Frenchtown Marina’s 20-Year Permit Nears Ratification Amid Financial Concerns

Lawmakers signaled Monday that they intend to ratify the Governor’s approval of Major Coastal Zone Permit No. CZT-09-22(W) granted to Anquet, Inc., the operator of Frenchtown Marina on St. Thomas, even as questions remain about the company’s ability to meet its escalating annual permit payments and what some senators described as a poorly negotiated lease agreement.

Bill 36-0235 was heard in the Committee of the Whole, where no vote was taken. According to Marlon Hibbert, director of the Division of Coastal Zone Management, the permit authorizes the continued use and occupancy of submerged lands seaward of Parcel No. Plot 68 Estate Honduras, St. Thomas. The area comprises 32,375 square feet and currently includes two fixed piers, two docks and two tee docks.

The permit carries a 20-year term. Under the fee schedule outlined by Mr. Hibbert, Anquet Inc. is required to pay $9,000 annually for years one through three, $10,000 in year four, $11,000 in year five, and $14,000 annually for years six through ten. Rental fees are to be negotiated “upon the tenth and fifteenth anniversary of the permit,” Mr. Hibbert said.

Adriane Dudley, attorney for Anquet, told lawmakers that the business has been owned and operated by the Quetel family since 1987. The marina, which has operated for decades, has been “contributing to the local economy and marine community of St. Thomas,” she said. Anquet’s marina has “only one main tenant,” Waypoints Yacht Charters USVI.