Jon L. Christensen: “Mr. Speaker, I rise in, of course, strong support of H.R. 1143, legislation I introduced to authorize the Secretary of…”

“Mr. Speaker, I rise in, of course, strong support of H.R. 1143, legislation I introduced to authorize the Secretary of the Interior to enter into a new arrangement, a lease with the owners of Caneel Bay Resort in my congressional district. I want to also thank Chairman Rahall as well as Chairman Grijalva for not only supporting the passage of this bill, but for traveling to my district to see for themselves the importance of Caneel Bay to the island and to the people of St. John. Mr. Speaker, Caneel Bay traces its roots to Laurence Rockefeller's coming to the island of St. John in 1952. He purchased the then-existing resort facilities and also acquired more than 5,000 surrounding acres to protect the area. In 1956, he donated the additional land to create the Virgin Islands National Park. At the same time, he created Caneel Bay Resort, comprising 170 acres, which continues to complement and to be environmentally consistent with the natural beauty of the park's setting.”