Nov. 11, 2007 — A notably ruly crowd of about 30 Bovoni homeowners spent two hours Sunday night in casual conversation at the Mt. Calvary Missionary Baptist Church with Gov. John deJongh Jr. and several of his administrators and cabinet members about their most pressing concerns.
The waste water lift stations dotting their neighborhood, road flooding, the nearby landfill and crime topped the list of issues the residents put out for discussion and solutions.
The entire area from Bovoni to Estate Nadir lies in a flood zone. The older waste and storm water drainage systems were closely linked, causing "infiltration" of storm water into the sewage system and sewage overflow into the streets, according to Steven Aubin, acting chief operating officer for the V.I. Waste Management Authority.
"The new ones are separated," Aubin said, but acknowledged the overflow was still a problem in several areas awaiting reconstruction.
In response to complaints about the consolidation of the Bovoni Housing community waste water lift station and what was referred to as the "Texaco lift station," Aubin said it was necessary, but assured residents the new lift station would be completely underground and unobtrusive. It will also have an automated generator system to address the problem of sewage backup when the power goes off.
As for the location, Aubin said, "All sewage systems have to run downhill," and the location near the Texaco station is the lowest point, and thus where a lift station must be located to push the sewage onto the next plain on its way to the Mangrove Lagoon Treatment Center He said VIWMA is still working on exactly where the new lift station will go.
One of the solutions to flooding, according to Public Works Commissioner Darryl Smalls, would be the long-awaited road project slated to connect with the infamous "bridge to nowhere" that currently sits in a field adjacent to the T-intersection of Bovoni, Red Hook and Brookman Roads in nearby Nadir.
Smalls explained the goal of the project is to widen the passageway that connects the Nadir Gut to the mangrove lagoon and ultimately the ocean.
But Smalls couldn't even guess when the long-abandoned project would resume. He said legal problems with the Esso gas station on the northeastern side of the intersection are the stumbling block.
Smalls spent some time talking about several road projects that have come to a standstill because of lack of financing, and deJongh backed him up, saying $45 million worth of projects to be financed from the General Fund were at a standstill because, even though it was appropriated, there's no money to complete them.
Another seven to be funded with Federal Highway Administration monies were put on hold or the back burner because of the Scott Free road project, which is going to cost much more than was projected, Smalls said. The Bovoni road project, which would see sidewalks and road improvements from the Bertha C. Boschulte Middle School to the Nadir intersection, is one that Smalls said has been "pushed back." He did say the drawings were 90 percent completed and would also include a beautification component. It will help with the infiltration problem, too as aging sewer systems are replaced.
The V.I. government gets about $20 million a year from federal highways which Smalls said "sounds like a lot," but isn't given the needs of the territory. "We constantly find ourselves juggling to use it as best we possibly can."
Meanwhile, across the street from the Texaco station sits the Bovoni Landfill, which according to VIWMA Director May Adams Cornwall has only seven years left before it has to be closed or relocated.
Residents expressed concerns about everything from the piled up tires, to the lease holders at the landfill, to the proposed transfer station. Petersen said 30,000 pounds worth of tires had been shredded, compacted and moved off island — with admittedly many more to go.
She also said Property and Procurement was looking into the leases. WMA Executive Cornwall said the authority was working with the V.I. Port Authority which is conducting a feasibility study on a possible container port at Bovoni. She said it would make sense to work with VIPA on such a project if possible.
She said in order to ship waste off island, a transfer station was a necessity and combing the two could make sense financially. The project could expedite the shipment of recyclables while diminishing the cross-island movement of large containers from the Sub Base area. As for the question of recycling, Cornwall said WMA is working on several initiatives that could include recycling metal, plastic, aluminum and cardboard. She also said the authority is conducting an e-waste collection again next week. (See "Electronic Waste Collection Days Scheduled.")
Terecita Rivera, Bovoni Homeowners Association president, recalled a time when she and her family used to camp along the shoreline by the mangrove lagoon which lies in the shadow of the landfill. Rivera said the lagoon is now full of the sludge created by unchecked raw sewage that had been pumped directly into the water for years, before the new systems came on line.
Cornwall also talked about the debris that ends up in the water after severe weather and the challenges of collecting it, sorting it — which is now required if the territory wants to get Federal Emergency Management Agency funds — and disposing of it.
Debris is not a one-way street, however. St. Thomas-Water Island Administrator Barbara Petersen said the law requires homeowners to keep their property cleared of debris — including abandoned vehicles. If they don't, they will be fined.
Residents seemed eerily quiet on the subject of crime, asking Rodney Querrard, St. Thomas-St. John Chief of Police, only about the possibility of surveillance cameras and increased lighting.
But a question from resident Lloyd Romeo about the possibility of a substation in the area spurred Querrard to decry the V.I. Police Department's lack of manpower.
"I would put police stations all over the island if we had the people to man them," Querrard said.
After a litany of what the department has tried to do to recruit locals, he broached the subject of off-island recruiting, saying it might be the department's only hope.
DeJongh supported his suggestion a few minutes later, saying his administration was willing to "take the heat" for the often unpopular stance, but that the department had exhausted all other options.
Querrard also addressed the abandoned car issue and said it made more sense for vehicle owners to bite the bullet and spend $250 to unload the inoperable vehicles than to face a $1,000 fine the next time they try to register a car.
As the meeting drew to a close, the residents sang a rousing rendition of "Happy Birthday" to deJongh, who will turn 50 on Tuesday.
Petersen said the equanimity permeating Sunday's night's meeting made her think all of the problems addressed at previous meetings had been solved. A few good-natured groans from the crowd suggested there might yet be problems begging for solutions.
Back Talk
Share your reaction to this news with other Source readers. Please include headline, your name and city and state/country or island where you reside.
