Recent testimony by the Virgin Islands Recovery and Development Agency (RDA) during the Deliberations of the Standing Finance Committee provided insights into how things are proceeding with the Trellis Bay Welcome Centre project. The RDA is developing the multi-phase initiative alongside the BVI Tourist Board.
Phase One entails constructing the Welcome Center facility itself. According to the RDA, the building will house visitor welcome services and restrooms for travelers coming through Trellis Bay from the Sister Islands.
The project aims to upgrade the gateway experience for those arriving to the BVI by sea through Trellis Bay. Providing much-needed amenities, the facility will provide an enhanced entry point for visitors.
In the RDA’s most recently published monthly report, dated October 2023 it provided an update on the project saying, “Planning continued for the Trellis Bay Welcome Centre project involving the reconstruction of an upgraded Welcome Centre near the docks at Trellis Bay to facilitate a comfortable space for persons traveling to other islands. Once the scope of works and full TCP approvals have been finalised, the project will proceed to procurement.”
The RDA confirmed to the SFC that Town and Country Planning had granted approval for Phase One, paving the way for the tendering process.
With a reported budget of $128,000 from the Tourist Board at the time of the deliberations, the RDA said that it expected to initiate contractor bidding within weeks.
It was also revealed that there was $47,000 remaining from $50,000 that was transferred from the BVI Tourist Board towards the airport development project and that these monies would also be earmarked for the welcome centre project.
The project’s total budget, as told to the SFC, is estimated to be about $180,000.