St. Thomas-St. John Hotel and Tourism Association President Richard Doumeng told members Wednesday night he had implored Gov. Charles W. Turnbull earlier in the day to sign off on the bill to create a V.I. Tourism Authority that is a part of the Omnibus Act of 2001, which is still on the governor's desk.
At Government House, Doumeng said, members of the hotel association, members of the St. Thomas-St. John and St. Croix Chambers of Commerce, and hotel association attorney Tom Bolt met with Turnbull to explain their position. They told Turnbull the public-private authority would "bring stability" to the tourism industry in the Virgin Islands.
Making the point Wednesday night for depoliticizing the management of the territory's tourism, Doumeng observed, "In two years, there have been seven people at the helm" of the Tourism Department. (Only one, Rafael Jackson, has been confirmed for the position in the current administration, and he left last October after seven months on the job – four in an acting capacity and three after being sworn in.)
Doumeng made his comments at the hotel association annual meeting, held at the Wyndham Sugar Bay Resort. At the meeting, Beverly Nicholson, executive director of the association, said that notwithstanding any attempts to lure other businesses to the territory, for now, "Tourism is the mainstay of our economy."
The V.I. Tourism Authority as proposed would be made up of nine members — three from government and six from the private sector. All nominees would have to be approved by the governor and confirmed by the legislature. It would involve such government agencies as the Departments of Public Works, Police, and Housing, Parks and Recreation.
The association also addressed another part of the Omnibus Bill at the meeting – the proposed increase in the hotel occupancy tax to 10 percent from the current 8 percent. "Say no" was the position of the members present, who were urged to write to the governor strongly stating their stands on both issues.
"There are 8,000 jobs in the tourism sector," Nicholson said. "Two thousand can sway an election."
Doumeng said raising the room tax would be "a consumer tax added to the few people who are still willing to pay the high cost of airfares to come here."
The hotel association also wants the governor to refer the issue of industrial development benefits to the proposed new Tax Study Commission which is also part of the Omnibus Act.
Doumeng said he was hopeful coming from his meeting with the governor, and even more hopeful about the new Senate. He said Sen. Adelbert M. Bryan, the Economic Development Committee chair, has agreed to address the association's March meeting. Also, Doumeng and Nicholson have been invited to testify next Tuesday on St. Croix at a meeting of the Senate Finance Committee, chaired by Sen. Alicia "Chucky" Hansen.
Doumeng, elected Wednesday night to a second two-year term as president of the association, said it is time to get the message out to the legislature and the entire community that with regard to the general state of the territory's hospitality industry, "The situation is dire." He said many people think that just because hoteliers say last year's summer season was the best since 1989, they are making a profit.
The truth is, he said, "We are holding on by the skin of our teeth."
Doumeng and Nicholson expressed the need to "look at ourselves as a destination."
"If the airport experience were better for us, it would be better for the tourists," Doumeng said. "If the destination is better for us, it's better for visitors."
Annual meeting business also included the election of six hotel members and three allied member to the association's board of directors.
The hotel members elected are Rik Blyth, Wyndham Sugar Bay; Carter Donovan, Ritz-Carlton Hotel; David Yamada, Renaissance Grand Beach Resort; Jayne Hillner, Marriott Frenchman's Reef Beach Resort; Cyndi Britton, Colony Point Pleasant Resort; and Randall Doty, Sapphire Beach Resort.
The allied members elected are Trudie Prior, Coral World; Edward Thomas, West Indian Co.; and Janise Robinson, United Airlines.
