Open Letter of Support for EHI’s Plans to Rebuild Caneel Bay Resort and Return the Land to the People of St. John

            We, the undersigned Virgin Islands residents, community groups, and businesses, support EHI’s plans to rebuild Caneel Bay Resort and transfer ownership of the land to the people of St. John.

 The Resort was once the largest employer on St. John, providing well-paying jobs for more than 400 employees, bringing over $160 million a year to the local economy.  Unfortunately, since Hurricanes Irma and Maria destroyed the Resort in 2017, it has remained closed.  Rebuilding the Resort will bring back the jobs and the significant economic benefits to the Virgin Islands.

EHI Acquisitions, LLC (“EHI”), the owner of the Resort, wants to immediately rebuild the Resort in a way that benefits the local community, including returning ownership of the land to the people of St. John.  But EHI cannot rebuild while the property is tied up in litigation with the National Park Service and the United States Government. 

We urge the parties to quickly negotiate a resolution to the lawsuit so that rebuilding Caneel Bay Resort may begin. 

And we support EHI’s commitments to the people of St. John:

1.      EHI will return the resort land to the people of St. John.  After EHI secures title to the land, it will donate the land to a charitable entity established for the benefit of the people of St. John and managed by USVI residents.

2.      EHI will rebuild Caneel Bay Resort as a 5-star resort.  EHI can rebuild more quickly than any other company, while it preserves the natural environment and incorporates more hurricane-resistant design and construction methods. 

3.      EHI will give a portion of Resort revenues to the charitable entity, which will be used to continue EHI’s long standing support of the Julius E. Sprauve School and environmental preservation initiatives, and be expanded to support other entities, such as the Myra-Keating Clinic. 

4.      EHI’s resort will recruit from the local community.  EHI will appoint senior managers who know and respect the Virgin Islands people and culture.  EHI will further support hotel management education for local residents to provide the opportunity for more rapid employment advancement.

5.      EHI will build a community space on the land to honor the site’s cultural heritage.  Working with the Virgin Islands National Park and local historical societies, EHI will ensure that historical buildings and artifacts continue to be preserved.

6.      EHI will remediate environmental contamination and continue to preserve the land’s pristine natural environment. 

Signed,