Off The Map: No One Knows Where The Governor Resides When On St. Thomas

Except for the governor’s inner circle and security detail, of course.

ST. THOMAS — There were at least six officials testifying at the Early B. Ottley Legislative Hall on Thursday; most of them representing either WICO or Government House. But when asked by multiple senators where Governor Kenneth Mapp was residing on St. Thomas while the “homeless” situation persists, not one official could name his location.

Not Randolph L. Bennett, acting commissioner of Department of Property and Procurement; not Michael Watson of the WICO board; WICO CEO Joseph Boschulte also said he did not know where the governor resides when he’s in the capital; and Acting Attorney General James Carroll said he too was clueless as to the governor’s whereabouts when on St. Thomas.

Senator Clifford Graham, frustrated with the Estate Nazareth scandal and also with Lieutenant Governor Osbert Potter’s condominium rental that the government is paying $2,800 monthly, chastised the testifiers for the lack of communication on display at the hearing.

“The governor has been renting for five months and we don’t know where he’s staying now,” Graham said.

Mapp has said Government House is not adequate. He also contends — and backed up by experts — that Estate Catherineberg, also known as Denmark Hill, is not suitable for living.

So where is he?

At a May 31 press conference, Mapp announced that he would vacate the Estate Nazareth mansion, called Villa Fratelli Cresta, in an effort to demonstrate his willingness to compromise and cut costs with respect to his cabinet nominees.

“I made this decision to show an additional willingness to reduce expenses and make a path forward to confirm my cabinet,” the chief executive said. “This has been a sticking point in the community, and I hear that.  I suspect that I may be the only Governor that does not have a home in the Capitol in the jurisdiction in which he presides.

“This is not a priority for me, when I ran for this office, I ran for this office because of a vision, a passion and my concern about the welfare and well-being of the people of the Virgin Islands, not for a home.”

The territory’s leader was leaving the islands for a whirlwind trip spanning Guam and Florida, and said a decision on where he would reside while in the capital would be made once he returned. But the governor has been back for roughly two weeks, yet it has not been revealed by Government House where he’s currently residing.

Calls made to the governor’s Communications Director, Kimberly Jones, were not returned as of press time. And senators had sought to get answers from Mapp’s Chief of Staff Randolph Knight at Thursday’s hearing, but Knight, who doubles as WICO’s board chairman, did not show up.