Crown Land Out of Reach for Ordinary Locals-Penn

Opposition Leader Marlon Penn has complained that access to Crown Land is now out of reach for ordinary Virgin Islanders and urged legislators to address the issue urgently.

“This entire Act [Crown Lands Management Act] needs serious revision. Access to Crown Land, or being able to afford Crown Land, is now out of reach for ordinary Virgin Islanders. Even Virgin Islanders operating businesses cannot afford the leases now being proposed by the government based on amendments made to the Crown Lands Act,” Penn said in the House of Assembly, today May 12.

His comments came as the House approved the appointment of Dirk Walters as chairman of the newly formed Crown Lands Advisory Board.

Penn said Walters and his board must examine the issue and bring forward practical recommendations to Cabinet for action.

The Opposition Leader said many residents have complained bitterly about what he described as outrageous fees.

“We have to make changes to this bill. We cannot enforce what I call draconian rates in relation to Crown land,” Penn stated.

Using North Sound as an example, Penn argued that market-based pricing makes Crown Land unaffordable for ordinary residents.

“Let's make a quick example. If a property (an acre) is sold in the North Sound for $20 something, $40 million, some instances that have been sold for. If you're using market rates to price crown land based on those sales, there's no way their budget...will ever be able to afford the crown leases in the North Sound," he said.

Penn urged lawmakers to move swiftly to amend the legislation and create opportunities for Virgin Islanders to benefit from Crown Land ownership and development.

He also referenced the work of the late Noel Lloyd and others who fought to ensure Virgin Islanders had access to land. Penn said history has shown what Virgin Islanders can achieve when given opportunities to develop land.

“You see what Virgin Islanders are able to do when given the opportunity to develop. Many of those lands were reclaimed lands, and those leases afforded people the opportunity to expand their developments,” Penn told the House.

Residential Land Cost Not Skyrocketed

Meanwhile, Premier Natalio Wheatley agreed that Crown Land lease fees need to be reviewed but cautioned against misleading the public into believing that residential Crown Land had become unaffordable for locals.

“No different decisions have been made about the sale of residential Crown Land. The residential sale of land has not skyrocketed, and we must ensure we do not mislead the public in that way,” Wheatley said.

The Premier pointed to provisions in the Crown Lands Management Act to support his argument and stressed that Crown Land should remain affordable for Virgin Islanders.

He explained that Section 30 of the Act states that Crown lands suitable for commercial use should first be made available through leasehold arrangements at market rates.

Wheatley said the issue largely relates to commercial leases, where market-rate valuations have caused some lease costs to rise significantly.

“There was a very strong push during the Commission of Inquiry, and even among some public officers, for land to be leased at commercial or market rates,” he explained.

“I believe market rates are the issue that caused some leases to increase significantly because the rates previously paid were far below market value.”

The Premier acknowledged the need to revisit the rates and assess their impact. He also noted that some organisations, including church groups have been severely affected by the increases.

“There's one particular Church group. They had a lease to be able to do their yearly camp...they went from being charge a couple of hundred dollars to about $10,000 or something ridiculous like that,” Wheatley said.

He added that the government intends to address such situations to prevent what he described as unreasonable charges being imposed on residents and organisations.