CHARLOTTE AMALIE — “The Vendors Plaza kiosks are on the way,” said Commissioner Richard T. Evangelista of the Department of Licensing and Consumer Affairs (DLCA). “I am excited to announce that earlier last week, the first set of kiosks were loaded onto trailers at the Creations Global assembly plant located in Dallas, Texas and are expected to arrive in St. Thomas on or about the second week of October.”
The availability of materials to construct the kiosks as well as the request to reinforce the kiosks to withstand a Category 3 Hurricane increased the completion time for the kiosks. Most recently, the arrival of Hurricane Ian to the state of Florida interrupted the trucking route of the kiosks to the Port of Jacksonville, Florida.
In preparation for the arrival of the new kiosks, DLCA recently met with the Vendors and advised them that they must relocate across the street to the West side of Fort Christian to allow for the site preparation. A huge amount of gratitude goes out to the Department of Planning and Natural Resources for sharing its space with the Department of Licensing and Consumer Affairs.
At its temporary location, the vendors shall continue to sell their goods. Due to the limited amount space and for the safety of both the vendors and the patrons, there shall be a maximum of 12 vendors at any one time and each group of shall rotate every two weeks until the kiosks are installed.
When the trailers arrive, parking shall be restricted in the parking lot adjacent to the North side of Vendors Plaza to allow for the safe unloading of the trailers as well as room for the assembly of the kiosks. “I am confident that the New Vendors Plaza will far outweigh the major inconveniences caused by the actions necessary to renovate Vendors Plaza,” said Commissioner Richard Evangelista.