Yep, those are police cars taking up four spaces intended for the public at the temporary overflow parking lot at the Winston Wells ball field in Cruz Bay.
Inez the Deputy Inquiring Iguana spotted them there.
The temporary lot was opened about a week ago because of the St. John Festival, which has made parking is more scarce downtown than usual.
It’s not enough the police park half a dozen of their huge SUVs in front of Headquarters, eh?
Why aren’t sone of those cars on patrol?
Not unusual, just like in many places back in the states, police think they are above the law.
Public parking in St john has become more of a problem in the last few years. The road along the water up the hill from the beach bar was available at one time, now it’s a no parking zone. Paying 350-400 per week for jeep rentals, and then having to pay for parking, if you can find something is a problem. I live in New Orleans, and it’s the same there. The city depends on tourism, but does little to accomodate peoplw wirh available parking places. But they do have the meter maids out in full force daily!!!
Maybe if they were out patroling and writing some tickets the VI could generate some money to help fund the school systems. It seems like all the money the Police dept has is spent on cleaning supplies for their unused suv’s
The VI Government Claims nobody wants to be a police officer that they need volunteers. So if we don’t have enough officers why so many SUV’s. Why don’t we reduce the amount of money spent on new police cars bought and maintained a spend the saved money increasing the salary of officers in the hopes that it will encourage more to enroll and perform.
Correct me if I am wrong Frank, but I thought I read somewhere that the police HAVE to buy the new cars, was it every three years? Some kind of stipulation on a contract? Not sure what it was. Do you know Frank?
What really bothers me a lot is when the police vehicles occupy the ONE handicap parking spot in front of the station, which is the case 90% of the time.
Julie … yep, thanks to union contracts.
“The (VI Daily News) reported, “The police must buy new cars every three years because of two collective bargaining agreements if vehicles are more than three-years old or have logged more than 80,000 miles.”
http://barnako.typepad.com/news_of_st_john_usvi/2009/01/new-police-suvs-being-delivered.html
The cars are rarely on patrol. It is one of my pet peeves on STJ. I usually count 6-7 parked in front of the station. Especially in the evenings, there should be several officers on foot and visible here and there in town. I’ve never seen a one! I believe they are lazy and rarely held accountable for anything.
Eliminate the department nad outsource it overseas. Seriously – a car cannot last three years on that island!!!
Hey Brian,
A car can last 30 years on that Island if they stay parked all day and night!
I just returned from my second vacation to St John in as many years. It is a wonderful Island but was concerned at the total lack of a Police presence. This can only lead to increased crime. One answer is to take the Air Conditioning out of the Police station. That would save thousands of dollars in reduced electric bills and might actualy get the officers off their butts and out in the cars and on the streets of St. John helping residents and visitors feel protected. Then maybe there would be justification for an increase in their salaries.
I’ve been to St John 5 or 6 times for a week or more, and have never seen a car on patrol.
The one time I saw a patrolman was at the docks verbally harassing and threatening to issue tickets to folks trying to get their own luggage and supplies into their vehicles. At the same time he was huckstering business for the local porters.
That’s just wrong.
G
St. John Police are the very criminals we should be locking up.