Just over a month after Michael Bornn became acting Tourism commissioner, he secured a payment of $220,000 for Martin Public Relations, the territory's P.R. firm.
The payment represented about one-third of what the firm is owed.
Martin has been owed hundreds of thousands of dollars for several years, but despite that has continued to provide uninterrupted services to the territory.
Though the agency has been forced to eliminate its out-of-pocket spending in the last several months, the firm has continued, among other things, to produce and send weekly updates to more than 700 journalists, travel agents and travel writers.
Amy Atkinson, senior account supervisor at Martin, said Tuesday, "This (payment) frees us up to proceed with printing the winter rate sheets."
A run of 300,000 hotel rate sheets costs about $60,000 to print, according to Atkinson, and she placed the order Tuesday. The rate sheets are distributed to travel agents and wholesalers and also will be placed as an insert in Travel Weekly in October.
Atkinson admitted the V.I. government has always run a tab with Martin in the neighborhood of $600,000 over the four years the firm has represented the V.I.
She explained Martin's primary focus has been to keep the press involved in the Virgin Islands with regular updates and by bringing travel writers to the territory.
"We bring about 100 writers here a year," Atkinson said. "This (payment) will also free up Michael to be involved in the Caribbean Tourism Conference next month."
The conference, to be held in the Dominican Republic, draws about 350 top Caribbean booking agents. The Virgin Islands will host the end-of-the-week luncheon which will give Bornn the opportunity to address all the conference attendees on the new airlines and other important issues.
Bornn will be the subject of a profile in Travel Agent Magazine next month, according to Atkinson.
"He is a refreshing, action-oriented individual who is reaching out directly to the players," Atkinson said.
"For us at Martin it is important to have Michael at the conference."