If all goes to plan, the St. Thomas Federal Credit Union will be breaking ground on a new two-story, 10,000-square-foot operations center on a two-acre parcel of land just south of the Omar Brown Sr. Fire Station, according to a zoning hearing Monday for the proposed development.
The credit union, which was chartered in 1952 and has served the community for 73 years, is currently located in the historic district at 5027 Norre Gade — the Allen A. Canton Building — which has restricted the company’s ability to expand, CEO Keisha Richards told members of the Department of Planning and Natural Resources’ Division of Comprehensive and Coastal Zone Planning.
Monday’s hearing was held to request a zoning change from R-3 (residential-medium density) to B-1 (business-central business district) at the new site, Parcel No. 100-1C Estate Taarneberg, Kings Quarter, St. Thomas. The two-acre lot, located beside the fire station and across the street from Barbel Plaza, was the former site of the Warren E. Brown housing community that was destroyed by Hurricane Hugo in 1989. All that remains on the property are two cisterns and a utility shed, said Richards. Previous studies have found no cultural or historical resources, endangered plants and animals, or flood issues, she said.
The move “has been in the pipeline for quite some time” Richards said, and required approval by the National Credit Union Administration, the body responsible for regulating federal credit unions, insuring deposits, and protecting members of credit unions.
The new location will allow the credit union to offer new products and services that its current space cannot, as well as ample parking, drive-through options and ATMs along with walk-in services, said Richards. A smaller one-story building that will be built atop one of the existing cisterns will serve as a conference center and training space, she said.
Additionally, a new, larger building will bring more jobs, said Richards. The credit union currently employs 23 people but would hope to add anywhere from 12 to 27 more, she said.
Because St. Thomas Federal Credit Union is a nonprofit the buildings are required to be used solely for its business, said Richards. If approved, the project will advance in two phases, the first being the main building, which will take about 24 months from shovels in the ground to completion. The conference center will follow, with a time frame of about 18 months, she said. The company’s current building will be put up for sale once it’s no longer needed.
“We did have some challenges and hurdles to get to this benchmark point,” Richards said in closing. “Not only have we had to go through the regulatory process with the Department of Planning and Natural Resources, but we also had to go through a regulatory process with our examiners, which is the National Credit Union Administration, to be able to get to this point. … This project went through a lot of enhanced due diligence on several levels, and I just want to be able to say thank you — thank you to the community for supporting us for the last 73 years and giving us the opportunity to offer the products and services that we can and also for supporting us through this journey of this new operational facility. Thank you to all the parties involved, and we look forward to a favorable response.”
Following Monday’s hearing, the Division of Comprehensive and Coastal Zone Planning will prepare a recommendation report within 30 days that will go to the Legislature. Senators will then meet in the Committee of the Whole for a public hearing on the project, after which they will meet in session to vote on the proposal.
Public comments on the project will be accepted until Sunday, May 25, via email to Territorial Planner Leia LaPlace at leia.laplace@dpnr.vi.gov.
