| VICL 5304 Yacht Haven Grande, Ste. 104 St. Thomas, VI 00802 Ph: 800-524-2061 340-774-3944 info@vicl.org |
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St. Thomas Passport Office Open Saturday By Source Staff — October 3, 2009 The St. Thomas Passport Office will be open on Saturday, Oct. 10, to accommodate residents who are unable to visit the offices during regular working hours. The office, located at Nisky Center, will be open from 9 a.m. to noon, according to a press release from the Office of the Lieutenant Governor. Lt. Gov. Francis is encouraging residents to take advantage of the Saturday opening. “This is a good opportunity to bring in children to apply for their passports or simply to beat the rush for holiday travel,” he said. Residents who are planning to apply for or renew their passport are reminded that in addition to the completed passport application, they will also be required to provide proof of citizenship and identity, two 2x2 photos and associated fees. Additional requirements apply for minor children. Copies of the passport application are available at the Office of the Lieutenant Governor or online at www.ltg.gov.vi For more information, contact the Passport Office on St. Thomas/St. John district at 774-4024. |
St. Thomas gets proactive to protect its charter future 29 April, 2009 06:32:00 Carol Bareuther Yacht chartering in the Caribbean, and the world, has seen a downturn in recent months. "In general the charter business has been off by estimates as high as 40 percent," said Bob Saxon, of Bob Saxon Consultancy in Ft. Lauderdale. "But that’s not surprising when one considers that the charter business historically follows the stock market. When disposable income abounds, the charter business flourishes. "That said, what with the recent stock market upturns, I understand there has been a corresponding positive reaction in the charter market," he said. Repeat business has kept many term charter operators afloat, Ackerson said. "It’s the yachts new to charter, that don’t have a stable of repeat customers, who are having to get creative in their marketing," said Jennifer Saia, president and charter specialist with The Sacks Group in Ft. Lauderdale. "We were pretty fortunate to have such long-time, multi-repeat clients that we had a decent winter, but certainly it was not a banner first quarter. "As for summer, we are seeing a rise in the Mediterranean inquiries again, particularly for Greece and Turkey," she said. "We do have some strong interest for the south of France and Italian Riviera, too. Plus, there are yachts staying in the Caribbean longer, through June and July, thus, we have some early summer bookings for the Virgin Islands already, too." Some yachts have responded to the economic downturn by offering cut rates as an incentive to charter. "Although the posted rate sheets for charter yachts might not readily indicate it, owners of yachts are ready to make deals," Saxon said. "I’ve noted some yachts offering extended charter vacations (for example 10 days for the seven day rate) and others holding to their 2008 charter rates wherein the market in previous years would have dictated an annual charter rate increase as much as 10 percent." Looking ahead in terms of proactive ways to boost the charter market, Saxon said, "This doesn’t simply mean discounts, but for example, exploiting the most valuable assets that the particular charter yacht offers. For some it may be the crew, others the destination, and even for others the amenities and activities the charter vacation offers. The days of simply offering a yacht in the Mediterranean and assuming a reasonably reliable yacht, crew, and venue, and capturing charters to meet the owner’s volume activity objectives, are for the immediate future, ended. "It’s a variation on ‘build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door’," he said. The U.S. Virgin Islands is looking to build just such a mousetrap. In April, Governor John P. deJongh signed an executive order to establish the Virgin Islands Marine Economic Development Council. The VICL’s Ackerson will head the council. "Our mission is to represent marine tourism in the territory," he said. "The council will be federally funded, meaning we can go after grant money to build a stronger infrastructure. This will include funding for adult retraining into jobs in the marine industry in order to offer more services. Also, to market destinations such as St. Croix, that has the best fuel rates in the Caribbean thanks to the Hovensa refinery, as a megayacht stop-over." Carol Bareuther is a freelance writer in St. Thomas. Comments on this story are welcome at editorial@the- triton.com . |
