With the V.I. government grappling with a $1 billion debt, local politicians may have to look to the federal government to fund a judge’s order that calls for the Turnbull administration to turn Camp Arawak into a park.
A week ago Territorial Court Judge Alphonso Andrews blocked the V.I. government from trading 14.5 acres of public land on Great Pond Bay, referred to as Camp Arawak, to Beal Aerospace Technologies. After issuing the permanent injunction against the land swap, Andrews gave Gov. Charles Turnbull 60 days to develop the 14.5 acres into a park.
The judge ordered Turnbull to come up with a "flexible, comprehensive master plan for the use of the property and structures as a park facility." Along with its waterfront location the property contains Danish colonial-era ruins that include a great house and other cultural and pre-Columbian archeological artifacts.
Andrews, however, left the funding issue up to the governor. And that has people on both sides of the Beal deal either questioning the feasibility of the order or seeking money. News reports have quoted members of the St. Croix Environmental Association as saying the Camp Arawak property could cost $250,000 to administer.
"It’s an important ruling," said Wade Gates, Beal’s director of corporate affairs, "in that it not only prevents a new investment and the creation of new jobs, but that it attempts to create a further liability on the government by demanding it fund activities on the site. Who is going to pay for that?"
A possible answer could be in the V.I. government-Department of Interior memorandum of understanding that was signed in October by Turnbull and Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt. In order to stimulate local economic growth through sustainable tourism, the memorandum commits the administration and Interior to a program of preserving and enhancing the territory’s natural, cultural and historic resources.
A key element in the memorandum is the establishment of what is called the Virgin Islands Conservation Trust, which would maintain and manage resources by creating a network of local parks and recreation trails.
"I know the Secretary (Babbitt) wants to get that started," said Delegate to Congress Donna Christian Christensen. "Technical assistance is something that is easy to come by. Funds are harder."
In the meantime, Christensen said she is searching the federal government for grant possibilities, including a lead she has already passed on to the Department of Planning and Natural Resources.
"One of the things I will do is work with the administration to help identify funds," she said. "There are a number of areas for grants. One is for the protection of wetlands."
While Texas-based Beal already owns more than 250 acres adjacent to the Camp Arawak property, company officials maintain the 14.5 acres is needed for a portion of their $57-million world headquarters and rocket assembly plant.
The Camp Arawak property was donated in perpetuity to the people of the Virgin Islands by the late Frank Wiesner in 1974. The deed stipulated that the property was to be developed into a park. For various reasons, including 1989's Hurricane Hugo that severely damaged the great house and more recently the government’s cash crunch, the land was never fully developed by the government.
The memorandum, meanwhile, states that the Secretary of Interior will work on obtaining funding and assets for the V.I. Conservation Trust. It also states that Interior will work with the V.I. government and the University of the Virgin Islands to provide opportunities for students to learn about the stewardship of resources by working with National Park Service experts through a park mentorship program.
The program is supposed to be funded at up to $50,000 per year for fiscal years 2000, 2001 and 2002, subject to the availability of funds.
"I’m pleased with the decision," Christensen said. "The land swap wasn’t something I readily supported. The stage is being set for something positive."

Two armed robbery suspects are in jail after they crashed their getaway car into a utility pole in downtown St. Thomas following a high-speed chase by police Tuesday night.
Ira Haywood, 18, of Estate Tutu and Kevin "Smokey" White, 23, of 173C-60 Anna's Retreat are being held on first-degree robbery charges, St. Thomas Source has learned.
The two, wearing ski masks and brandishing a pistol and a sawed-off shotgun, stormed the America’’s Bar at the Crown Mountain Road-Moravian Highway intersection and made off with about $60 from patrons in the establishment.
In a preliminary report, Deputy Police Chief Theodore Carty said both weapons were recovered.
The robbery, which happened as a female dancer began an entertainment routine at the bar, was called in to police around 8:30 Tuesday night.
Police officers are said to have pursued the suspects, who were driving in a light blue sedan, across town until the suspects crashed into a utility pole at the Guttet’’s Gade intersection near the Enid Baa public library. The two were taken into police custody.
