WAPA: Main Street work must be done now
Published: February 6, 2013
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Daily News Photo by MAX UFBERG Traffic is busy along Main Street in downtown Charlotte Amalie on Tuesday as the city bustles during the height of tourist season. Business owners fear construction set to begin soon will cut off much of their income.
ST. THOMAS - Downtown Revitalization Inc. and the St. Thomas Chamber of Commerce called an emergency meeting Tuesday night after the V.I. Water and Power Authority announced that it could not delay laying underground electrical cables in the Main Street area until after the tourist season and would begin excavation in the shopping district as soon as Saturday.
About two dozen merchants and residents attended the hastily organized meeting on short notice to find out about plans that could disrupt their businesses and potentially affect their bottom lines.
WAPA Executive Director Hugo Hodge Jr. said WAPA had tried to do everything possible to delay the start date until after tourist season and to synch its project with the V.I. Public Works Department's downtown revitalization project to avoid digging up some of the same streets twice.
In the case of Raadets Gade, that will not be possible.
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