| FirstBank Launches Free Mobile Banking to Its Customers By Source Staff — October 2, 2009 In an effort to better service clients, FirstBank has launched free mobile banking to all account holders in the United States and British Virgin Islands. FirstBank’s mobile banking service will give clients instant connectivity to accounts anywhere, anytime using the browser on their mobile devices. Continuing to take a proactive leadership role in providing clients with the technology to meet their needs not only today but in the future, it is pleased to offer clients yet another delivery channel for accessing their account information. Since the introduction of FirstBank’s Internet banking product nearly a decade ago, enhancements and additional features such as bill payer have been added. A commitment to providing clients access to the best the industry has to offer, is the driving force behind the recent mobile banking launch and all the other 24/7 channels available to its clients. The bank has partnered with financial services technology company, First Data Corporation, to provide a convenient and secure way for clients to check account balances, view account history, transfer funds between accounts and make loan transfer payments, while on the go. “We are excited to offer our client base yet another channel to monitor and use their accounts,” said Cassan Pancham, executive vice president. “We value our relationships with our clients and want to provide them with tools that make their lives easier in these increasingly busy times.” Clients who already utilize FirstBank’s Internet Banking service, can go to www.firstbankvimoble.com immediately to enjoy anytime banking. For more information or to enroll in Internet Banking, customers can stop by any FirstBank office or go to www.firstbankvi.com to sign-up for Internet/Mobile Banking. |
Conch Season to Open next Month Daily News Staff Monday, October 5th 2009 The V.I. Division of Fish and Wildlife is reminding the fishing community that the conch-fishing season does not open until Nov. 1. The queen conch fishing season is from Nov. 1 to May 31. It is closed from June 1 to Oct. 31. Possession of queen conch during the closed season is illegal. The rules and regulations of the conch fisheries for the 2009 fishing year are as follows. Queen conch must have a minimum 9-inch shell length from the spire to the distal end, or ÃŽ inch lip thickness. No harvest of undersized conch is allowed and no possession of conch meats smaller than two per pound uncleaned or three per pound cleaned is allowed. There is a landing restriction of 200 conch per day per registered commercial fishing vessel and total annual landings of conch must not exceed 50,000 pounds in each district. Recreational fishermen are allowed six conch per day for each person on a vessel, but the total amount taken in by one boat is not to exceed 24 per day. Conch must be landed alive and whole in the shell at the final landing site. There is no disposal of shell at sea before landing. Taking conch to offshore cays and islands for the purpose of removing the meat from the shell is prohibited. Transporting conch meat out of the shell over open water is also prohibited. Sale of undersized conch shells or meat is unlawful and all imported conch meat shipments must be accompanied by a Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species export permit and shipment must be cleared at the Port of Miami. |
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New Moorings Installed in Christiansted By ALDETH LEWIN Monday, October 5th 2009 Twenty new moorings have been installed in Christiansted Harbor and the Department of Planning and Natural Resources is reminding owners of boats currently anchored there that the boats must be out today. The new moorings, installed by the Department of Planning and Natural Resources' Division of Fish and Wildlife, are for transient vessels 40 feet to 60 feet in length. Transient vessels are those visiting the territory for a limited time. V.I. Fish and Wildlife biologist William Tobias said the division received about $300,000 from the Department of the Interior for boating infrastructure improvements in the territory. The grant money was split between three projects: maintaining and repairing existing mooring sites; installing new transient moorings; and installing storm moorings. The grant for transient moorings allowed the territory to purchase and install 20 moorings on St. Croix in Christiansted Harbor and 10 on St. Thomas at Christmas Cove. In Christiansted, the mooring area is between Fort Louise Augusta and the Altona Lagoon boat access facility. The St. Thomas moorings have not yet been installed. Tobias said the purpose of the new moorings are to stop boaters from dropping anchor and tearing up the ocean floor. "These moorings are to reduce damage to essential fish habitat - coral reefs, seagrass beds and other hard bottom communities," Tobias said. He also stressed that the moorings are not storm moorings and all vessels must leave the area 24 hours before a storm is due. Tobias said part of the federal grant will be to develop storm moorings throughout the territory. The parameters for the length of time allowed for a transient vessel to stay on one of the moorings is still being worked out with DPNR's Division of Environmental Enforcement along with rates and fees for using the site. To use the mooring sites, vessels must contact Environmental Enforcement at 773-5774. The division will authorize the amount of time a vessel can stay on the mooring and will collect mooring fees. |