A wrecker remained at the scene for about an hour after the robbery to tow the remains of the getaway vehicle to the police station for forensics processing.

Though the island's holiday season been described as "disheartening," a sampling of some restaurants and smaller hotels has turned up surprisingly good news.
Richard Doumeng, president of the St. Thomas-St. John Hotel and Tourism Association, said that though Bolongo Beach Club, which he owns, is doing well for the holidays, he wished he could say the same for other hotels.
"We have a lot of repeat guests, about 95 percent, which will carry us over," he said. But most of the larger hotels are hurting, he added.
Doumeng said that tourism worldwide is suffering from the Y2K epidemic. Not only are people afraid to travel over New Year's because of possible computer glitches in air travel, but many are not allowed to travel.
"Not only emergency personnel, but bank tellers, stock brokers, any number of public service industries don't want their employees away when they may be urgently needed at home," he said.
Add to this the recent terrorism threats at Canadian borders to the United States and that just increases the reluctance or impossibility of traveling for many potential visitors.
In the Virgin Islands this is a particular blow after the past two hurricanes and their adverse publicity.
However, in spite of these problems, it looks like a lot of people are still coming here to have their sun and sand.
Lyn Eden of Mafolie Hotel said her hotel's bookings don't seem too affected by the millennium bug.
"We have had very few cancellations," she said. "I called up all our reservations after Hurricane Lenny and assured them St. Thomas was doing fine, so this no doubt helped."
The Island Beachcomber has been running about 75 percent occupancy for the holiday season, said Bill Wagner, reservations manager. Many of their guests arrive without reservations because of the hotel's proximity to the Cyril E. King Airport.
Emerald Beach Resort, also near the airport, is doing a "little better than last year," according to Kanema Ayala, reservations manager. She said the hotel has had some cancellations, but she could not directly attribute them to Y2K concerns.
Though many of the larger hotels' spokespersons could not be reached for comment, one hotelier quite easily contacted was Brian Young, managing director of Caneel Bay Inc. on St. John. Asked about cancellations because of Y2K worries, Young said he's seen "none whatsoever."
"We have reservations months in advance for the holiday season, and they are all either here or arriving," he happily noted.
On the restaurant scene, the news is basically up. Liz Buckalew of Banana Tree Grille in Bluebeard's Hotel said, "It's been great, more than last year." She said up to Christmas Eve, bookings had been slow, but now it's moving right along.
"Christmas Eve was full, about two-thirds tourists, and we're booked right through the end of the year," she said.
At Hook, Line & Sinker in Frenchtown, Becky Luscz also said bookings had been slow, but "Christmas Eve was wonderful. We were totally booked with mostly local people — a lot coming back from church services."
Craig Barash of Craig and Sally's, also in Frenchtown, said his business is booming. "We're doing better than I expected, even allowing for the Y2K problem."
Mary Davis of the Danish Chalet said she too is pleased. The guest house has only one room available for New Year's.
"Maybe it's because of our web advertising," she said.
Davis and her husband, Frank, have been running a unique contest to sell their guest house.
The mood among restaurateurs seems to be one of apprehension — but happy apprehension.
"I have a feeling that this upsurge since Christmas will run through January," Banana Tree Grille's Buckalew said. "I like to think that season has started."
Davis expressed the same sentiment. She said the Chalet's booking are solid through January, and she hopes that's a trend.
Many hoteliers are just waiting until after the first of the year to assess what will happen. As is the rest of the world.

If you can't reach the Legislature this week, don't give up. The Capitol Building is getting a new phone system and the installation is causing some technical difficulties.
A release from the Legislature said the system being installed by the Management Information System Division is state-of- the-art.
Dwayne Fraser, MIS director, said, "hopefully" the installation would be completed by the end of the week.
All numbers to senators' offices will remain the same, Fraser said.
He said the system was at least 12 years old and outdated. He could not say how much the new system was costing. No one was available in the business office, either, to answer how much the system cost.
