The land swap with the National Park Service to allow the construction of a K-12 school on St. John passed another hurdle at Tuesday’s Senate session, but it might not be home-free yet.
Sen. Angel Bolques Jr. portrayed the hurdle as just an insurance hindrance that needed to be rectified. Sen. Alma Francis Heyliger disagreed, saying that Tuesday’s amendment, added onto an unrelated budget bill that passed on an 11-3 vote, ruined the deal and would erase V.I. history and Virgin Islanders’ rights.
The amendment states that the land swap could be achieved if everything remained “consistent with the National Park Services Organic Act and federal regulations.” Bolques’s position is that it did not change the current status of the water around the cay and how Virgin Islanders use it for fishing or recreation. Francis Heyliger, however, said that federal law supersedes local laws.
The land swap has been controversial. Everyone appears to want the school built, but not many Virgin Islanders wish to give up Whistling Cay.
Another land swap was proposed but never got off the ground.
Environmentalist Olasee Davis recently wrote, “I would say to the people of St. John and the entire Virgin Islands community, let us sue the government for their illegal action of swapping Whistling Cay, the people’s cay, to the Virgin Islands National Park Service.”
Francis Heyliger said a lawsuit had already been filed. However, at the session, which was sometimes heated, she was ruled “out of order” several times by Senate President Novelle Francis and could not always complete her statements.
St. John high school students currently must travel to St. Thomas to attend public school.
According to the governor’s office, the Federal Emergency Management Agency would fund the construction of a modern K-12 school on the land in Estate Catherineberg received from the NPS in the swap.
