Coral Bay Community Council - News and Upcoming Events

News and Upcoming Events

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July 30th, 2010

"Why is the water brown? Sedimentation studies in St. John bays and coral reefs" will be the special evening program on Friday, July 30th at 7:30 pm at Maho Bay Camps Resort Restaurant. Dr. Sarah C. Gray, Associate Professor of Marine Science and Environmental Studies at the University of San Diego is doing research here again this summer, this time on a 25-day field sampling program with 9 students. In this multi-year research program, she and her students are studying the land-sea connection to sedimentation in Coral Bay, Lameshur Bay and Fish Bay. She will share insights from her research with the community. Dr. Gray is a research partner in the Coral Bay Community Council's EPA CARE program and receives funding from NOAA for some of this work. You can come for the 7:30 program only, or earlier for dinner which is served from 5:30 to 7:30 pm. Everyone is welcome.

Press contact: For further information, Dr. Gray can be reached at sgray@sandiego.edu or by cellphone at 619-200-1878.

July 28th, 2010

Erosion Control Blanket Installation Training - Wednesday July 28th, Noon til 3 pm, Sputniks, Coral Bay:

All construction workers and building contractors are invited for free training in the latest erosion control technology: erosion control blankets for steep slope construction sites. These blankets are now being used for Coral Bay retrofit work - to stop sediment from entering Coral Bay – and harming our reefs and marine life. Special blanket pins require special installation techniques, so don’t miss this opportunity to expand your knowledge and marketability as a Builder Who Cares. Randy Thompson of Propex will train on Wednesday, July 28th beginning at noon at Sputniks in Coral Bay and continuing til 3pm at a hands-on demonstration site. This is an EPA CARE grant Erosion Control seminar co-sponsored by the Coral Bay Community Council and the Island Green Building Association (IGBA). Participants are eligible for an EPA CARE - I CARE certificate upon completion of four seminars. Certificate holders will be publicized by IGBA as “Builders Who Care”. Julietta's Rotis will be served to participants at the special low price of $5.00.

FREE training and a cheap lunch with your friends – you can’t go wrong – see you there!
The session will begin with an overview of the current CBCC/VIRCD NOAA-ARRA Watershed Stabilization projects in Coral Bay that are just beginning construction. CBCC's new Stormwater Engineer, Chris Laude, will also be formally introduced to Coral Bay at this event. The community is welcome!

For more information, please call CBCC at 776-2099

June 10th, 2010

The Coral Bay Community Council will hold a CBCC Forum June 10th: 'A review of USVI Shark Research from 2004 to present' by Bryan DeAngelis and Dr. Greg Skomal. It will be the evenining program at the Maho Bay Campgrounds Pavillion at 7:30 pm Thursday June 10th. (The restaurant serves dinner from 5:30 to 7pm - this is the after dinner evening program for the guests too.) The shark researchers are returning this week for their 5th year of juvenile shark research in Coral Bay and Fish Bay. Learn about the juvenile sharks - 12 inches to 2 feet long - that live in our shallow bay nurseries. Over the years, the membership and volunteers of CBCC have helped support the research with donated hours, boats, gas, along with other grants. Concordia eco-resort has donated lodging. Come hear about the shark research we have all helped support. Everyone is welcome. For more information call the CBCC office at 776-2099.

Note that the program is being held at Maho Bay Campgrounds Pavillion at 7:30 pm, Thursday June 10th -- NOT our usual location.

May 10th, 2010
The Coral Bay Community Council's Forum on Monday, May 10th, at 6pm at Sputnik's will feature local Cistern Drinking Water testing results. Dr. Barry Devine will give a presentation of the water quality testing results done under the EPA CARE grant with the cooperation of residents. Results showed that locally available, easy to install ,water purification systems do work to make the water drinkable per national testing standards. More information on these solutions and how to do testing will also be shared. Eckerd College will also present their ongoing sedimentation research in Coral Bay. Julietta's Rotis will be available for dinner, if residents call Sputnik's by noon on the day to order them - 776-6644.

April 12th, 2010
The Coral Bay Community Council will be holding a community forum with Stuart Smith, DPNR's new St. John Planner, on April 12th from 6pm to 7pm at the John's Folly Learning Institute in Coral Bay. Stuart Smith will introduce himself and discuss what he has learned in his first month on the job -- and then listen to comments and concerns about planning and development on St. John from the audience. Participants are also encouraged to share their vision for the future of Coral Bay, as CBCC plans to re-initiate this process in cooperation with DPNR in the coming months. For more information, call the CBCC office at 776-2099

April 14, 2010:
Come Celebrate Watershed Restoration Ground-breaking in Coral Bay!