A call to one senator's office Tuesday met with a rapid busy signal, usually a sign of technical problems rather than a normal busy.
But a call to the main number, 774-0880 was eventually answered.

If you are planning to attend the St. John School of the Arts concert by classical and flamenco guitarist Dennis Koster on Thursday, Dec. 30, he asks that you be prepared to respect the intensity of concentration demanded by his art.
A note that Koster asks to have printed on all of his concert program states: "Please: No photography, videotaping, audiotaping or use of cellular phone or beepers during the concert. If you find it necessary to leave, please do so between numbers." Add to that, if you arrive late, please expect to wait to be seated between numbers as well.
Koster is internationally renowned as a rare musical amalgam — a master of both of the great Spanish guitar traditions. Guitar Review magazine's flamenco editor, Brook Zern, says Koster "has mastered both classical and flamenco like no other guitarist I've heard. He plays both styles brilliantly, without a hint of compromise."
As a teenager, Koster was first attracted to flamenco, the music accompanying the traditional Spanish dance featuring stamping feet, swirling skirts and clicking castanets. He studied under Mario Escudero, known as "the father of modern flamenco." Escudero had trained under Ramon Montoya, who took flamenco from the dance halls of Spain into the concert halls of the world. And after two decades of studying and performing, Koster was privileged to study with Augustin Castellon, better known as "Sabicas," the man recognized as the greatest flamenco virtuoso of all time.
In his 20s, Koster decided to take up classical guitar as well. He studied in Madrid and New York and made his classical debut at Carnegie Recital Hall in 1975, where his artistry inspired a New York Times critic to praise his "a brilliant, aptly fantastic performance."
In the classical realm, music for guitar must be transcribed from arrangements for other instruments. Koster found that he had an affinity for this, as well as for collaborating in the composing of new works. His Tillett Gardens program will open with three flamenco pieces, one of them his own work, followed by three Brahms pieces, one arranged by him. The third segment of the concert consists of works by Mozart, Beethoven and Tarrega. The performance will conclude with two of Koster's own flamenco compositions.
During the course of the evening, the audience will have the opportunity to hear Koster perform four traditional flamenco forms — granadinas, siguiriyas, soleares and bulerias.
A regular performer at New York concert halls as soloist and chamber artist, Koster recently toured to acclaim in Japan. He has taught for a decade at the American Institute of Guitar and is the author of a three-volume set of method manuals used by guitar teachers worldwide.
The concert begins at 8 p.m. Tickets are $25, with a $15 student rate. Reservations are required, as seating is limited. To reserve or learn more, call 779-4322 or 776-6777.

As the sun sheds its first rays of light on the new millennium and the natural wonders of the Caribbean Jan. 1, St. Croix photographer Carol Lee will be there to capture the unveiling on film.
But while photographing the Caribbean, and in particular St. Croix’s, natural beauty isn’t something new for Lee, the concept behind the New Year’s Day project is: The first world-wide photo shoot dedicated to the subject of nature.
The project is called Daybreak 2000, where more than 120 professional photographers around the world will focus their cameras on nature.
"No people, no houses: nothing but nature," Lee said. "St. Croix will represent the Caribbean. I’m totally psyched for it."
On the first day of the new millennium, photographers will be scattered around the globe in countries like Argentina, Canada, Chile, England, Fiji, Finland, Germany, India, Japan, Kenya, Mozambique, New Zealand, Peru, Scotland, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, The United States and Zimbabwe, said the creator of Daybreak 2000, Roger Tefft of California.
"On a day when the world’s attention is focused on whether computers are working, Daybreak 2000 photographers will focus on the timeless wonders of nature – deserts, forests, mountains, oceans, plants and wildlife," Tefft said. "It is our hope that images like those made during the first day of 2000 can be made during the first day of 3000, and beyond."
The images collected by the photographers will be posted on the Internet at www.daybreak2000.com in early January and then be assembled into a book to be released on Feb. 23 by Northword Press.
