July 2017
Dear Fellow Virgin Grand Villas Owner:
As your owner-elected representatives on our condominium association’s Board of Directors, we recently participated in a conference call meeting of the Board. This is our report from that meeting.
TWENTY YEAR ANNIVERSARY
It has been 20 years since the property became a Westin resort. Management recently recognized 35 employees who have been working at the resort for that entire period of time. We think the fact that so many employees have remained reflects well on the state of employer-employee relations at the resort.
RESORT UPDATE
Sam Hugli, who has replaced Mike Ryan as General Manager of the resort, provided the following update: construction of the final timeshare units (in Sunset Bay) will be completed during October. Trees have been trimmed to provide better views from the hillside balconies. New chaises for the beach will be arriving soon, and new furniture for the hillside balconies is expected to arrive by the end of July. Soft goods and some hard goods have been renovated in all of the pool villas (either this year or last year, depending on the building), all A/C units have been upgraded, and new pool and patio furniture is expected in July. Management continues to seek sufficiently sturdy towel racks to be placed on the decks of the pool villas. The television at Snorkels has been installed; it is turned on only for afternoon sports events. There is now a once-a-week (Tuesday) farmer’s market at the resort.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT FEE
As you know from our last report, the Virgin Islands legislature recently imposed a $25 per night “environmental impact fee” on residence in a timeshare property. The fee is collected upon checkout and then remitted to the government. American Resort Development Association - Resort Owners’ Coalition (“ARDA-ROC”), the timeshare owners’ representative arm of ARDA which is a trade association for timeshare developers, recently filed a lawsuit in federal court challenging the legality of this fee, and a local association has filed a similar suit in the territorial court. Unfortunately, while the case winds through the courts there is no alternative but to pay the fee at this time.
Click here to view the ARDA-ROC complaint as filed in federal court.
RESORT COMMITTEE
Three of the four condominium associations at the Westin St. John now have owner representatives on their Boards with the fourth expected to have owner representatives in 2018. Each association Board will appoint one owner representative to a resort committee to discuss with management any budgetary or owner-use issues involving the common areas such as the recreational facilities and roadways or other matters of concern to all of the associations. Bob Werbel, one of your undersigned owner-elected directors, has agreed to represent our association on this committee until the next annual meeting, and Philip Schrag, your other owner-elected director, will represent our association for the year following.
DIAMOND LANE
In new reservation confirmations as of May 1, 2017 and all pre-arrival confirmations sent 30 days prior to travel, you will find a link to the Diamond Lane which you can use to notify the resort of your arrival plans, the names of your guests, and whether you are going to use the Westin ferry or the public ferry. This will speed check-in and allow the resort to prepare accordingly. It will not allow your guests to check in or use the Westin ferry before you arrive, however. See below for the procedure if your guests may arrive before you do.
To access Diamond Lane log into
vistana.com and from your owner dashboard, place your cursor over the Destinations tab at the top to access the pull-down menu and click on The Westin St. John Resort Villas, then click on the Diamond Lane link in the upper-left section of the page. You can then fill out the Diamond Lane Pre-Arrival Form and submit it online. The Diamond Lane Form must be submitted at least 7 days prior to your scheduled arrival date.
AIRPORT CHECK-IN
Whether or not you are using the Westin ferry, if your villa is clean and ready for occupancy, you can now check in at the St. Thomas airport, provide your credit card and identification, and get your villa keys.
FORECLOSURES
Owners of eight percent of the unit weeks have not paid their maintenance fee, about the same as last year, and those owners have been denied use of their villas. We continue to institute foreclosure actions against owners delinquent in the payment of their maintenance fees. If you have not paid your maintenance fee, please do so at once; otherwise, you will be locked out and the rest of the owners have to pick up the costs, most of which are fixed. In addition, you could become a defendant in an expensive foreclosure action. In fact, our Board has just authorized our attorney to begin another raft of foreclosures against owners who have not paid their maintenance fee.
NEXT BARGAIN SALE
At the end of foreclosure proceedings, the association acquires the foreclosed unit week. As a result, we now own 27 unit weeks that we are going to offer for sale to owners at bargain-basement prices, as we have done twice before. Watch your email for a notice of this opportunity to buy one or more unit weeks at a price far below what comparable unit weeks would cost from the developer or from after-market realtors.
WEEK 53
Currently, nineteen Virgin Grand owners own both Week 52 and Week 1. Every five to seven years (and not until 2021 for a Friday check in), those weeks are separated by a “Week 53,” which are owned by the Developer. To prevent a discontinuity for those owners, management will reach out to affected owners 13 months in advance and ask whether they would like to use Week 53 instead of their Week 52. This will provide those owners with the opportunity to avoid a one week gap in the use of their villa by electing to use Week 53 before any other owners have the opportunity to exchange into that week.
GUESTS WHO ARRIVE BEFORE OWNERS
If guests will be arriving prior to the Owner, the Owner must telephone Owner Services to change the reservation into the guest name. The applicable Third Party Guest Fee will apply only if it is a VSN reservation. Owner Services is open Monday – Friday, 9am – 9pm and Saturday & Sunday, 9am – 6pm Eastern Time. If you are unexpectedly delayed (e.g., by a snowstorm or flight delay) and Owner Services is closed, you must call the resort front desk with the name of your guests, even though you have submitted a Diamond Lane Form. Your guests will be required to present a credit card at check-in and will be charged the nightly rate plus applicable taxes. When the Owner arrives and checks in, the Owner must then request the resort front desk to change the reservation back into their name. The guest will receive a refund for the nightly rental and taxes, and the Owner will be assessed the $25 per day Environmental Impact Fee at check-out.
DATE OF NEXT ANNUAL MEETING
The next annual meeting of the association will be held at the resort on the morning of March 5, 2018.
Sincerely,
Philip G. Schrag
Robert H. Werbel
I like this part!! 
AIRPORT CHECK-IN
Whether or not you are using the Westin ferry, if your villa is clean and ready for occupancy, you can now check in at the St. Thomas airport, provide your credit card and identification, and get your villa keys.
I read that ARDA complaint. Very well pled and the first time I have EVER seen the ARDA take it to the mat for the actual timeshare owner. 
. I will be watching for the ultimate outcome. Things in Federal court sometimes move very slowly so this may take years.
