St. John utility pole replacement project advances after years of delay

A long-stalled effort to replace utility poles on St. John's National Park Service lands is moving forward after the National Park Service and the Federal Emergency Management Agency reached an agreement on the project's terms.

The V.I. Water and Power Authority announced the breakthrough this week, saying the deal clears the way for work to resume on the island's portion of a territory-wide composite pole initiative. The project has been largely frozen on St. John since at least 2023, when WAPA reported that 1,711 of 1,960 planned poles had been installed, leaving the island at 87 percent completion while other islands progressed.

One key condition from the National Park Service is that composite poles installed on park property must be green, to blend with the park's environment. To meet that requirement, WAPA is seeking a contract increase of up to $2.5 million with supplier Trident Industries, raising the total contract value to approximately $31.4 million and pushing the completion date to the end of 2027.

WAPA's Governing Board unanimously approved the amendment on Thursday. The composite pole program, which began in 2017 following Hurricanes Irma and Maria, aims to strengthen the territory's electrical grid against high winds, corrosion and other environmental damage. Water Island is the only island to have fully completed its portion of the work, while St. Croix, St. Thomas and St. John still have outstanding projects.

WAPA leadership expressed relief at being able to move forward. The authority said it is pushing to close out remaining composite pole contracts across the territory, with the St. John work now part of that effort.