Lee, meanwhile, has already scouted several potential shooting sites – known only to her – in order to grasp the essence of the Caribbean and St. Croix. She, like other project members, will also be prepared for whatever Mother Nature throws at them on New Year’s Day, be it rain, sun, clouds or fickle wildlife.
"Someone was going to swim with manatees. What if they don’t show up?" Lee said. "I have a list that takes up an entire legal sheet of what I need to take with me."
Some of the participants in the project are acclaimed nature photographers, who will tie the millennium celebration into such things as 1,000-year-old redwood trees in California and ancient baobab trees in Africa – some of which have stood for more than 3,000 years.
"We will succeed if the images from this project inspire our descendants’ descendants to nurture the planet’s precious places for the benefit of future generations," Tefft said.
A portion of the project’s proceeds will be donated to wilderness and wildlife conservation organizations, he said.
For more information on Carol Lee, visit her web site at www.carollee.vi/

There will be fireworks over both St. Thomas and St. John on New Year’s Eve, and a plethora of parties awaiting those still looking for ways to welcome the new millennium (if that’s how you’re counting). Your choice of public New Year’s Eve offerings hereabouts may be guided by how much money you have left after Christmas. The criterion for inclusion in what follows is a three-figure ticket ($99.99 doesn’t make it; sorry, Molly’s Molone’s).
For a multicultural celebration, the Interculture Network has a party aboard the Captain Vic barge. It will feature Nigerian dancers and drummers; Grupo Carabali, an Afro-Cuban band out of Puerto Rico; the Local 12 DJ ensemble from Puerto Rico and DJ Virgo from Minneapolis; and Penny Wiggins, a V.I.-born comic from Los Angeles, as emcee. This is a costumes-required affair and the price tag of $250 includes a buffet and an open bar. The boat leaves Red Hook at 8 p.m. and Cruz Bay at 8:30 and will swing back to Red Hook at 11 p.m. for a late-night pickup, and back again at 2 a.m. for an early drop-off. Tickets are being sold at the Modern Music and Just Cuts shops, or call 776-7774.
The Westin Resort on St. John has been promising midnight fireworks in advertising for weeks, with two party options — $175 for an eight-course dinner in the Cocoloba restaurant and $99 for an international buffet feast in the Beach Cafe.
Now, on St. Thomas, the Renaissance Grand Beach and Wyndham Sugar Bay Resorts and the Agave Terrace restaurant at Point Pleasant have gone together to hire a company to put up midnight sky lights, too. They'll be launched from a barge offshore. The Wyndham is an all-inclusive operation, and a reservations staff member confirmed that the only way the public can attend the "Fire and Ice Millennium Bash" on New Year’s Eve (which will feature a "fire-breathing ice dragon," "exploding desserts" and dancing to the music of The Sun Kings and the Mas Band, is by registering at the hotel. A 26-hour stay from noon Dec. 31 that includes the bash is $490 per couple. For Agave Terrace patrons, the fireworks come with a second-seating dinner from 8:30 to 10:30 p.m. with dancing to the music of Urge, priced at $145. For reservations, call 775-4142. At the Renaissance’s "J’ouvert de Millennia," you can do an 8 p.m. gourmet buffet dinner plus poolside party with music by Milo’s Kings and West Indian show for $225 (or you can just come at 10 p.m. for the party part for $99). For reservations, call 775-1510.
A second set of St. Thomas fireworks is in the works for "Millennium Eve" guests at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel. It will be launched from a barge between Cabrita Point and Deck Point (affording fine viewing at no charge to Cowpet Bay residents, too). The resort offers three late-night dining options — an 8 p.m. seating in the Cafe with a carnival show for $200 plus gratuity, a gourmet cruise ship theme dinner with music by James Anderson from 6 to 10 p.m. in the Dining Room for $250 plus gratuity, and a gala reception and gourmet dinner with entertainment to be announced in the ballroom for $300, gratuity and commemorative photograph included. All three entitle the celebrants to enjoy the fireworks off the beach at midnight. Yet another Ritz-Carlton option is to board the Lady Lindsay sailing vessel at the beach at 11:30 p.m. for one-hour cruise that will enable you to see the St. John fireworks as well as those put on by the Ritz; the cruise is $150, reservations at the aquatic center required. Should you wish to make a night of it, ocean-view rooms are available for $999, double occupancy, not including dinner or anything else. For reservations call 775-3333.
