The work week at the 23rd Legislature gets off to what could be a marathon start Monday evening when the Economic Development, Agriculture and Consumer Protection Committee holds a public hearing on St. Thomas on a topic not in its title but in its portfolio: tourism.
Until the last administration, Tourism was a division within the Economic Development and Agriculture Department. Then, Agriculture was spun off on its own and what was left was rechristened the Tourism Department. Meantime, the Senate has retained the old name for its committee addressing those areas.
The purpose of the 6 p.m. hearing, according to a release from the office Sen. David Jones, who chairs the committee, is for the public "to hear first hand what is in store for the tourism industry in the Virgin Islands as we head into the new millennium."
Eight tourism topics are on the agenda: the offshore Tourism offices; the marketing of carnival events; advertising (print, broadcast, Internet and other); geographic target areas; and marketing of the territory in 2000. The hearing is scheduled to include a "review of advertising samples."
Invited to testify from the Tourism Department are Commissioner-designate Rafael Jackson, assistant commissioner Pamela Richards and marketing director Beverly Petrus.
Also on the list of those expected to provide input are St. Thomas-St. John Chamber of Commerce president John deJongh Jr., St. Thomas-St. John Hotel and Tourism Association president Richard Doumeng and executive director Beverly Nicholson, V.I. Tourism Awareness and Advancement Link executive director Mabel Maduro-Pemberton, and V.I. Carnival Committee chair Kenneth Blake and executive director Caswill Callender.
The hearing was originally scheduled for late last December, shortly after another covering the same topics was held on St. Croix. In the weekend between the St. Croix and the St. Thomas sessions, Gov. Charles W. Turnbull announced his choice of Rafael Jackson as his third nominee for Tourism commissioner. Jones then chose to put the St. Thomas hearing off until such time as Jackson had been confirmed and/or had had an opportunity to put together at least a vision if not a full-scale plan for sustainable tourism development.
The Senate Rules Committee approved Jackson's nomination week; it remains to be approved by the full Senate.
