st. john blog

As regular as clockwork, if such a thing is possible on St. John, fireworks lit up the sky over Cruz Bay Harbor last night.  

The colorful, sparkly, noisy conclusion to a month's worth of activities known as St. John Festival thoroughly entertained locals and visitors.

Gretchen Labrenz of Cruz Bay Realty Tweeted that the fireworks were "the only thing that ever happens on time on ST. JOHN … 9:00 sharp!"

This photo is courtesy of Bob Schlesinger and is actually of the pyrotechnics launched last year … new images of last night's show 'soon come'. (www.tropicalfocus.com)

Now, as for the cost.  Well, the St., John Source quotes the Festival's chairman saying the budget for all the events was $350,000.  The cost of the fireworks show is about $30,000, said Leona Smith, the chairman.

Sponsors and event fees pay for about a third of the total. The VI government kicks in the rest.

"A lot of the money – about $200,000 – goes to pay for the bands and entertainers that perform at various activities in the (Festival) Village," the Source reported. (Read the full story here.)

Despite hundreds of people "liking" Facebook Groups dedicated to keeping Maho Bay Camps from going dark in a year, no one has stepped forward to organize an effort to purchase the land or extend the lease.

• Let's Save our beloved Maho Bay Camps
• Save Maho Bay Camps – A Guest-Led Ecotourism Preservation Effort

Kristin Hawk posted on one of the groups she thought Richard Branson could be a white knight "He's close by, a nature lover, and filthy rich."

Read moreWanted: 23 million Maho Bay Campers

This week is the big windup for St. John Festival, 2011. The theme this year is An Astronomical and Cultural Splendor in Heaven. 

The traditional Festival Village in the Cruz Bay parking lot, across rom the Post Office, opens Wednesday evening at 7 p.m.  This year it is to be known as Wadeville, in honor of Ira Wade, the island's deputy Public Works Commissioner.

Vendors will offer conchs and rotis and stews and all manner of other local foods and recipes.  A wide selection of brews, mixed drinks, punches, water and sodas will also be available to wash it all down.

This photo, courtesy of the Governor's office, is from the opening the Festival Village last year.  It features the Governor, the Festival Queen and her court.

On Sunday, the newly-renovated Franklin A. Powell Sr. Park will be the site of Cultural Day.  Starting at 3 p.m. a variety of musicians and performers will entertain.  Expect to hear pan players, drummers and even the traditional blowing of conch shells.

"Another parking shakedown at the Dolphin Market" is generating dozens of comments via the St. John forum of Trip Advisor.

Gabrielle55 of Bethesda, Md. kicked it off with a rant about her vehicle being booted for parking in the food store's Cruz Bay lot while she and her husband went to dinner.  On returning, she was told what-she-called her 'honest mistake' would cost her $175 to get her car rolling again.

She also complained about being unable to get a receipt for the un-booting and that one of the store's 'guards' threatened to smash her camera if a picture was taken of the payment being made.

Many of the comments, perhaps surprisingly, side with Dolphin.  

Pia, a local, said, "Dolphin Market does have signs on all of he walls where to park your car and very clearly states, 'Parking for Customers Only.'" She points out that the new public parking lot at the Enighed commercial dock is now open, "a three-minute walk from town."

Read moreParking in Paradise is a big Problem

Plans for a new gas station and convenience store on Centerline Road have moved a step closer.  

Even as another station is under construction along the south shore road, across the Westin, a Senate committee hear a request from Guilderoy Sprauve Jr. to permit him to build a three-bay gas station on land now zoned residential.

According to a report of the Committee of the Whole meeting in the Virgin Islands Daily News, the Department of Natural Resources is agreeable to the variance.  

To move further, a Senator needs to back the plan and submit a bill authorizing the change. The station near the Westin is expected to be complete by next February, the Daily News reported.