Marriott’s Frenchman’s Reef Beach Resort has its traditional three-part party that starts with cocktails at 7:30 p.m., moves an hour later to the "Taste of the Reef Gala" featuring the specialty cuisines of the four resort restaurants, and winds up from 9:30 until with dancing to the music of The Starlites and Deep Unda Kova. This one’s $230, gratuity included, and the dress code is "island formal." Call 776-8500 ext. 6500 for reservations.
In Cruz Bay, Zozo’s Ristorante is doing two New Year’s Eve seatings for a special menu dinner with coordinated wines for each of the six courses. The first, at 7 p.m., is $125; the second, at 8:30, is $150. Call 693-9200 to reserve.
And then there’s Foxy’s 2000 Barefoot Bacchanal at the Callwood enclave on Jost Van Dyke. Most of the year, this is a boaties and tourists hang-out, home of the famed annual wooden boat races and good times at Foxy’s Great Harbour bar. But Foxy is a mean marketing man, and he saw the millennium crossover for what it is: a magnificent opportunity. He’s put together "10 days of Millennial Madness" attractions of which you can take your pick. The most extravagant: On Wednesday, Dec. 29, for $165 plus $30 gratuity, there’s the Old Havana Dinner and Cuban Fiesta featuring a gourmet meal, music by O2 and "our best Cuban cigars." (Since this is the British Virgin Islands, it’s legal to sell and buy the real thing — although not to bring any back across the waters.) And New Year’s Eve will bring a seven-course "Millennium Feast" (including 3 a.m. breakfast) with a premium open bar and free admission (others pay $50) to the Outback, where there will be music by The Mighty Sparrow, Imaginations Brass and Nicky "Mighty Whitey" Russell. The price? $999 — but hey, that’s for two, and bookings had left room for only eight more couples as of publication. For reservations, call (284) 495-9258 or e-mail to foxysjvd@candwbvi.net.
Now, if you don’t have a boat of your own, do not despair. Option A: For another $250 you can board the Spirit of St. Christopher big cat at American Yacht Harbor for a cruise to Jost. It leaves AYH at 3 p.m. Dec. 31 and returns at 4 a.m. or thereabouts Jan 1. Call 775-9500 for reservations. Option B: For $125 round trip, the Scarab power boats of Arriva Charters will be leaving every hour on the hour from noon to 10 p.m. on Dec. 31 for fast trips to Jost. You’re on your own overnight, with the return trips starting at 1 p.m. Jan. 1 and going hourly "until." Call 714-2628 for reservations.

The St. Thomas-St. John Arts Council and the St. John Community Foundation invite the public to "see for yourself what everybody's talking about," the 12 photo-collage works by Constance Wallace titled "The Colorful Men of Cruz Bay, St. John, 1993."
The show is opening at the foundation offices in the Tradewinds Building with an "Arts After Dark" reception on Thursday, Dec. 30, from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Admission is free and the public is welcome. There will be complimentary finger foods and a cash bar. To learn more, call 693-7765.

Four months of informational, educational and, most of all, fun things to do on Saturdays (and three Sundays) await the public in programs being presented by the Friends of Virgin Islands National Park.
The series of lectures, demonstrations and field trips kicks off on Jan. 8 with "Biogeography of St. John," a guided snorkel tour, and continues through April 15, the second session on "Palm Weaving." Reservations are required, and group maximums are often filled well in advance. Here's the whole schedule:
Jan. 8, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. — "Biogeography of St. John," a snorkel tour guided by marine biologist Ginger Garrison that will focus on the ecology of plants and animals (including corals) that inhabit the area. Departure is from the Cinnamon Bay archeology lab. Fee $35. Group maximum 25. Snorkel gear not provided.
