Bryan facing criticism after veto of bill to honor Mapp

Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. is facing public criticism for his decision to veto legislation that would have used $45,000 to rename a stretch of St. Croix highway after his predecessor, former Gov. Kenneth Mapp.

In a transmittal letter to Senate President Novelle Francis Jr. signed Friday, Bryan explained that he “found it necessary” to veto Bill No. 35-0229, which appropriated $45,000 from the general fund of the Department of Public Works to rename Route 75 the “Kenneth E. Mapp Highway.”

The funding is for signage at major intersections along the route, including, “but not limited to” eight specific intersections named in the bill. In addition, the bill calls for the Legislature to hold a ceremony and present Mapp with the “Virgin Islands Medal of Honor, cast in gold, together with a copy of this Act.”