Governor Mapp Will Leave $12,500 Monthly Rental Home On Saturday As Part Of Compromise

ST. THOMAS — Governor Kenneth Mapp at a press conference called at 4:00 p.m. today to address the senate’s rejection of 11 cabinet nominees, revealed that in the spirit of compromise with members of the 31st Legislature, he will leave the Estate Nazareth mansion he’s currently residing in when in St. Thomas on Saturday.

“In consideration of the legislature’s concern about the cost of pay to these commissioners, I will vacate the residence at Estate Nazareth that we’re paying some $12,500 a month for, on Saturday. I have made no decisions with respect to where I should reside on the Island of St. Thomas, but that’s not a priority of mine,” Mapp said.

Regardless of the governor’s move to leave the estate, Mapp said today’s decision by Senate Democrats to vote against a motion to reconsider his cabinet nominees’ approval, baffled him.

That’s because the territory’s leader said in all his administration’s conversations with members of the Senate following last Thursday’s No vote, he anticipated that legislators would have voted to reconsider the nominations today and subsequently approve them. The governor continued, stating that time and time again, members of the Senate body have lauded his cabinet nominees. He said senators have also praised his administration for giving them “unfettered and total access to the financial condition of this territory.”

The governor, painting a picture of an administration that’s going out of its way to accommodate the senate, said he’s instituted a policy that commissioners and agency heads must respond in a timely fashion to members of the legislature, “and we have solved a number of the issues that the members of the legislature have brought to the table,” Mapp said.

Pictures of Governor Mapp’s Monthly Rental In Estate Nazareth, St. Thomas

Mapp explained that since last Thursday’s session was adjourned by the senate, the opportunity for a reconsideration is lost, and he must again resubmit the 11 cabinet members to the Legislature, essentially starting anew.

Governor Kenneth Mapp and Lieutenant Governor Osbert Potter stand with the 11 rejected cabinet members at Government House In St. Thomas. Mapp reappointed the members today.

The governor, wasting no time, redesignated and renominated each of the 11 cabinet nominees rejected by the Senate as acting commissioners and directors of the same offices they held before today’s adjournment. He called their names and positions one-by-one.

Virgin Islands law allows these nominees to hold their positions for 180 days without being ratified by the senate.

Mapp said the original annual cost in salaries for his cabinet members was $250,000. However, the compromise for salary increases capped at $105,000, costs the government annually $91,000. Mapp then praised his cabinet members, stating that he remains committed to them, that “they work hard, they get their jobs done, they understand our vision, we’re proud to have them on board, and we want them to remain in our cabinet,” he said.

The governor departs the territory on Sunday for Guam, where he will remain for 12 days with all the territorial governors except Puerto Rico’s. He was invited by the Department of Interior.

“On my return I will figure where I may need to sleep when I’m on the island of St. Thomas, but that’s not my issue,” the chief executive said.

The governor said he decided to vacate the Estate Nazareth mansion to divert attention away from the government’s monthly cost for the rental property, and steer the conversation back to rebuilding the territory.