with clients that have rented villas in Coral Bay and were actually considering a purchase of land to build their own retirement home. They are putting those plans on hold until and unless this permit is denied.

St. Thomas has several marinas that are never filled. Look at Yacht Haven Grande with so many empty slips and shops without shoppers and many empty retail spaces. Look at American Yacht Harbour in Red Hook, and Compass Point just outside of Red Hook both large scale marinas with many available slips and retail spaces empty and looking for tenants. They all made the same mistake that Summers End proposes for Coral Bay; building shops that have no cultural connection to their location.  If we cannot fill these marinas on St. Thomas, how will Summers End fill their marina?

I am sure the Army Corps knows what happened to the main access road leading to Coral Bay several years ago after successive days of rain. Hillsides caving in, mudslides, major damage to roads and homes, roads blocked for days and the main road eventually whittled down to one lane for safety. It took several years for the federal funding to be in place before the extensive repairs to the road, shoulders and drop offs could begin. Imagine now that same road being the only access for the heavy equipment traveling on it day after day, week after week, month after month during construction and then water and fuel and other delivery trucks afterwards when the marina is operational. I shudder to think of what would happen if a fuel or water truck skidded up or down the road during a light rain storm. It would be a complete and utter disaster. Would residents then be cut off from the rest of St. John? Probably. Can the roads, should the roads take this increased dangerous traffic? The answer is a resounding NO.

The environmental concerns are well documented with others much more versed in that side of the permit application. We must protect our natural resources now because if not now, when? We must before it is all gone for generations to come.

I implore the Army Corps of Engineers to stop the development from moving forward. You must step in with your years of experience and knowledge where the Coastal Zone Management Committee of 2 did not.

Thank you.

Warm Regards,

(signed)