l2r: Office of Management and Budget Director Jenifer O'Neal, ODR Dir. Adrienne Williams-Octalien and Governor Albert on a guided tour at the Benjamin Banneker Academic High School. Photo Credit: GOV'T HOUSE
Governor Albert Bryan and members of his senior staff met in Washington, D.C. on Monday with White House Associate Director for Puerto Rico and the Territories Gretchen Sierra-Zorita, Government House made known via release Tuesday.
Mr. Bryan and Ms. Sierra-Zorita discussed a number of matters relating to the USVI including Rum Cover-Over legislation in Congress; EPA permitting and the opening of the refinery in St. Croix; and financial strategies to address the Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority’s VITOL debt, Gov't House said.
The Gov't House release did not go into details regarding the outcome of those conversations; WAPA is facing rotating blackouts if the utility is unable to reach an agreement with Vitol leading to the resumption of propane fuel supply, or if it is unable to execute a new agreement with another propane supplier.
According to the release, while in Washington Monday, the governor along with Office of Disaster Recovery Director Adrienne Williams-Octalien also visited the Benjamin Banneker Academic High School for a tour of the facility led by the school’s principal, Anita Berger, and Lisa Anders, vice-president of MCN Build, which designed and constructed the school.
MCN Build has a design-build contract for the design and construction of the new Arthur A. Richards K-8 School in St. Croix and is slated to be the first new school to be built on the island in 27 years.
