Keep St Croix relevant

I am going to St. Croix on 6/6/17 and am really excited

I think a lot of STX residents would be fine with keeping it a nice, quiet "Non-Tourist" destination.

We need some of those tourists to help lift the economy without becoming another STT. We don't have a big refinery anymore to prop us up. Hopefully most residents understand that.

St. Croix as it is, always seemed "relevant" enough to me.

Lol uhhhh have you BEEN to Frederiksted? It could use some real tourist dollars.

the whole island could use those tourists

Fredericksted is a good example of why tourism is not the thing for STX to depend upon. The number of cruise ships is always fluctuating, this year the number of ships is way down. As new destination open up, like Cuba, or the national economy hits a speed bump, your sole source of income dries up. Instead of dumping millions of dollars into the Department of Tourism, we should have been doing far more to keep large businesses like Hovensa happy, so they'd stay and continue to invest here. That old refinery provided reliable, union represented and management jobs with great benefits for over 40 years, not to mention over a hundred million a year in tax revenue. It could have still been doing that if the local government wasn't so intent on biting the hand that fed it.
A fickle tourism industry will never be able to compete with the solid benefits, and big dollars, a large company like Hovensa provided.

To Islandlover15 and others,
St. Croix is a beautiful island, certainly open to tourism. It has a lot to offer to those looking for something other than what so many other islands in the Caribbean do. The vast majority of people here are a great example of the very best humanity has to offer. There are still thousands of acres of undeveloped and unspoiled land here. The local waters, beaches, and off shore islands are the stuff that tourism brochures are filled with. Many of us who fell in love with St. Croix and decided to make it home, we're tourists themselves at one point.
My point is that a big part of what makes St. Croix the unique place that it is, is the fact that mega hotels, condominium complexes, and cruise ship companies haven't cut off access to every beautiful stretch of beach or scenic overlook, or boardwalk we have. Roads are still, for the most part, uncrowded. Neighborhoods, for the most part, are still quiet, and more importantly... its still affordable to other than only the super rich.

(tu)

To Islandlover15 and others,
St. Croix is a beautiful island, certainly open to tourism. It has a lot to offer to those looking for something other than what so many other islands in the Caribbean do. The vast majority of people here are a great example of the very best humanity has to offer. There are still thousands of acres of undeveloped and unspoiled land here. The local waters, beaches, and off shore islands are the stuff that tourism brochures are filled with. Many of us who fell in love with St. Croix and decided to make it home, we're tourists themselves at one point.
My point is that a big part of what makes St. Croix the unique place that it is, is the fact that mega hotels, condominium complexes, and cruise ship companies haven't cut off access to every beautiful stretch of beach or scenic overlook, or boardwalk we have. Roads are still, for the most part, uncrowded. Neighborhoods, for the most part, are still quiet, and more importantly... its still affordable to other than only the super rich.

Not sure why this is turning into a debate. Just a simple opportunity to promote the island if you wanted to. If you don't want to vote then don't. Btw why would anyone want to rely on a refineary that harms the environment and is one accident away from irreparably ruining the island forever? Cruise ships and megaresorts are not the only form of tourism. St Croix should leverage what makes it great - a beautiful island, with a variety of vacation rentals across all budgets, affordable real estate, friendly atmosphere, diverse ecology, interesting history and multitude of activities to enjoy with your loved ones. I own a home that I get to enjoy a couple weeks a year. I'd like to rent it as much as possible until I get to relocate full time to the island. So keeping St Croix in the conversation with the likes of Turks and Caicos, Bahamas, Aruba, St Lucia, Barbados, Bermuda and the many other options in the Caribbean is the prudent thing to do. A thriving economy might get me on island sooner due to better business opportunities. Tourists can of course harm the environment too but its up to the powers that be to properly allocate funds to protect the island. Sustainable resources and diversification of economy must also be a focus because being a one trick pony isn't good. So if you'd like to vote here's the link again. https://www.cntraveler.com/rca/vote

(tu)

To Islandlover15 and others,
St. Croix is a beautiful island, certainly open to tourism. It has a lot to offer to those looking for something other than what so many other islands in the Caribbean do. The vast majority of people here are a great example of the very best humanity has to offer. There are still thousands of acres of undeveloped and unspoiled land here. The local waters, beaches, and off shore islands are the stuff that tourism brochures are filled with. Many of us who fell in love with St. Croix and decided to make it home, we're tourists themselves at one point.
My point is that a big part of what makes St. Croix the unique place that it is, is the fact that mega hotels, condominium complexes, and cruise ship companies haven't cut off access to every beautiful stretch of beach or scenic overlook, or boardwalk we have. Roads are still, for the most part, uncrowded. Neighborhoods, for the most part, are still quiet, and more importantly... its still affordable to other than only the super rich.

Very well said singlefin (and love the handle name)! Your positive attitude about STX and the VI is a breath of fresh air here on the VI moving center. We need more of this on the board because seems to me most people are pretty happy here on STX and the VI, locals and transplants alike. Its only on message boards like this or comments on the local news sources that makes it seem like the general populace is unhappy. When I go out on the town or visit the beach or do a little shopping at the store, people seem happy and friendly. I also see people spending money, enjoying themselves, driving nice cars, boats, motorcycles etc. So the doom and gloom about the economy is not representative of the entire population.

By the way, I'm sure we know each other or have seen each other in the water. I'd love to add a singlefin to my quiver! Love the lines you can take on a singlefin! Cheers!

Thank you Matt T.
I used to work for a large company up in NY. Everyone made good money, had medical benefits and a pension in their future to look forward to. Yet it was filled with some of the most miserable people you'd ever meet. None of them left and went out to get a "better" job mind you, they just love to bitch and moan all day long. (Misery loves company?)

Here we are, in one of the most beautiful places on earth, with great weather and great people. It's not perfect, but what so many people here (or few I should really say) fail to realize, is there is no perfect place anywhere on this planet.

Life is what you make it.

And yes, good guess, I am a surfer. I also handcrafted Longboards and Midlengths for over 20 years besides doing my day job. Surfers always seemed to me to be a bit more connected, a bit more down to earth, more appreciative of what's most important in life. Maybe getting washed over the rocks and smacked in the face by mother nature from time to time humbles you? Maybe this is one of the thing the VI does need... more Surfers. (well... not to many more, the lineups are so wonderfully uncrowded here).

I love St. Croix but I think we have enough space to afford just a few more resorts. Also, the Limetree facility provides much needed stable good paying jobs. As a business owner, I'm glad to hear that they're going to be refining again in the near future as this will provide more jobs and prosperity.

We are looking towards moving to St Croix in 2 years or so, after retirement. While the lack of too many / too crowded tourist facilities is helping our decision, it seems like St Croix is "missing the boat" in one respect. Part time or full year seniors from the mainland like ourselves could be growth business.
I bet there are private developers that would love to build 55+ communities. The availability of Medicare and Medigap supplemental insurance is big selling point. Unfortunately, US citizens under 65 years old CAN'T buy individual health insurance. This is a big gap to attracting retirees who only want to buy a little place to live, patronize the local establishments and not take up a spot in the job market.

Improvements in Health Insurance on-island is a HUGE issue. The Lt. Governor is supposed to be working on something to improve it. With all the other issues facing the local government though... who knows.