Jan. 15, 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m plus bus tour until 2 p.m. — "Water, Water Everywhere," a lecture and guided safari-bus tour of Coral Bay by economist Bernie Kemp looking at how the people of that dry and isolated part of St. John historically collected, conserved and used water. Departure is from Emmaus Moravian Church. Fee $20. Group maximum 15. For the bus tour, bring your own lunch or purchase traditional West Indian fare at Vie's Shack; go swimming for a $2.50 fee at private White Bay.
Jan. 22, 10 a.m. to noon — "Traditional West Indian Cooking," presented by V.I. National Park ranger Denise Georges at the Annaberg Plantation ruins. She will instruct participants in the preparation of fish, seasoned rice, fried plantains and johnnycakes using the traditional coal pot. Meet at Annaberg. Fee $25. Group maximum 12.
Jan. 29, 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. — "Palm Weaving," a demonstration of circular palm front circular weaving by Deanna Somerville, who will lead each participant to complete a hat. Meet at the Hawksnest Bay beach pavilion. Fee $25. Group maximum 6. Bring a small, sharp, non- serrated knife, a clothespin and a yard of string or dental floss.
Feb. 5, 9 a.m. to noon — "Archeology on St. John," a presentation by National Park Service archeologist Ken Wild of the most recent findings from ongoing excavations of Cinnamon Bay sites, including a slide show and a showing of artifacts not on public display. Meet at the Cinnamon Bay Archeology Lab. Fee $25. Group maximum 20.
Feb. 12, 8 to 11 a.m. — "Birdwatching Expedition," a birding tour led by park ranger and naturalist Laurel Brannick with stops at Trunk Bay, the Cinnamon Bay nature trail and Francis Bay. Transportation is provided. Meet at the Trunk Bay parking lot. Fee $30. Group maximum 25. Bring binoculars and insect repellant.
Feb. 19, 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. — "Coastal Ecology," an off-the-beaten-path boat excursion led by National Park Service instructor Rafe Boulon focusing on the diversity of mangrove lagoons, coral reefs, seagrass beds and beaches. Meet at the Visitor Center dock. Fee $45. Group maximum 25. Bring lunch, wading shoes and snorkel gear.
Feb. 26 — nothing scheduled.
March 4, 9 a.m. to noon — "Archeology on St. John." See Feb. 5 listing.
March 4, 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. plus bus tour until 2 p.m. — "St. John Baskets: A Window into the Culture," a lecture-demonstration and guided safari bus tour by arts and crafts economist Bernie Kemp, who will explore the various island basket-weaving traditions and how they contributed to the life and livelihood of the community. Meet at Emmaus Moravian Church. Fee $20. Group maximum 15. For the bus tour, bring your own lunch or purchase traditional West Indian fare at Vie's Shack; go swimming for a $2.50 fee at private White Bay.
March 5 (Sunday), 7:30 to 9 p.m. — "Stories in the Stars," a night walk on Peace Hill led by astro-mythologist M. Kelly Hunter, to identify the stars and constellations overhead and learn of the myths they have inspired in various cultures. Meet at the Peace Hill parking lot. Fee $20. Group maximum 30. Bring binoculars and flashlight.
March 11, 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. plus bus tour until 2 p.m. — "East End St. John: Stability Through Change," a lecture and guided safari bus tour by economist Bernie Kemp focusing on a stable, self-sufficient community that populated the island's isolated East End from 1799 to 1956, thriving despite major changes in the world beyond them. Meet at Emmaus Moravian Church. Fee $20. Group maximum 15. For the bus tour, bring your own lunch or purchase traditional West Indian fare at Vie's Shack; go swimming for a $2.50 fee at private White Bay.
March 18, 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. — "Glassblowing and Harmony," a guided tour of Harmony Studios at Maho Bay Camps by Jim Barefoot, the ecotourism resort's maintenance manager. He'll discuss sustainable development, recycling and solar power and show how glass is crushed and recycled on the site for use in creating glassblowing art. Meet at the Maho Bay Camps pavilion. Fee $20. Group maximum 20.
