STT Government House Slowly Emerging from ‘Irmaria’ Damages

A bit behind schedule and a lot above the original cost estimate, renovations to Government House on St. Thomas are expected to be completed in about two more months.

Dave Davis, special assistant to Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. and the man with oversight for capital projects and facilities, put the delay down to the difficulties of dealing with historic property and complying with requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

“When you’re dealing with old buildings, you just don’t know what you’re going to find,” he said. In this case, one thing was a deck that had to be demolished. There also was the need to install a lift outside and a new elevator inside, both of them large enough to accommodate a wheelchair

The showcase of Charlotte Amalie’s Government Hill, the structure took two years to build, from 1865 to 1867. It became the official residence of the governor and his family beginning in 1871. For more than 100 years it housed the families of governors, first those from Denmark, then those appointed by the U.S. government, and eventually those elected by the people of the Virgin Islands.

It has been the site of formal dinners, public receptions, historic meetings, and the occasional angry demonstration. In more recent decades it has been used for executive offices. The last governor to use it as a residence was Alexander Farrelly, who left office in 1994.

Government House was heavily damaged in 2017 by Hurricanes Irma and Maria and has been unusable since then.

Its renovation is being funded through a disaster grant from FEMA with a 10 percent match from the local government. The work is being done by J. Benton Construction.

The company’s original bid was $4.1 million. As of this week, the cost sits at $5.1 million, Davis said.

Davis said he had predicted some increase when he spoke to the Source early in March. At that time, he predicted the project would be complete by late June.

Wednesday, Davis said the contractor is committed to turning the building over to the government by Nov. 24, although he said it may happen as early as the end of October.