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CARAMBOLA SALE INFORMATION NEEDS TO BE CORRECTED
(Monday, March 28, 2022)
A quote attributable to Senator Kurt Vialet that appeared on page 4 of March 26, 2022, of the Virgin Islands Daily News reads as follows:
While he supported Bill No. 34-0222, Vialet questioned why GERS took a different approach and sold Carambola Beach resort property on St. Croix for $8 million.
A quote attributable to Senator Kurt Vialet that appeared on page
4 of March 26, 2022, of the Virgin Islands Daily News reads as follows:
While he supported Bill No. 34-0222, Vialet questioned why GERS
took a different approach and sold Carambola Beach resort property on St. Croix
for $8 million.
“Why didn’t you use that same concept two years ago, instead of
selling a hotel with over 100 rooms in a perfect location, and you sell it for
little or nothing.” Vialet said.
The Contessa House on St. Croix recently sold for over $9 million,
so “it sold for more than Carambola,” he added.
THE FACTS
1). The GERS
purchased the Carambola Renaissance Beach Resort (Carambola) for $ 6 million.
2). The GERS
sold Carambola in July 2019 for $10.1 million.
3). Prior to
the hurricanes in 2017, the appraised value for Carambola was $15 million.
4). Prior to
the hurricanes in 2017, GERS received offers to purchase Carambola in excess of
$30 million.
5). GERS
received $17.6 million in insurance proceeds due to the damages to the
infrastructure caused
by
the hurricanes.
6). The GERS
Board as fiduciaries of the GERS, adopted the Dynamic Asset Allocation in
November 2015,
with the intent to liquidate all
assets, in order to pay retiree benefits, because of the looming
insolvency, and no concrete plan by the Plan
Sponsor to address the GERS unfunded liability.
We note that
the comments made by Senator Vialet took place because of the GERS request for
a rezoning at the Havensight Mall, to enter a ground lease with a hotel developer to build a 126-room branded hotel on the
property.
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