A top V.I. Tourism Department official told the Port Authority Board of Governors the incentive they are offering a major air carrier doesn’t go far enough. Tourism Commissioner Joseph Boschulte expressed his concerns at a scheduled board meeting held Tuesday.
The commissioner – who is also a Port Authority board member — spoke just before a vote to approve a one-year incentive package for JetBlue Airways. An agency spokesperson explained after the meeting that the customary incentive offer is two years, but other pending agreements kept the board from offering more at this time.
Boschulte said Tourism had held talks with JetBlue about expanding its service to the Virgin Islands; most recently, the airline added flights between St. Croix and San Juan — the board ratified a vote Tuesday, signaling its favor for that move.
“It’s a step in the right direction, but one year’s worth of incentives is not enough,” Boschulte said. If JetBlue executives were left feeling like they had been shortchanged, they could change their minds about increasing flights to the territory.
Fellow board member Celestino White took the opportunity to encourage a new view of where Tourism finds value in the travel market. “Who can talk to these airlines about connecting our Caribbean people?” White said. He told the board about his recent experience on a trip to Antigua and the extra time and expense involved.
White added he had heard from several Eastern Caribbean travelers who shared similar experiences. “We are tourists too, and we spend a lot,” White said.
Boschulte acknowledged the comments made at Tuesday’s meeting. “We are aggressively pursuing that same narrative,” he told the board.
Before adjourning the session, board Chair Willard John encouraged White to submit his concerns as a formal agenda item so the board could fully consider it.
The two-and-a-half-hour meeting included three action items requiring board members to vote: replacing the perimeter fence at the Cyril E. King Airport and upgrading VIPA’s computer system by implementing an enterprise server hardware solution.
Agency spokeswoman Monifa Marrero Brathwaite explained that the enterprise server is the component that drives the computer system’s administrative functions.
Board members also voted to adopt the Port Authority’s Title 6 Implementation Plan and procedures, which allow the agency to implement programs and policies that serve the disabled.
That approval vote allows the agency to conform to guidelines set by the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, the spokeswoman said.
Julian’s Welding was awarded a contract to replace the St. Thomas’ Cyril E. King Airport perimeter fence for $159,901.48. Evertech Group, LLC won the contract to install the enterprise server hardware at a cost not to exceed $150,000.
Board members in attendance Tuesday included Willard John, Joseph Boschulte, Kevin Rodriguez, Leona Smith, Celestino White, and Gordon Rhea.
