Lawmakers Back 20-Year Lease for $500,000 Food Yard Project in St. Thomas Subbase

A proposal to transform two Subbase parcels into a food court for mobile vendors and emerging culinary businesses drew broad support from lawmakers, who advanced a 20-year lease that anticipates approximately $500,000 in property investment and annual rent of $12,000.

Bill 39-0339 would lease Parcel Nos. 81A and 81B, Submarine Base, No. 6 Southside Quarter, St. Thomas, to Eight One Subbase, LLC, whose sole member is Kwesi Howard. The planned development, known as the Food Yard, would combine mobile food vendors with container-based spaces and other amenities while giving Mr. Howard responsibility for managing the project's subtenants.

Senator Milton Potter, who introduced the measure, said the lease “presents an opportunity to convert underutilized public property into an active revenue-generating asset that serves our community.”

He described the development as a “platform for local food entrepreneurs who might otherwise lack access to a traditional brick-and-mortar location, while generating employment and expanding commercial activity in the district.”