March 19 (Sunday), 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. — "A Plankton Adventure," a boat excursion led by naturalist and charter captain Lucy Portlock, who will first show participants how to make nets to collect plankton, then take them out in her boat to gather specimens from several areas, and then take them to the Biosphere Lab to look at it under a microscope. Departure is from the Visitor Center dock. Fee $60. Group maximum 6. Wear clothes suitable for getting wet.
March 25, 9 a.m. to noon — "Archeology on St. John." See Feb. 5 listing.
April 1, either 9 a.m. to noon or 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. — "Offshore Snorkel Trip," your choice of a morning or an afternoon of snorkeling at three sites accessible only by boat, led by marine naturalist Cathy Packo, owner of Sea Gypsy Charters. For experienced snorkelers only. Meet at the Caneel Bay dock. Fee $55. Group maximum 6. Bring snorkel gear, wet suit if desired, underwater camera.
April 2 (Sunday), 7:30 to 9 p.m — "Stories in the Stars." See March 5 listing.
April 8, 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. — "Bordeaux Botany Hike," a walking tour led by naturalist Eleanor Gibney through the island's upland forests to the top of Bordeaux Mountain, with a focus on plants including a federally endangered tree. Meet at the Visitor Center to carpool. Fee $25. Group maximum 25. Bring lunch and drinking water.
April 15, 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. — "Palm Weaving." See Jan. 29 listing.
Seminar fee proceeds go to support the work of the Friends of the Park. For reservations, call 779-4940. Payment may be made by Visa or MasterCard. For more information about the Friends of the Park, see its web page at www.friendsvinp.org.

The Social Security Administration pumped $84,000,000 in benefits into the USVI economy during 1998, according to newly-released figures in Washington.
This represented a $6 million increase over the prior year.
The some 12,500 Social Security checks arriving in the islands each month are the best possible kind of money from the mainland — they are in no danger from a hurricane, the whims of the travel industry (or Congress), or territorial government financial crises.
Further the money goes directly to the recipients, with no opportunities for delays, scandals or governmental waste. (The overhead costs of the Social Security Administration (SSA) are minimal, which is as it should be for a seasoned government agency blessed with major economies of scale.)
Finally, the benefits keep up with inflation, and as a result, the total dollar volume for the USVI grows year after year.
About 8,800 of these monthly checks go to retired workers and their spouses, and to a few of their children; another 2,200 go to widows, widowers and surviving children of insured workers, and the rest, about 1,500, go to disabled workers, and to their spouses and children. Benefit levels vary; they are higher for those with higher earnings, but the formulae are tilted a bit, I think appropriately, to give a break to those with lower incomes.
The volume of benefits, and their steady rise — that's the cheerful side of the coin.
On the other side we find that the Virgin Islands checks are smaller, on average, than those in the rest of the U.S. (but not in the rest of the U.S. islands), and proportionately, there are fewer checks coming to the USVI than there are to American jurisdictions generally.
The average recipient of a Social Security check, nationally, in 1998 found a check worth $707 in his or her mailbox on (usually) the third of the month. The average recipient in the USVI got $562.
In the same year about 16.4% of the American population generally (including for the last few months, this writer) found the little brown envelope in the mail while only 10.6% of the Virgin Islands population had that experience. (More precisely, most of these checks are deposited directly in the recipients' bank accounts, a highly useful part of the SSA program.)
Are there good reasons why the USVI gets less than its apparent share of the checks, and smaller ones at that? And can the local government do something about it?
The answers are "yes" to the first question and "yes but slowly" to the second.
The checks are smaller primarily because the USVI's economy is not as sturdy as that of the nation as a whole, and the checks are less numerous primarily because the average age of the USVI population is lower than that of the rest of the nation. But there are other factors at work that the local government can influence, at least at the margins.
