Jul 14 2026

There is no MBA board meeting scheduled for July. The next Friends community meeting is tentatively scheduled for Saturday August 22 at 10AM.

Jul 11 community meeting summary:

Calls to action:

• Review the Fairchild property deed and related documents, e.g., “all buildings should further harmonize with the scene in order to enhance the natural beauty both within the area and surrounding estates”

• Email Magens Bay Authority, DPNR/CZM, political candidates [contact info] to express your views on glamping at Magens and/or demand public access to project details and MBA decision-making

• Attend MBA board meetings - usually third Friday of the month at 9AM [Friends calendar] - and call for Magens town halls and/or more avenues for public participation

• Vote in the upcoming elections

Summary/notes:

See also the St. Thomas Source coverage.

• ~40 attendees, mostly in-person

• [Sara Smollett, Friends of Fairchild at Magens Bay]

  • Friends is not Magens Bay Authority - totally separate. Akin to Friends of the VI National Park on St John, but for Magens Bay. Started in 2024, non-profit status this year. [Read about Friends]

  • Mission statement: “To protect, preserve and promote the terrestrial and marine resources of Magens Bay gifted to the people of the Virgin Islands in perpetuity by Arthur S. Fairchild.”

  • Projects and advocacy for preservation, transparency of operations, nature education, community events, reduction of trash, community events, etc. [View working groups/projects, form to express interest in joining]

  • The rest of this meeting will be an open forum

• Why are we here today?

  • Glamping

  • Fear of change, fear of unknown

  • Seeking more information

  • Lack of transparency around development on the island in general and concerns about how MBA operates

• Can you tell me more about the glamping proposal? Read about it in the paper: where is the proposal for / what is it / who will it impact / stakeholders?

  • No, can’t tell you more, proposal wasn’t made public - which is part of the problem

  • Proposal at Magens is very early stage, more like pre-proposal to see if even feasible for Magens

  • Kyle Sexius has proposed/been permitted and broken ground for a similar operation at Neltjeberg [some background in Preserve Neltjeberg petition] 

  • Magens is public, very different than Neltjeberg

• Does the MBA board listen to Friends?

  • A little bit…

  • The MBA staff listens, general manager responsive

  • The board operated for a long time without a Friends group, and then we came along, big adjustment, still working on building relationship

  • Friends shows up at MBA board meetings, makes sure they are aware of us and public interest, helps to engage the public, can influence not only MBA but also DPNR and other relevant parties

• How much is the MBA board paying attention to what Fairchild stipulated in the deed?

  • Can’t speak for them, but think they are very familiar with the deed and Fairchild’s statement, and that it does guide them, for instance not restricting public access

  • But it doesn’t have a lot of explicit restrictions, Fairchild speaks about his intentions, there is some ambiguity, it has to be understood in the context of the time period, so there’s room for interpretation, and there’s the reality of tourism-based economy

• References to Fairchild deed & intent

  • Uniqueness of property being entrusted to the people

  • Preserving natural environment and beauty

  • Must not restrict local access

• Has Magens been listed as a site for preservation because of archaeological significance?

  • When MBA has done permitting in the past they have worked with Sean Krigger - DPNR - State Historic Preservation Offices [In 1976 a portion of the watershed was added to the National Register for Historic Places]

  • Have been exploratory digs

  • Discovered multiple sites/artifacts - Amerindians at Magens over a span of ~2500 years, later plantation slave quarters

• How does MBA operate?

  • Semi-autonomous instrumentality of the government 

  • 7 person board - Barbara Peterson is chair, list of members

  • Self-perpetuating

  • Length of terms has varied, all current members were (re-)elected to 3-year terms on Jan 2026

  • Board members very connected politically/tourism

  • Technically the Governor is a member, but appoints a representative - currently Kevin Rodriguez, could change after the election

• Election year

  • Very important to bring these conversations to the candidates

  • Register to vote, make informed voting decisions

  • Might remember a proposal for a hotel near Magens, and the senators who voted for rezoning to allow it were voted out - learn from the past [1984 NYTimes coverage]

• Can Friends invite the developer to present and have a dialog?

  • Could, especially if someone wants to volunteer to organize

  • Don’t know if that’s giving the proposal more attention than it deserves at this stage

• [Monique Simon, MBA General Manager]

  • Cares about the beach, for the people, not going to disrupt nature

  • Proposal is asking if something can be done, does not mean it is set in stone 

  • Encourage all to bring feedback to MBA, go to her door if something’s not right, attend MBA meeting - typically third Friday of the month and advertised on MBA's Facebook page & St Thomas Source

• [Kasike Maekiaphan of Guainía Taíno Tribe]

  • Guainía Taíno Tribe brought a proposal to MBA board of a model Taino village in the arboretum, where people could be educated about the history of this land and its first inhabitants [MBA board meeting where it was first brought up]

  • That was a while ago, but have not heard anything back

  • Petition to support the Taino proposal - contact opiataino@yahoo.com

• [Gene Brin Jr, Friends of Fairchild at Magens Bay]

  • Question the candidates and vote