Everything is in order — though not all papers are in — for the V.I. Economic Summit set for March 18 on St. Thomas and March 19 on St. Croix, Sen. Lorraine L. Berry announced.
The month-long planning for the summit saw an outpouring of proposals from the community, Berry said. Thirty-three of them will be presented on each island.
At the end of each day's presentations, panelists will take part in round-table discussions to analyze the proposals, determine their viability and recommend specific action.
"It is calculated that theirs will be a 'think tank' approach in which panelists will be totally apolitical in their recommendations, designed to free this government from the economic morass in which we are engulfed," Berry said.
Areas to be tackled include tax reform, the Industrial Development program and ways to increase private-sector employment and reduce the government's enormous deficit.
Participants hope to come up with short-range and long-term plans.
Among the attendees: Gov. Charles W. Turnbull, Lt. Gov. Gerard Luz James II, Cabinet members, V.I. Delegate Donna Christian-Christensen, Territorial Court Presiding Judge Verne A. Hodge, all senators and representatives of private industry and labor.
Dr. Laverne Ragster, vice president for research and public services at the University of the Virgin Islands, will be moderator both days.
Dr. Marc Weiss of Washington, D.C., will be the guest luncheon speaker in St. Thomas. Dr. Richard W. Moore, an economic consultant here, will be guest speaker in St. Croix.
In addition to Berry, senators sponsoring the summit are Almando "Rocky" Liburd, Roosevelt David and David Jones.
For more information call Kim Boschulte at the Legislature's post audit division at 774-0660.
Editor's note: The complete agenda for the summit is on Local Government News.