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Senate committee opens hearing on bill to require use of land taken by eminent domain
Summary
The Committee on Disaster Recovery Infrastructure and Planning heard the sponsor introduce Bill No. 36-0070, which would add Section 423 to Title 28 of the Virgin Islands Code addressing failure to use property acquired through eminent domain; invited agency witnesses were listed and no vote was taken.
ST. THOMAS, U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS — The Committee on Disaster Recovery Infrastructure and Planning, chaired by Senator Marice James, opened a hearing June 16 on Bill No. 36-0070, a measure that would add Section 423 to Title 28, Chapter 19 of the Virgin Islands Code to address the “failure to use property acquired through the exercise of the power of eminent domain.”
The bill’s sponsor, Senator Alma Francis Heiliger, told the committee the proposal grew from her research and outreach on land use across the territory’s three main islands. “The idea behind this piece of legislation came as I have been doing a lot of work and research, even reaching out to, members in the community as well as them reaching out to me when it comes to the utilization of land here in the territory,” Heiliger said during her opening remarks.
The measure is sponsored to target properties the government acquired by eminent domain but has not put to use, a concern the sponsor tied to limited land availability on St. Thomas, St. Croix and St. John. The committee’s published agenda listed invited testifiers for the bill from several agencies: John Pierre Oriole, commissioner, Department of Planning and Natural Resources (DPNR); Gordon Ray, Attorney General, Virgin Islands Department of Justice; and Lisa Maria Alejandro, commissioner, Department of Property and Procurement.
The committee also scheduled a second block of testimony for the office of the Lieutenant Governor on the territory’s street-addressing initiative, listing invited witnesses including Nadia Harrigan, acting chief of staff, Office of the Lieutenant Governor; Chris George, GIS administrator, Office of the Lieutenant Governor; and Frondell Gerard, executive director, Cruzan Heritage and Nature Tourism. That item was on the agenda but the transcript ends before that block’s testimony began.
Procedurally, the clerk recorded a quorum with five senators present and two absent; the chair asked the clerk to record Senators Duane De Graaf and Kurt Abla as absent and said the committee would recognize them if they arrived. Several agency and staff representatives appeared at the hearing: Lisa Maria Alejandro (Department of Property and Procurement), Magdalene Marancy (chief legal counsel, Department of Property and Procurement), Sean L. Krueger (deputy state historic preservation officer, DPNR), and an assistant commissioner identified as Walker, DPNR.
No vote or formal committee action on the bill was taken during the portion of the hearing in the transcript. The committee heard the sponsor’s opening statement and paused the hearing so the sponsor could be heard; further testimony and any deliberations or votes were not recorded in the provided transcript.
The committee will continue the hearing with invited witnesses and staff testimony as listed on the agenda; a date for any deliberation or vote was not specified in the recorded portion of the meeting.
