Editor’s Note: This story was updated Monday, June 2 with comment from Chaliese Summers, managing partner of the Summers End Group.
Once more, the controversial Summer’s End Marina planned for Coral Bay on St. John is facing a serious setback, according to David Silverman, president of Save Coral Bay.
On May 20, the Coastal Zone Management Commission informed Silverman that the CZM permit for the development (also known as the St. John Marina) is “null and void.” Silverman’s organization, Save Coral Bay, has led the fight against the project for nearly a decade.
The history of the permitting process for the marina is long and complex. (A brief summary with links is presented at the end of this article.) Essentially, based on a decision by the Board of Land Use Appeals in 2017, a permit consolidating two prior separate permits (for the land and water portions of the development) was signed into law by Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. on Dec. 31, 2020.
“According to the express terms of the permit, which reflect the requirements of the Virgin Islands Coastal Zone Management Act and the CZM Rules and Regulations, construction activity under the approved permit was required to commence within 12 months of permit issuance,” said Silverman. “If it did not, then the permit would automatically expire and become null and void unless the applicant requested an extension ‘for good cause,’” he continued.
Summers End Group did not commence construction during 2021 or in the following years, and the developers never asked for an extension of the permit, Silverman said.
Jean-Pierre Oriol, commissioner of the Department of Planning and Natural Resources, confirmed that Summers End Group did not apply for an extension. However, under the restrictions outlined by the Board of Land Use Appeals, the developers were not allowed to begin construction until all of the permits were in place, Oriol said.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which must approve the project, has not yet issued a permit.
The law does allow Summers End Group to request that the permit be reinstated, Oriol said, provided that they can demonstrate that good cause exists for granting such extension. “SEG is in communication with the government of the Virgin Islands on progress they are making regarding their [Army] Corps permit,” he added.
Both Oriol and Silverman acknowledged that the St. John Committee of the Coastal Zone Management Board would have to approve this request to allow an extension of the permit.
The Summers End Group has made modifications to the marina plan in response to numerous environmental concerns raised by the Army Corps and other federal agencies.
But Silverman maintains that time has run out. “Permits are not good forever, and the permit ratified for the Summer’s End Marina in 2020 was based on environmental conditions, project plans, and mitigation proposals in effect at that time,” he said. “All of those factors have changed and it is entirely proper for DPNR and CZM to require a fresh review of the proposed project if, and only if, the applicant can demonstrate good cause for failure to request an extension over a period of four years.”
“If there is no ‘good cause’ for this failure, then an extension of a long expired permit should not be granted,” Silverman continued. “Summers End Group should present their current project plans, mitigation plans, economic models, and other associated information to the St John CZM Committee in a public hearing, and the project should be freshly reviewed, considering that the prior review was performed 11 years ago. This is what the law requires.”
According to Chaliese Summers, managing partner of the Summers End Group, the company has spent well over a decade and millions of dollars to bring jobs, economic growth and a cleaner and more safe Coral Harbor to the Virgin Islands.
In a statement emailed to the Source on Saturday afternoon, she said the CZM permit strictly forbids beginning construction of the development until the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permit is issued.
“After years of review, consultation with other agencies and delay, that federal permit is expected to be issued shortly. As a result of more than a decade of coordination between Summers End and federal agencies, specifically Environmental Protection Agency, National Marine Fisheries Service, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Fish and Wildlife, and USACE additional environmental restoration and enhancement is being incorporated into the Summers End destination development that will assist in restoring and maintaining the ecosystem and creating protection and preservation for aquatic life while enhancing the community for natives, residence, and visitors,” Summers said.
“As to the comments that the project has not undergone rigorous environmental and legal review, in addition to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, there have been more than a decade of reviews and public hearings before the CZM Committee of St. John, DPNR, the Historic Preservation Office, the Board of Land Use Appeals, multiple Superior Court cases, the Virgin Islands Supreme Court, the U.S. Supreme Court, federal District Court, the Virgin Island Governor and Legislature. And at every level, Summer’s End has been found to have complied with the laws for environmental protection and economic development,” she said.
“Once the federal agencies have finalized their review and specifically the environmental work, and with the support of DPNR and territorial officials the territorial CZM permit will go through the process to be updated and extended to mirror the additional environmental work that is being added and incorporated to this project, the additional mitigation measures, the additional lands secured to make this possible, and the reduction in the size of the marina. Summer’s End Group’s commitment to this project, the local landowners and opportunities for economic development remain and will continue,” Summers wrote.
In general, the community supports the idea of a marina in Coral Bay, but many have said they found Summers End’s size to be overwhelming.
Others have objected to the location of the marina on the lee shore of Coral Harbor, where it is likely to be affected by storms. Save Coral Bay recently published a photo showing how six boats broke loose from their moorings during Tropical Storm Ernesto in 2024 and were carried by wind and waves onto the lee shore of the harbor; if the marina had been built, the boats would have collided with the docks and caused damage.
Other opponents have said the island’s infrastructure is insufficient to support a marina of Summers End’s size in Coral Bay. Coral Bay does not have municipal facilities to generate electricity, manufacture potable water, or process sewage and solid waste. Fresh water, fuel, and supplies would need to be trucked in from Cruz Bay, eight miles away, while waste products would need to be carried out. Centerline Road, known for its curves and its potholes, could not safely support the additional traffic, they say.
Additional links:
The marina has faced opposition since it was first presented to the public in 2014. After multiple issues caused the V.I. Senate to reject legislation enacting the plan, the Legislature approved it in December 2020.
For an even deeper dive into the history of the Summers End controversy, click here for a detailed timeline produced by Save Coral Bay.
