Home News Local news CZM Committee: Golden Application Lacks Key Data

CZM Committee: Golden Application Lacks Key Data

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Aug. 2, 2004 – Golden Resorts submitted its application 10 months ago to the St. Croix Coastal Zone Management Committee for a permit to build a 605-room hotel, casino, conference center and golf course at Great Pond Bay.
The developers thought the permit was in their hands following a default decision in June. But after a CZM committee meeting on Monday, it may be that Golden Resorts is no closer to attaining the permit than it was last September.
Monday's meeting started with attorney Mark Hodge, representing the committee, reading an exchange of letters between attorney Kevin Rames, representing Golden, and the CZM committee. The letters appeared to be the commission's justification for not being bound to the default decision that would have given Golden the permit in June.
Law states that if the committee does not act on a permit within 30 days of all required documents being filed, the applicant automatically gets the permit. In June the CZM could not get a quorum to act on the permit, so commissioners announced Golden would receive the permit by default.
However, the commission decided in July that because of extenuating circumstances, there was no need to have issued the permit by default. Attorneys for Golden countered by taking the issue to court, but a judge refused to grant the developer's request to circumvent the CZM process and grant the permit. (See "Judge: Golden Gaming Must Adhere to Permit Process".)
In a letter dated Dec. 23, Rames had asked for a delay of a meeting scheduled for Jan. 8 because a key person could not be present. The January meeting was held as scheduled, but Rohring said that Golden took advantage of the waiver to submit documents later — in February.
Bill Rohring, acting director of the CZM staff at the time in question, then read a staff report stating that the Golden application was missing a lot of information. Among the things lacking, it said, were a traffic study, bore samples from the ground, an analysis of the impact of the development on possible erosion, and analysis of the effect of the development on ocean water and the water in Great Pond.
Of special importance, according to commission member Christian "Ollie" Christensen, was the lack of plans for the golf course.
The development is proposed in two stages. The golf course would not be in the first stage. However, Christensen said that based on precedent the commission should look at the "entire project." He moved, and it eventually was approved unanimously, that the committee postpone action on the permit application until it receives what it called the missing information. It gave the developer 10 days to submit the information.
Rames tried to make a presentation to the committee. But when he refused to answer a question either "yes" or "no" from the committee chair, John Beagles, Beagles cut him off.
The developer is pursuing an appeal to make the default ruling stand and make the committee action on Monday irrelevent.
Three committee members were in attendance: Beagles, Christensen and Tyrone Seales. Albert Hewitt was absent and the fifth position on the committee is vacant.

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