A stealthy reducer of the number of checks and their size is the underground economy, and observers suggest that this is probably more of a problem in the islands than on the Mainland; the efficient troops of the Internal Revenue Service, seldom seen in the USVI, are active on the Mainland to make sure that employers and employees both pay their social security taxes, which go by the acronym of FICA.
Workers who take cash, and avoid the FICA (and break the law), may think they are getting the better part of the deal, but only for the moment because social security benefits, in the later part of one's life, reflect the amount of contributions recorded over the entire working life of the would-be benefits recipient. I was surprised to discover recently, when I filed, that the SSA calculates retirement benefits on the best 35 earning years of one's life; if you don't work in each of those 35 years, that reduces your pension; if you skipped FICA payments on some work done even 35 years back, your pension is reduced. (I did not suffer from losing a year's earnings decades ago, when I was a Fulbright Scholar in New Zealand, only because I delayed filing till I was 70.) You can get a social security pension, at the right age, with only ten years of covered employment, but it is a small pension.
So what could the island government do to keep those Social Security payments increasing year after year? Here are two strategies:

1) fight the underground labor market now so that full benefits are available to island residents in the future, and

2) encourage more people with existing or potential social security benefits to collect them in the islands.

The first strategy is simply supportive of existing federal law, and can not be criticized except by lawbreakers, but it brings benefits slowly; the second is totally non-controversial, it can bring instant results, but the task — encouraging people to retire to a place where do not now live, is difficult. (In Florida, however, fully 21% of the population receives a social security check, as opposed to about 10-11% in the USVI; many of the recipients are not Floridians by birth, but are, instead, Floridians by migration.)
What can the USVI government do about the underground labor market? The most direct tactic would be simply to insist that all USVI government contractors pay their FICA taxes, audit those contractors regularly on this point, and then loudly terminate contracts with those found in non-compliance. Given the number of workers on the territorial payroll, there apparently is a large enough staff to conduct the audits.
The USVI government could also use its influence with the schools, the university and the Food Stamp program to carry a strong message to students and Food Stamp recipients — do not EVEN THINK about taking a cash job in the underground economy.
What can the USVI do to increase the number of Social Security recipients in the islands? Three elements suggest themselves:
A). To the best of my knowledge there is no ongoing USVI program designed to lure back, in their retirement years, people who were born in the islands, and then migrated to the Mainland for their working years. It would be better for the islands, and probably better for the individuals, if their social security checks were mailed to an address in the USVI rather than to a Brooklyn (for example) address.
How do you encourage the widely scattered members of the Virgin Islands diaspora to think about retiring to the USVI? It is a specialized public relations challenge, but there are many channels, in addition to the most obvious one — encouraging USVI residents to write to their own relatives on the subject, sending along government-prepared material on the subject. University and high school alumni lists (and associations) could be used, and so could the envelopes sent out every two years carrying absentee ballots. These mailings, by definition, are going to people who: 1) care about the USVI or they would not be voting, and 2) who are not currently in the USVI. Any mailings sent along with the absentee ballots would have to be scrupulously non-partisan in nature and presumably should not be signed by an elected official.
B). Another, and quite different public relations campaign, this to be conducted with the close cooperation of the private sector, could be aimed at older people who did not grow up in the USVI, who could be encouraged to retire here (just like all those folks from the Middle West now living in Florida.) Anything that could be said to this audience about an improved health care system for senior citizens would, of course, be very useful. Causing them to live in the islands would, in most cases, bring more in financial assets than just their social security checks.
C). A third approach, suggested in an earlier column, would be to encourage immediate retirement of USVI government workers with pending (but unused) social security benefits; this would provide the double benefit of bringing in additional money from the Mainland while reducing the government's payroll. An able-bodied person can retire as early as 62 under the curre
nt law.
In short, the flow of Social Security checks to the Virgin Islands is strong, and growing slowly. The local government, if it desires, can increase that rate of growth — all without seeking anything as difficult as an act of Congress.

Editor's note: David North, a former assistant to the U.S. Secretary of Labor, is chairman of the Board of Tax Appeals in Arlington County, Virginia.