St. Thomas school project advances amid federal recovery audit

St. Thomas marked the ceremonial start of a $7 million upgrade to the Yvonne E. Milliner-Bowsky PreK-8 School this week, with Governor Albert Bryan Jr., Education Commissioner Dionne Wells-Hedrington and other officials attending the event.

The modernization will support a 490-student campus and includes construction of a new gymnasium, freeing the existing dining-gym space to serve as a dedicated dining commons. The scope also covers upgrades to the administration and media building, improvements to lower classroom areas, a new wastewater treatment plant, expanded parking and athletic fields.

Wells-Hedrington described the initiative as a milestone for the territory's education system. "We are moving from a vision to execution. We are taking plans that have been discussed for years and turning them into buildings," she said. Governor Bryan stressed the importance of maintaining momentum in rebuilding efforts, noting that the project exemplifies "our recovery moving from plans on paper to construction on the ground."

Suffolk-CBNA Joint Venture is partnering with the territorial government and the Office of Disaster Recovery on the undertaking. The news release announcing the groundbreaking did not disclose a construction start date.

The project's advancement comes as the Federal Emergency Management Agency has initiated an examination of federally funded recovery initiatives across the Virgin Islands. FEMA is scrutinizing project timelines, reimbursement processes, contractor expenditures and record-keeping.

The federal review was triggered partly by action taken by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, which suspended funding to the Virgin Islands Housing Finance Authority in July. HUD cited findings of widespread financial mismanagement, inadequate fraud controls, false certifications and improper payments. The department also determined that VIHFA had requested $6.2 million in disaster-related expenses that FEMA had previously reimbursed, constituting a duplication of benefits.

FEMA indicated that its examination may encompass projects managed by the Office of Disaster Recovery, the Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority and other territorial agencies. The federal agency noted that concerns HUD raised, including potential duplication of benefits, project delays, financial controls, procurement oversight, documentation gaps and contractor performance, may be pertinent to FEMA's review.

Office of Disaster and Recovery Director Adrienne L. Williams-Octalien reported that the territory has finished two school projects and has five currently under way. She indicated that the Milliner-Bowsky undertaking represents the sixth school project to break ground this year, with additional projects expected to begin operations before the year concludes.