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Thatch Cay Developers Face Questions From Public

April 12, 2008 — The public had the opportunity to question developers about their plans for Thatch Cay Saturday in an open house at the deJongh Group offices in Savan.
As a preview before Thursday’s Coastal Zone Management hearing, 10 people showed up to hear a presentation by Robert deJongh, president of the deJongh Group, PC, architects and planners for Thatch Cay, LLC.
DeJongh said that some developers plan their projects with little input from the public with "hopes that no one comes to the CZM." He contrasted that approach with his group’s, saying that "we want to share it with the community."
The developers have sought community input to improve the plan. "Every time we have met with them, we’ve come away with some suggestion," he said.
Andrea Martin, speaking on behalf of the Thatch Cay developers, said, "Everyone’s point of view was quite different."
There were questions about sewage and the number of units being built, the density of the project, and the conservation areas. "We found it interesting that everybody’s focus was different and there were no questions per se about the wildlife, or birds or the species of plants."
Martin said one questioner asked about barges and the construction phase. Martin explained that containers of construction material will come by barge from the container port, avoiding overland tractor traffic and not adding to congestion on St. Thomas.
One attendee, Sean LaPlace, who lives on the north side of St. Thomas, said he was against the development.
"We are already out of green space on St. Thomas. Why would you want to develop a cay sitting pristine? They say it’s not pristine, but it does not look like St. Thomas," said LaPlace, who attended with two members of his family.
Elaine Johnson of Bordeaux attended with her friend, Mary Joe Williams of Bovoni, after Williams emailed link to an article about the open house.
Johnson said, "It was like a one-on-one presentation versus a huge meeting. I didn’t even know that [Thatch Cay] had been bought and sold."
Williams said that she liked the fact that the 10-year build-out is not a rush project, hoping that the environmental impact will be mitigated.
"They are being proactive in my opinion," Williams said of developers. "One of the challenges of doing development in the territory is that people feel that developers just come in and rape and pillage with no thought of the impact on local folks and the area."
Johnson said, "The owners and all involved care about the impact of what they are doing. They want people who come to Thatch Cay to feel like they are in another world, and ensure that it remains that way. It’s pretty cool that it's not so exclusive that local people can’t still enjoy the island."
Lying off the north-northeast coast of St. Thomas, Thatch Cay’s goat population has damaged the island's ecosystem, grazing the undergrowth, which helps prevent erosion, to the point of bare soil, deJongh said.
He said that some opposition to the development will be from proponents of leaving Thatch Cay pristine, but he argues that its condition is not now pristine due to the goat-caused erosion.
DeJongh said that during several visits the developers had discovered freshly slaughtered sea turtles on the cay.
"To do nothing is to allow this to continue," he said
Initially, deJongh himself was not in favor of the project. He recalls, "We were not interested in shoehorning hundreds of units into an offshore cay."
DeJongh said his feeling changed about the project after visiting the island with owners Isaac and Lorraine Levy, of California.
"We were blown away by the beauty and the rugged quality of the island. We were not aware that it was such a jewel," said deJongh, who said that he wanted the island to be available to all residents, not just an owner and the occasional gardener or groundskeeper.
DeJongh said that the goal was to develop the island with a great deal of sensitivity so it could contribute to the islands’ economy and so all Virgin Islanders could enjoy it.
The CZM hearing is scheduled for April 17, 2008. For more information, contact the CZM at 340-774-3320.
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