CHARLOTTE AMALIE — Governor Albert Bryan issued the following statement dispelling rumors circulating in the Virgin Islands community on the Hull Bay Ramp and Parking Improvements Project:
“Five years ago, as I campaigned for governor, I promised the fishers of Hull Bay and the residents of Northside that a Bryan Roach Administration would move on the proposed Hull Bay project to expand the boat ramp and make improvements to parking to ensure the convenient use of the area for both our fishers and recreational beachgoers.
“That promise came from the demand from our local fishers and my personal penchant for progress and seeing Virgin Islanders benefit from that progress. And so, concerning this project, I affirmed that a Bryan-Roach Administration would pursue, to the fullest extent of what is legally feasible, the demands of the fishers and residents of Northside. We have done that. We held public town hall meetings more than a year ago again to solicit the input of Northside’s fishers and residents and inform them of the project’s status.
“So, it is disappointing that, after more than a year and a half since that Town Hall and five years since that commitment, and perhaps months away from shovels in the ground, special interests want us back in 2011 in the conceptual phases of this needed and demanded capital improvement project,” Governor Bryan stated.
The Hull Bay ramp renovation project was initiated in 2011. The first set of design plans were unveiled in 2013 after two rounds of public meetings. Due to funding factors, the full construction documents were not completed. In 2017, renewed funding allowed for a second round of public meetings and subsequent designs. Unfortunately, the Hull Bay ramp collapsed in February 2019 and funds were re-programmed to fix the ramp.
“Now we have a third opportunity to create a stronger, more durable boating ramp with associated trailer parking in Hull Bay,” said DPNR Commissioner Jean-Pierre Oriol. “We’re improving the parking for beachgoers as well.”
Since the architectural and engineering plans were unveiled, DPNR has received comments on the plans ranging from concern about continued public use of the ramp during construction, to the size and scope of the development and the removal of trees.
The current ramp will stay in place while the new ramp is under construction and will be removed afterwards.
The existing ramp is just short of 100 feet in length and the proposed ramp is 120 feet in length. The new ramp will have a lower pitch and the extension will end in 4.5 feet of water, making it easier to launch vessels, without having to place one’s vehicle into the water. The extension of the ramp was part of the discussions going back to 2011 and was included in the 2013 designs, Commissioner Oriol said.
The scope of the project was extended to address parking for the vessel launch, as parking specifically to address trailer use is a necessary part of planning a vessel launch. “We’re proposing to create proper parking for vehicles and the trailers attached to them,” Oriol said.
The plans call for a total of 13 trees to be removed, 10 of which will be replaced.
The Office of the Governor, alongside DPNR, held a public Town Hall meeting in February 2022 to share the redevelopment plans and provide an update on the project’s status. Members of the community will be given an additional opportunity to provide comments at a public meeting that will take place at The Shack in Hull Bay on Thursday at 6 p.m.
“What’s in front of us is a long-term fix — and not patchwork — of the issues relating to public access of this area. We’re coming up with a solution,” Oriol said.