Zoning officials will consider an application to build a long-term residential community in Estate Caret Bay on the Northside of St. Thomas at a virtual public hearing at 2 p.m. Thursday.
The proposal — labeled Caret Bay Condominiums — calls for 38 two-bedroom units in nine two-story buildings on a 4.43-acre lot in Estate Caret Bay. Each condo would be about 1,500 square feet, with two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a balcony, a kitchen/dining area and a living room, according to the building plans. While 38 parking spaces are required under zoning rules, the application is proposing 42.
The site is being planned as a long-term residential community, according to a letter from architect John Woods, managing member of Highest Potential Design, to Department of Planning and Natural Resources Commissioner Jean-Pierre Oriol that was included as part of the application.
“The buildings are all of masonry construction to include walls, roofs, stairs, and railings,” the letter states, and wastewater treatment on site will be done through five package wastewater treatment plants; two 6,000-gallons-per-day plants and three 2,000-gallons- per-day treatment plants, it said. There will be lighting standards at the entrance and throughout strategic areas of the site, and electrical distribution will be underground after the initial service drop.
The parcel, 62 Caret Bay, is owned by Rainbow Trout Properties of Frederiksted, St. Croix, a limited liability company that was registered in August 2018, according to the Division of Corporations and Trademarks within the Office of the Lieutenant Governor. The principals are listed as Waleed Hamed, Hisham Hamed and Mufeed Hamed of St. Croix, and Waheed Hamed of St. Thomas.
The “decision to plan this community as a multi-family facility maximizes the amount of open space that the development will have when compared to a subdivision of the property,” Woods said in his letter. More than 53 percent of the parcel is dedicated to open green space, and of that, about 32 percent of the entire parcel is undisturbed vegetation, he said.
The property, which is currently undeveloped, abuts the Lionel Berry Scenic Drive on the south and the East Bay Road on the west, with an existing residential subdivision on the east and north sides, according to Woods.
There is a gut on the western side of the parcel that is crossed by driveways in three locations. “There will be culverts provided at those locations. The drainage gut on the eastern side is undisturbed by the development,” the letter states.
The application includes a list of 16 nearby property owners, but Woods said the proposed development is well buffered from the adjoining properties, particularly on the western and eastern sides.
The public right of way abuts the southern boundary and the estate right of way abuts the western and northern boundaries, he said. “These roadways provide separations between the property and adjoining parcels. The property to the west is undeveloped and is over 5 acres in size. The boundary on the eastern side of the property is more than 100 feet from any of the proposed structures,” the letter states.
Additionally, a Phase I Cultural Resources Survey has been completed, as required by DPNR for a Group Dwelling Permit application, said Woods. “The results indicate one positive shovel test in an area approximately one-third of an acre on the southwestern part of the site. The report is inconclusive as to whether the site can be classified as a historically sensitive site as there has been much debris from road construction and other sites dumped there. Additional testing … will be done after the Group Dwelling Permit is approved,” the letter states.
Those who wish to attend the virtual public hearing must request log-in information by sending an email to Territorial Planner Leia LaPlace at leia.laplace@dpnr.vi.gov with the subject line “Application GDP-23-1 virtual hearing registration.” The application files are also available electronically by sending a request to leia.laplace@dpnr.vi.gov, with subject line “Application GDP-23-1 electronic file request.”
