Department of Public Works defends $23.96 million FY2026 budget; highlights ferries, roads, cemeteries and transit projects

The Department of Public Works told the Senate Committee on Budget, Appropriations and Finance on July 16 that the governor's recommended FY2026 general-fund allotment to DPW is $23,958,321 and outlined major capital and maintenance projects the department expects to carry forward.

"With assistance from this body and the continued commitment from Albert Bridal Jr., two key transformative projects on Saint John are in development," Commissioner Derek Gabriel said. He listed the administration's recent accomplishments and near-term priorities, including the Spirit of 1733 ferry now in service between St. Thomas and St. John and the closing of a $152 million Garvey bond issuance to fund infrastructure projects.

Projects and funding

DPW presented a project-by-project update. Major items named in testimony and subsequent questioning included:

- Veterans Drive and related Melvin Evans Highway improvements, funded in part by the recent Garvey issuance. Commissioner Gabriel said the Garvey transaction secured $152 million; Mr. Jomo McLean, DPW's highway program manager, said roughly $12 million a year will be debt service on the issuance.

- Ethel McIntosh Memorial Drive (Mahogany Road) rehabilitation, under construction with culvert replacements, retaining-wall work and 5.65 miles of roadway rehabilitation.

- Clifton Hill Connector and Melvin Evans Highway intersection improvements, more than 92% complete, including turn lanes and new signalization.

- Fort Christian parking lot and Strand Street parking lot renovations; DPW said Phase 1 is nearly complete and Phase 2 resurfacing and striping is pending funding. Commissioner Gabriel told the committee the Fort Christian lot was paved ahead of Carnival Village and required punch-list repairs afterward; the Strand Street cashier booth renovation is in closeout.

- Transit investments: DPW said federal grants have been combined to design and acquire medium-duty fixed-route buses (nine in production, expected to reach substantial completion in September) and funds are available to buy additional ADA paratransit vans. DPW also kicked off a territorywide 2050 transportation master plan and a separate Vitran operations and transit plan.

- Cemeteries: DPW described progress on Western Cemetery perimeter work, the Eastern Cemetery chapel repairs and a GIS plotting initiative to digitize burial records. Gabriel urged the Legislature to help secure additional land and funding for cemetery expansion.

Budget details and fiscal questions

DPW told senators its budget request is broken down roughly as: personnel $7.57 million; fringe $3.82 million; other services and charges $5.37 million; public transportation fund $4.99 million; and a $200,000 inter-island subsidy. Assistant Commissioner Ruben Jennings told the committee DPW has collected about $1.66 million so far this fiscal year in receipts (parking, permits, Vitran collections), compared with $800,184 in the prior full fiscal year.

Senators pressed the department on outstanding vendor payments and cash-flow issues. Jennings said DPW has approximately $2.4 million at the Department of Finance to be processed and that delays are caused by government cash-flow constraints. DPW said federal funding lines remain intact and no federal funds are currently at risk of clawback.

Operational concerns raised by senators included vehicle readiness and fleet disposal, vacant positions and low pay for operations workers. DPW said it had about 211 employees with 18 vacancies and that roughly 44 positions fall below a $35,000 minimum-wage threshold, which DPW estimated would cost roughly $945,000 annually to raise. The department reported a number of vehicles and buses out of service and described plans to replace aging transit equipment and dispose of vehicles where practical.

Vitran and transit operations

Deputy Commissioner Carol Overson McGregor said Vitran is funded through a mix of local and federal sources and that the department uses about $5 million in local funding and $2 million in federal funds for transit operations. DPW said seniors ride free and that paratransit services operate six days a week; fixed-route services have been reduced in the past for budget reasons but the department is studying Saturday and weekend service as funding allows.

Ferries and facilities

Gabriel said the new Spirit of 1733 ferry is in service and that design work is advancing for a new government-owned ro-ro ferry to connect St. Croix and St. Thomas. He said the department expects to complete design and begin procurement for that vessel later this year and that the administration has prioritized port and terminal stakeholder coordination with Port Authority.

What did not happen and next steps

The hearing was a budget defense; senators did not take a formal vote on DPW's FY2026 request during the session. Committee members asked DPW for more detailed personnel and fringe spreadsheets and for updated vendor-payment schedules and fleet inventories before the budget markup. DPW promised supplemental documents and said it would continue to coordinate with OMB on cash-flow and allotment timing.

Ending note

Commissioner Gabriel closed by thanking DPW staff and urging public patience while major construction and maintenance projects proceed across all three islands. Senators signaled they would follow up on vendor payments, cemetery expansion, street lighting and parking-lot revenue recovery during budget markup.