[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 2 (Thursday, January 6, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E36]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        LEGISLATION ON EXCHANGE OF LAND FOR A SCHOOL ON ST. JOHN

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. DONNA M. CHRISTENSEN

                         of the virgin islands

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, January 6, 2005

  Ms. CHRISTENSEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce legislation 
to address a long held concern of my constituents on the island of St. 
John, Virgin Islands; the need for the National Park Service and the 
government of the Virgin Islands to agree on an exchange of land so 
that residents of St. John can build a school to accommodate students 
from K-12.
  Mr. Speaker, my constituents in the Virgin Islands have been 
wrestling with this issue for several years now. Since the 1970's, 
enrollment in public schools on St. John has grown considerably and the 
local government has no more land on which to expand either of the two 
current St. John public schools.
  Just last month a 7-year-old boy by the name of Javon Alfred was 
struck and killed by a delivery truck, as he was on his way home from 
the only public school on St. John. The Julius Sprauve School, where 
Javon was a second grade student, is located in an urban area with 
significant vehicular traffic. With the significant increases in 
population that St. John has witnessed in recent years, the location of 
the Sprauve School is not the most suitable at the present time.
  Mr. Speaker, St. John is an island only 28 square miles in size, two 
thirds which comprises the Virgin Islands National Park. Without an 
exchange of land between the National Park Service and the government 
of the Virgin Islands, there is no place to build a school on St. John. 
While the residents of St. John have benefited from a boom in tourism 
on that island, they have had to give up many long held traditions, 
including the right to fish in local waters. The exchange of land for a 
school on St. John is a matter that is long overdue. It is high time 
that this issue be resolved. The residents and students of St. John 
deserve nothing less.
  I urge my colleagues to support passage of this bill.

                          ____________________