The Virgin Islands Resource Conservation & Development Council, Inc.(V.I. RC&D) and the Coral Bay Community Council (CBCC) invite you to participate in our Ground-breaking Event for NOAA Recovery Act-funded Watershed Restoration Activities in Coral Bay. The Coral Bay Watershed Restoration Ground-breaking will be held from 10:00 – 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday, April 14, 2010, on the second floor of the V.I. Agricultural station in Coral Bay. The Coral Bay public is invited to the Ceremony. The Honorable Governor John P. deJongh, Jr. and Mr. Samuel Rauch, Deputy Assistant Administrator for Regulatory Programs, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, will be the principal speakers. Several Commissioners and community leaders will also be present. There will be time for press interviews from 11:15 to 11:30. Following the groundbreaking, a site tour will be conducted for V.I. Government and NOAA representatives from 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

This event will highlight the significance of this project to the territory in providing dedicated funding to implement critical watershed conservation and restoration activities. These activities will help to restore degraded natural resources such as mangroves, coral reefs and fisheries as well as support building more resilient coasts in the face of climate change. It will also provide jobs and new skills in the territory.

Through the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, over $2.7 million was awarded to V.I RC&D to implement the USVI Coastal Habitat Restoration through Watershed Stabilization Project. This groundbreaking event will kick-off storm water management construction projects to be implemented in Coral Bay utilizing $1.5 million of the NOAA-administered Recovery Act funds. By installing targeted watershed restoration practices, project partners are seeking to mitigate sedimentation – the primary land-based threat to USVI coastal and marine habitats. Please see the attached flyer for the agenda.

March 24 , 2010
The Guy H. Benjamin Afterschool Program, “The World Around Us”, has begun. It is in session Monday through Thursday from 3:30 to 5:15 and offers a wide range of both academic and extracurricular activities for children in grades K-6. read more..

January 11, 2010

Coral Bay residents are invited to attend a community meeting to be held Monday, January 11, 2010 from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. at the John’s Folly Learning Institute. Coral Bay Community Council (CBCC), in partnership with the Virgin Islands Resource Conservation and Development Council (V.I. RC&D), will discuss planned storm water management construction projects to be implemented in Coral Bay with a portion of the $2.78 million in NOAA-ARRA Coastal Habitat Restoration grant funds received by V.I. RC&D. This work complements CBCC’s Coral Bay Watershed Management Project and utilizes designs developed under CBCC’s EPA CARE grant. Construction will focus on eliminating or reducing the most severe sediment plumes entering Coral Bay, and will include work on public and private roads including King’s Hill Road, Carolina Valley, Route 108 (lower Bordeaux), Hansen Bay, Johnny Horn Trail, John’s Folly and Calabash Boom. Work will be done in cooperation with homeowner’s associations, Public Works, and groups of residents who maintain their local roads. Local contractors are encouraged to attend to learn about bidding requirements. For more information, please call the CBCC office at 340-776-2099 or the V.I. RC&D office at 340-692-6932 x5

News Archives:

December 12 and 13
BIG TRASH REMOVAL - THIS WEEKEND is your chance to get rid of mattresses, tires, old furniture, and appliances at the Coral Bay bin site – legally. This is the Waste Management Authority’s annual big trash cleanup and metal recycling event. Take advantage of not having to haul these items all the way to Susannaberg as you normally do -- Just bring them down to the Coral Bay bin site – on Saturday or Sunday (12th and 13th)

December 14
Coral Bay Community Christmas Tree 2009 – THIS Monday, December 14 - 6:30 pm at the Coral Bay basketball court. Join everyone in singing caroles and welcoming Santa for the kids! This annual Tradition brings neighborhoods out to sing -- in a “competitive challenge for festiveness” between neighborhoods. So bring your voices and your neighbors – so you can sing loud! No talent required – just lots of holiday and community spirit.

CBCC’s role is encouraging everyone to bring gifts for Santa to give the children - so please buy a gift or two and wrap it and label for boy or girl and age – as appropriate. We always want to be sure to have enough for all the children! (You can also drop off gifts at Connections East and be sure to say for CBCC!) See you this MONDAY at 6:30 at the Coral bay Basketball Court! PS: If you are willing to help with the logistics that night – please email CBCC.

Dec. 2nd
There will be a public hearing of the STJ CZM committee on the Major CZM permit application for 6R-1 Carolina on Wednesday Dec. 2nd at 6pm at the Legislature building in Cruz Bay. This application is for the 5 acre rectangle at the corner of route 107 and Kings Hill Rd that includes at the NW edge: Love Citi Minimart and the small house behind it over to the SW boundary next to the former Pickles (now St. John Bar) property. The site also including the Domino Gas Station. Some stormwater measures are planned and CBCC is having them evaluated.

CBCC is holding an informative seminar Wed., Nov 18th, 5:30 to 6:30 pm at the Pavilion at Concordia Eco-Resort on “Water Quality Testing and Long Term Sediment Impacts to Coral Bay: New Research” Speakers will be Dr. Barry Devine, CBCC’s Research Coordinator under the CBCC EPA CARE grant and Gregg Brooks, PhD, Rebekka Larson, and Patrick Schwing of Eckerd College who will be conducting research in Coral Bay this week.

The CBCC ANNUAL MEETING and POTLUCK SUPPER will be held Monday, November 9th beginning at 5:30 pm at Miss Lucy’s. Put this on your calendar!

