‘I stored derelict vehicles on my property for years without pay'- Ashley Ritter speaks
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Business tycoon M. Ashley Ritter, in an exclusive interview with Virgin Islands News Online (VINO), has moved to set the record straight on this matter and why he wanted the derelict vehicles moved off his property.
The history- How fast we forget!
Mr. Ritter noted that around 2017 after the two Category 5 Hurricanes Irma and Maria, when all the damaged automobiles were piled up on the waterfront in Road Town by Pussers Parking Lot for months, and the government of the day (National Democratic Party) refusing to do anything about them, he acted as a good corporate citizen.
The businessman recalled that in 2017 everyone in the Territory at the time continued to complain about the unsightly view of those derelict vehicles in the heart of Road Town, as it was the biggest eyesore months after the hurricanes.
“I volunteered and removed all those vehicles from the waterfront parking lot in 2017 down to my property in Pockwood Pond, without a dime from the government for transportation or storage,” Mr. Ritter noted.
He further stated that these “derelict vehicles were there for years free of cost until I asked the government to remove them, and they keep promising and promising to do so, but never did.”
According to someone familiar with the history of the matter, a contract was finally signed around late 2018 where the government was paying for storage, as they organized barges to take the derelict vehicles overseas.
Landowner has suffered too
In the meantime, the landowner noted that he suffered greatly and having the vehicles there long term was a risk to the safety of the area.
Mr Ritter told our newsroom that persons from all over “used to come to the storage site to remove car parts, sometimes they will bring torches to burn them off and that was very dangerous as many of the old cars had gas left in their tanks and at any time a fire could have started”.
He further stated that “this became very hazardous because in the immediate area there were Delta Gas Station storage tanks with both propane gas and fuel and one could only imagine the devastation, if a fire had broken out while someone was torching for car parts”.
This was another reason why Mr. Ritter wanted the derelict vehicles off his property.
While Mr. Ritter acknowledged that there was a storage lease with the Government he said however “money alone was not the issue, my property was being compromised and my own tools and equipment became exposed to persons traversing the area for car parts”.
Residents- move them form Havers
The lease with Mr. Ritter ended in 2023 according to someone familiar with the process, and the government has struggled since to find a location to store the derelict vehicles before they are shipped overseas.
Last year a public tender was issued via the Department of Waste Management for a new site and it was won by JXS Limited that owns land located in Havers on Tortola. The derelict vehicles have been stored there from late December 2024.
However, landowners in the area and other residents have demanded that the Government of the day remove them from the Havers storage site because they are unsightly, an eyesore and they allegedly devalue their properties.
How the Government plans to respond to residents’ complains and demands remain unclear notwithstanding the Minister for Health and Social Development Hon Vincent O. Wheatley (R9) stating in a public meeting earlier this week on the matter, that he has heard the cries of the residents of District Three.
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35 Responses to “‘I stored derelict vehicles on my property for years without pay'- Ashley Ritter speaks”
2. The vehicle should be registered as operable, non-operable, or stored.
3. If it's non-operable a time should be given to make it operable or it will be declared a derelict vehicle.
4. If it's a derelict vehicle the owner is responsible for its removal
5. The owner must show proof of removal or in the process.
6. The owner can't register or re-register any vehicle until the process is acceptable to the Government.