The Coconut Telegraph

Nothing flies quicker than the STX Coconut Telegraph. Moments after you hear prominent voices whispering, the rumor mill strikes hot. It hits the texts and mobile air waves with the buzz of authenticity. Everyone wants to know the big scoop. And it all sounds so real: Did you hear what so and so said? Can it actually be true about what they’re up to now? But we all know talk is cheap. Or is it? It’s human nature to want to know who’s got the low-down on the inside dope? Who knows what the real skinny is? And yet, as rumor has it…

How Deep are the problems at "St. Croix This Week" the venerable old publication that is the dandy of C'sted retail shops and island tourist biz. Since their longstanding Managing Editor left there seems to be a significant loss of advertisers for the mainland printed mag. Now, it is the 10th - 12th of the month and it still hasn't hit the stands. Perhaps the risky editorial changes being made are not proving out? Or perhaps advertisers are thinking they are not getting enough bang for their buck? Time will tell.  

Is it really down to a photo finish that a deal is on the table ready to be signed by a new promoter to bring horse racing and a Racino with a world-class track back to STX. Place your bets! Place your bets! The mutuel window is about to close.

What extremely popular mid-island Restaurant that is known for its Puerto Rican, Dominican & Crucian cuisines is moving across the road to spiffy new digs in the near future? Could its name have something to do with the golden orb that rises over the east side of the island everyday?

Will Amazon's New DR Hub bring even more problems to STX retailers? Will faster deliveries and cheaper prices cause an even speedier exodus from "Buying Local"?

AND THE RACE IS ALMOST ON for Governor 2026 - The current field is filled with hopefuls: Is Lt. Gov Roach really seeking Senator Francis as his running mate? Can Congresswoman Plaskett upset the odds of a woman holding the highest office in the USVI? Can Donna Frett-Gregory get the votes she would need on STX to win? Is Senator Vialet in or out? Is the ever-popular Jed JohnHope, who produced the enormously successful Heart of the Block concert moving into position to become his friend Governor Bryan's likely successor? Only time will tell...

WHAT POPULAR PBS station that just lost their Fed funding thinks it's appropriate to pry into retail shops rental agreements and decide to publicize their non-payment of rent? They did it to Senator Carrion in the last week's of his campaign; with Pueblo in recent months; and now with the great retail institution Baci. How inappropriate and uncool is that for a public broadcasting station? They're supposed to report the news objectively and perform a public service, not spend their airtime looking into everyone's dirty laundry. They have been taking sides for years on a national level. Not hard to understand why Trump pulled the plug after their incredible favoritism reporting on the Dems in the last two Presidential elections.

IS THE BIG PUSH by the PR to plant U.S. military bases on its island a sounding call for the USVI to go after the same? The Guv seems to not have any problems with such a friendly invasion.

WHERE AND WHEN is Little Caesar going to reopen? Word is they are currently eyeing a few juicy spots. Everyone misses those cheap tasty pies.

WHAT LOCAL BUSINESS has the ability to take over the STX Kmart spaces now they have both closed. Only a few could have the need for such large square footage. And does the history of the difficulties of national chains planting roots in USVI weigh heavily on those spaces? Despite the Gov's recent talk about trying to lure Big Box Chains, isn't the reality they will most likely be kept empty for years to come? Ans even if they could be divided up, with the current dismally slow economic scene, the future for them, unfortunately, looks bleak.

WHAT COMPANY is putting in a cement plant on the Rum Road grounds next to Cruzan Rum? At least it's not near any residential or commercial developments. Could it be Benton?

WHAT PROMINENT VI POL who spends a good deal of time in the Nation's Capital has their sights set on the VI Gov Mansion in 2026? But can their recent scandalous troubles knock them for a political loop?

IS IT TRUE that a couple of F35 Fighter Jet Sub Hunters, that recently buzzed low over the Big Island, have something to do with the Fly Boys hunting for Chinese and Russian Nuclear submarines prowling up north of the USVI; just about the same time Russian warships were pulling into Cuban harbors?

CAN IT BE that one dominant hotel player on the West End of STX, while planning on expanding their fabulous facilities, is strongly entertaining the notion of rolling the dice and adding casino style slot machines to the old hospital building not far from their swanky property?

IS THE HUSH-HUSH TALK correct that certain high flying Senatorial winners almost lost their financial backing in the final weeks of the campaign due to the scandals that recently rocked government departments and caused Commissioner shake-ups? Will those same backers still be lined up for their 2026 re-election bids?

IS THE BACK ROOM conjecturing correct that a certain beloved long-time Senator lost his re-election bid due in part to the careless, nosy reporting of an online media source that broke a highly derogatory story about his personal business dealings, days before the election, without double-checking the facts and hearing both sides? And is the muffled down n’ dirty talk finding new evidence in the suspicion that this media source, who purports to be fair and objective, had its own electoral agenda?   

HOW IS IT POSSIBLE that a newly-built, cool-looking West Side Mega Mall, across from shuttered Kmart,  scheduled to open a year ago, is growing weeds taller than its yellow brick buildings and may very well be turning into a White Elephant, struggling to stay afloat, even before the doors of a bank, a hardware store and a number of shops and businesses have opened?    

CAN IT RISE AGAIN as the Big Island has long been awash in rumors, is it possible the long shuttered STX Refinery is gaining a great deal of momentum on a restart now that Trump has taken office? Will the iron fist of “The Donald” soften the EPA’s hard line game they have been playing over the past four Biden “fossil fuels be damned” years, and direct a new EPA governing team to ease up on the restrictive regs that have kept the Refinery from opening? If so, is a new economic boom on St. Croix just around the corner?

IS IT ANY SURPRISE that recent published reports of a VI daily newspaper, currently grappling to become a nonprofit, and is raising their street price to $2, has been unable to pay their rent for years and is in jeopardy of being thrown out of their STT digs? Can it leave readers with no other frightening conclusion than this publication must be on shaky financial ground like dozens of other print publications who are challenged by the onslaught of the internet? And after the strange and unapologetic sudden shutdown of another long standing VI daily, can it possibly spell the end of daily print reporting in the USVI forever?  But the real question is: Does anybody really care?