Senate committee presses lease terms, data access and safety for St. John helipad and radio site

The Committee on Government Operations on an unspecified 2025 hearing date questioned a proposed long-term lease of government property on Saint John that would support a private helicopter service and an associated radio/communications site, focusing on medical‑evacuation agreements, rent terms and access to weather and emergency data.

Charlotte VanHerck, the company representative testifying about the helipad and radio operations, said the operator currently conducts medical evacuations on an ad hoc basis but does not have a formal memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the local hospitals. "We do the best way we can with what we have," VanHerck said, adding that the company is "open" to agreements with hospitals.

Why it matters: The lease would put continued emergency‑transport and communications infrastructure on government property in a residential area, involve FEMA‑funded equipment, and create potential liabilities and data‑sharing questions for territorial agencies including the Virgin Islands Territorial Emergency Management Agency (VITEMA).

Senators pressed several specific issues. Senator Hubert Frederick asked whether the helipad location was the same site previously discussed and whether staff had followed up on concerns about noise, radiation or other health impacts; Vincent Richards, assistant commissioner at the Department of Property and Procurement, confirmed the location is the same and supplied photographs showing multiple communication towers in the area. Senator DeGraff said he could not support a 20‑year lease for government property when there is no MOU with a hospital to govern medical evacuations. "I can't agree with giving you a 20 year lease for government property," DeGraff said, adding he wanted the lease renegotiated and the matter held in committee.

The committee also focused on the lease's financial terms. Richards said the department had previously abated tens of thousands of dollars of rent for the lessee under prior administrations and described a history of swaps and trades to reduce the organization's obligations. Committee members cited three rent figures in the record: a regular rent of about $1,098.98 per month, a proposed current monthly rent of $2,500, and a clause in the draft lease (referred to in testimony as "section 102a") that would raise annual rent to $90,000 if the lessee assigned or transferred the lease. Several senators described the assignment clause as unprecedented and said they did not understand why it applied to this lessee but not others.

Senator Fonseca pressed whether VITEMA would be able to access weather data collected by the communications tower. Vincent Richards said he was not a subject‑matter expert on data access and that he would not assert that VITEMA could obtain the data: "I'll have to request that from FEMA," he said in response to a question about the dollar value of FEMA's investment at the station and about data access.

Safety, community and infrastructure details arose repeatedly. VanHerck said the company's generators currently hold only about 45 days' worth of fuel and noted that the island authority WAPA has been out for three months in past storms. She said the operator maintains a $1,000,000 insurance policy for the helicopter. Senators raised the proximity of communications towers to housing and said some housing buyers must sign waivers acknowledging the presence of the tower; Senator DeGraff said that raised concern about siting in a residential area.

Committee members also requested information about FEMA investments in the radio facility and whether comparable emergency broadcast infrastructure exists elsewhere in the territory. Richards said he would ask FEMA for the dollar value of its investment and noted FEMA had selected the station to support emergency broadcasting for the Virgin Islands.

No formal vote or final committee action was recorded in the transcript. Several senators urged holding the lease in committee and renegotiating terms including rent and assignment language before moving the matter forward.

Next steps from the hearing: senators requested (1) confirmation whether VITEMA can access weather and atmospheric data collected at the site; (2) a breakdown of FEMA's investment in the radio and communications equipment at the facility; and (3) reconsideration or renegotiation of rent and assignment provisions in the draft lease. The committee did not record a vote during the portion of the transcript provided.