The long-discussed resort at Botany Bay on St. Thomas has taken another step forward after FirstBank announced a $13 million financing deal with By-the-Sea Resort Properties earlier this month.

The agreement, backed by the federal State Small Business Credit Initiative in partnership with the V.I. Economic Development Authority, is intended to help advance construction of a $25 million eco-luxury project called The Botany, slated to open in Spring 2026.

The 365-acre property on the island’s far west end has been tied to resort plans for decades. Once home to a sugar estate and later marketed for residential development, the site has changed hands and concepts multiple times. A residential community was partially developed, but hotel plans — including a proposal for Ritz-Carlton Residences — never reached completion.

In June 2020, the V.I. Economic Development Authority approved Economic Development Commission benefits for Botany Bay developers, including 90% reductions on corporate and income taxes, exemptions on gross receipts and excise taxes, and customs duty breaks on imported goods. In return, the company pledged to hire at least 35 full-time employees and donate $50,000 annually to local charitable causes. Within months, however, the pandemic shuttered tourism and construction projects across the territory. By November, the EDA issued waivers of those requirements, citing the collapse of travel and economic activity. Botany Bay was among the beneficiaries.

After several quiet years, the project resurfaced in 2025 with a redesigned vision. In July, the EDA board approved a new plan that emphasizes sustainability: solar-powered villas, communal amenities built into the hillside, and an operating model centered on renewable energy. Dallas-based Practice Hospitality, a boutique operator known for design-focused properties, signed on to manage the resort.

According to the EDA’s July decision summary, the company committed to employing 45 full-time staff, maintaining a minimum payroll of $1.5 million annually, and contributing $75,000 each year to community programs. The updated agreement also requires the developer to offer at least $20,000 annually in scholarships and $10,000 in sponsorships, along with partnerships to provide internships and job training opportunities.

Officials describe the project as a model for sustainable tourism. VIEDA CEO Wayne Biggs Jr. called the financing “a commitment to meaningful partnerships that drive long-term growth, honor the natural heritage of our islands, and create lasting opportunities for our people.”

But the project also raises familiar concerns. Large-scale resort developments in the Virgin Islands have often been criticized for failing to deliver on jobs and community benefits, or for limiting public access to sensitive coastal areas. Botany Bay’s secluded beaches and historic ruins have long been part of that debate. Supporters of the new plan say the financing signals a serious commitment; skeptics note that only completion will answer whether this iteration delivers on promises made over the years.

With financing now in place and a projected opening in 2026, The Botany marks the furthest the Botany Bay resort project has advanced in decades.

Young athletes on St. Croix will get the chance to learn the game of golf from the pros this weekend, thanks to a partnership between the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Tourism, the LPGA/USGA, and the Buccaneer Beach & Golf Resort.

A free Junior Golf Clinic will take place on this Saturday, Sept. 13, from 3 to 5 p.m., with professional instruction led by USVI-based golf pro Kenneth Peets. The program is open to youth ages 6–18 and aims to introduce the sport in a way that is both fun and accessible.

Participants can look forward to a mix of activities designed to sharpen their skills and spark excitement for the game, from the “Hit the Hippo” full-swing challenge to Tic-Tac-Toe duck chipping, mini-golf putting, and even creative crafts. Each child will also receive a gift bag, and LPGA media will be on hand to cover the event.

Officials say the clinic is part of Tourism’s commitment to expanding sports and entertainment opportunities across the territory while fostering inter-island connections. “This clinic is about more than golf — it’s about creating pathways for young people to try something new in a supportive environment,” organizers said.

Advance registration is available online, while in-person sign-ups are being accepted at the Department of Tourism offices in Frederiksted and Christiansted.

There’s a good chance you have a glamour shot of a cat or dog on your mobile phone. If it isn’t yours, Aunt Taminella has surely sent you countless photos of Sweetums sleeping or swimming or staring down an iguana. Or maybe Sweetums is an iguana and your dear aunty has convinced herself it’s adorable, and simply won’t stop sending pictures of its scaly, weirdly-iridescent green scowl.

Either way, good news! The Humane Society of St. Thomas is considering your pet photo for their 2026 Pets in America’s Paradise Calendar — or will consider it once you send it in.

Your cat or dog or fish or, yes, even that iguana, could land on a page of the Humane Society calendar that helps raise funds for the territory’s needy animals. Send your photo, a short essay on how your pet has enriched your life, and $10 to the Humane Society (at this link) before noon Oct. 15 for a chance to win one of 12 coveted spots.

But wait, there’s more. Virgin Islanders are also invited to judge the competition. At $1 a vote, you can cast as many ballots as you like for aunty’s creepy lizard to be Ms. February, the shortest month. But Aunt Taminella can’t be in the photo, looker that she is. The photos must be of pets only. No people.

Dellia Holodenschi, the former Humane Society of St. Thomas president, has entered her dogs in previous years and even her pet rabbit. This year, she’s considering her French hen. While it’s good fun to celebrate the territory’s pets, keeping them healthy is a community effort, she said.

With Virgin Islanders’ generosity, Humane Society is able to provide spay and neuter services vital to controlling stray animal populations. More than that, the society also houses many animals until they can find homes.

“We were built to house 70 cats and 40 dogs, and on any given day you have double that number here,” Holodenschi said. “If you find a kitten on the road, you’ve got to take it into your home and foster it because we have nowhere to put it. We can help you.”

Some of that help comes in the form of wellness clinics that cover much of a pet’s basic preventive medical care, she said. Without such free or reduced-cost clinics, pet ownership would be unaffordable for many Virgin Islanders and could lead to the stray animal problem afflicting much of the Caribbean, she said.

“If you don’t have a strong organization to take care of that, it’s like what Gandhi said: ‘The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated,’” she said.

Hear that, Sweetums? You’re cherished. And even if Sweetums doesn’t make the darling dozen, its lipless grin will be featured on a collage page of all entries.

“If you consider that iguana a pet, then that’s fine,” Holodenschi said. “Once you put that $10 in, that guarantees you not only a calendar but it’s going to be featured in the calendar on the collage page.”

The prizes don’t stop with the pinup calendar either. The grand prize will get the cover photo as well as a month inside, a two-night stay at Emerald Beach Resort, presumably with the pet’s owners, and an exclusive photo shoot with Don Herbert Photography.

The 12 first prize winners will have their photo on one of the 12 months two complimentary copies of “Pets in America’s Paradise” 2026 Limited Edition Calendar.

Additional sponsorship comes from Sponsors Bellows International and Deutsch Family Wine & Spirits

As of Sept. 9, the competition was still within barking distance of new entrants. The sideways grin of Babyface – THE HD wonder dog was way out front with $600 raised, followed by a twosome of Ryley and Lola with $220 raised across seven individual donors.

“One dollar equals one vote and it’s all for the animals,” Holodenschi said.