March 16th

The Coral Bay Community Council will hold a meeting Monday, March 16th at 6 pm at Sputniks to discuss the potential for receiving NOAA Economic Stimulus funds to restore natural drainage and correct erosion and sediment problems on dirt roads and elsewhere that cause sedimentation that threatens the marine habitat, including endangered coral. This funding is available for private land and public land projects.

January 15th
Dr. Sarah C. Gray of the University of San Diego will make a presentation, "Impacts of Development on Sedimentation in St. John's Bays" at the new Pavilion at Concordia Eco Resort in Coral Bay, Thursday, January 15th from 5:30 to 6:30 pm. She will describe her team's research on Stormwater Sedimentation rates in Lameshur Bay, Fish Bay and Coral Bay and how they are conducting this research, with the assistance of local volunteers and funding from NOAA. This research is a partner project under the Coral Bay Community Council's EPA CARE grant project and will assist in pinpointing problem areas and relative rates of sedimentation. Everyone is welcome - Drive the downhill road to the Restaurant at Concordia for parking. For more information call the CBCC office at 776-2099.

Jan 19th

Martin Luther King Day – “A DAY ON – Not A Day Off” - A National Day of Service
THE CORAL BAY COMMUNITY COUNCIL and the staff , students and parents of the GUY H. BENJAMIN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL are holding a PLAYGROUND MAINTENANCE DAY Monday, Jan 19th, 9 am til it’s done,. Everyone on St. John is welcome to come and participate in being useful and supportive of our local public school ,while honoring the memory of Dr. King through service to our community. Please join us!

JAN 20

POLICE COMMISSIONER: Coral Bay businesses will hold their 3rd meeting Tuesday morning, January 20th at 8:45 to 9:45 am at Shipwreck Restaurant, co-hosted by the Coral Bay Community Council and the St. Thomas- St. John Chamber of Commerce. There will be a brief business meeting, followed by a discussion with Police Commissioner James McCall about police coverage and public safety. All residents are welcome to attend. This timing will not interfere with enjoying the Presidential Inauguration on the 20th, since it begins at 12:30 local time.

2008

A Pre-Primary Candidates Forum will be held on August 27th beginning at 6:30 at the Westin Hotel on St. John. All Senatorial and At-Large Candidates have been invited to participate (whether or not they are in a primary race). This will be an early opportunity for the public to find out about the candidates and their positions on issues of local concern. The public is encouraged to attend and ask questions from the floor. The sponsor of this Forum is the nonpartisan Coral Bay Community Council. We hope to see many St. Johnians at this forum from 6:30 to 9pm on Wednesday, August 27th. There will also be time afterwards for informal discussion with the candidates.

Will there be marinas in Coral Bay? Can docks be put in? What are the government requirements? What are the practical timeframes? What environmental protection is needed for seagrass, turtles, and coral? Your questions and concerns on these important issues facing Coral Bay development will be addressed at this Monday, June 9th, CBCC Forum meeting – 6:30 to 7:30 pm, at the John’s Folly Learning Institute.

IF YOU ARE ON-ISLAND, THIS IS A “MUST ATTEND” MEETING – PLEASE!

Janice Hodge, DPNR CZM Director is the speaker. She will speak on DPNR-CZM regulation and use of submerged lands in the Virgin Islands, the Major CZM water permitting process and the environmental concerns that need to be addressed, esp. for marinas and docks She intends to give citizens a practical understanding of the application process, environmental concerns, and CZM mandates for submerged lands use.There will be time for questions from the audience – so please bring your particular questions about waterfront and water- based development. Looking forward to seeing you there - bring your neighbors!

The Coral Bay Community Council will hold its next forum on Tuesday, March 4th at 6:30 pm at the John’s Folly Learning Institute in Coral Bay. The St. John Commission on Youth will share the presentation they recently made to the Governor on the critical need for recreational facilities for youth on St. John, and their planned next steps to achieving their goals. They will share what they have learned, and what they plan to do next. The teens made an informative video that will be shown too. This is an opportunity to hear the young leaders in our community express their concerns, and find ways that we can all work together to support improving facilities and opportunities for our youth. Everyone is welcome!

CBCC MEETING: Monday, February 18th at 6 pm at the Johns Folly Learning Institute in Coral Bay. Wanda Mills-Bocachica, Director of Comprehensive and Coastal Zone Planning at DPNR, will be our principal speaker. As chief planner of the Virgin Islands, she will share her division’s planned activities to improve and update the zoning and planning processes for the Virgin Islands, and specifically for St. John. There will be time for questions. There will also be a brief presentation of techniques recently used to construct more environmentally-friendly roads by Bob Carney. Everyone is welcome! For more information, please email coralbaycommunitycouncil@hotmail.com or call the CBCC office at 776-2099.

Press Release:

July 30th, 2010

July 28th, 2010

Erosion Control Blanket Installation Training - Wednesday July 28th, Noon til 3 pm, Sputniks, Coral Bay:

Upcoming Events:

July 30th, 2010

July 28th, 2010

Erosion Control Blanket Installation Training - Wednesday July 28th, Noon til 3 pm, Sputniks, Coral Bay: