With No Cruise Ships and Dwindling Revenue, Port Authority Seeks $25 Million Line of Credit to Prop Up Operations

The V.I. Port Authority during a board meeting on Wednesday granted approval for the port's executive director to seek a line of credit of $25 million in an effort to continue port operations after VIPA experienced a precipitous drop in revenue from its cruise ship operations. Cruse ship revenue dried up in March following the halting of travel for 30 days. The ban has since been extended well into July by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in an effort to contain the coronavirus. VIPA Executive Director, Carlton Dowe, said the line of credit was an essential move to keep the port operations flowing. "We have not been passive about this issue. None of us don't know really how long this is going to last and we have taken seriously our obligation to the authority, to our employees and the community at large. So we thought that we must stay ahead of this knowing that we could meet our obligations." Mr. Dowe, while giving an update on VIPA's operations, said the authority had...