Loans were approved, tax benefits were extended, and an update was given at the Economic Development Authority offices on Thursday.
The Economic Development Bank approved loans to First Step Therapy and Darryl’s Water Delivery Services. First Step’s loan is for $206,500, and Darryl’s Water Delivery Services, doing business as De Wata Man, is for $157,314.30. Each loan is for 10 years.
De Wata Man, on St. Thomas, is a start-up trucking and water delivery company. The financing will assist with acquiring equipment and other expenses related to the business’s start-up. The applicant is expected to invest $36,000 into the business. It is anticipated that two full-time and one part-time job will be created.
First Step has provided outpatient speech and occupational therapy services to individuals on St. Croix for seven years. It has counseling services for individuals with communication, cognition, swallowing, language, social, and functional daily living skills. First Step seeks $260,500 to expand its services, relocate the business, and create three full-time positions.
The Economic Development Commission approved Mangrove Eco Boutique Hotel Properties, a one-year delay in commencing tax breaks. The project has been stalled. In an April 2023 meeting, it was said Mangrove Eco Boutique Hotel would be built on 6.7 acres in eastern St. Thomas and consist of three buildings with 62 rooms, an amphitheater, a rooftop pool, a restaurant and bakery, and an on-site hospitality training center.
Mark Finch, director of the physical plant, gave the Economic Development Park Corporation an update that included the St. Thomas Industrial Park.
The industrial park will include a new Economic Development office building.
Chief Executive Officer Wayne Biggs says the new St. Thomas EDA office will have 10,000 sq. ft. of office space. Construction will begin early next year and take at least two years to complete. The cost is estimated to be between $5 and $6 million, of which FEMA will pay 98 percent.
At the meeting, several members discussed attending the International Economic Development Council in Denver Sunday-Wednesday. Biggs also discussed attending the Communities in Action: Building a Better Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands conference at the White House Thursday.
The EDA Commission includes Philip Payne, Positive Nelson, Kevin Rodriguez, Anise Hodge, Jose Penn, and Gary Molloy. They all attended the hearing on Thursday.
