Team Fedeles

August Newsletter: A Season of New Beginnings

August 16, 2019 by Team Fedeles

This summer we said “Congratulations and Goodbye” to Kristi. She got married and became Kristi Myers in May, and will move to Alabama with her husband, Will, to start their family. They plan to visit often and eventually move back, since St. Croix will always be home to them both.

At the same time, we welcomed Stephen Swanton to Team Fedeles. Stephen has already proven to have excellent attention to detail, a keen eye for photography, a true interest in the real estate industry, and great enthusiasm for helping our clients. You may also recognize him from the winner’s platform of the 2018 Beauty and the Beast Triathlon or from “pedaling” his handcrafted kombucha and cold-brew coffee from Bici Cafe at the La Reine Farmers’ Market; look for his kombucha on tap at local gyms, yoga studios, bars and restaurants!

In June, I was honored to receive the Coldwell Banker President’s Circle Award for the 7th year! I certainly couldn’t do it without such a capable team and supportive clients. I am grateful for the privilege of working with such wonderful people in such a spectacular place!

Have you been considering a new beginning by starting or moving a business to paradise? Learn more about the tax incentives associated with making a business investment on St. Croix through the USVI Economic Development Authority. We’d be happy to show you our current commercial listing or help you find another commercial property on island.

If your idea of new is building your very own dream home, check out our assortment of land for sale. You’ll find quite a range of prices and sizes. And one common theme: views, views, views!

St. Croix’s newest spirit, Mutiny Island Vodka, held their grand opening of the Sion Farm Distillery this past weekend. Located in the former Island Dairies building, they are distilling vodka using breadfruit. If you didn’t make it to the grand opening, you really need to stop in sometime for a cocktail and snack.

Our seller, Lou Cerrulo, shared his After Maria St. Croix story from his new home base of Florida, but we’re counting on seeing Lou back on St. Croix soon. We look forward to welcoming him back home — and we’d love to welcome you too!

Warm regards,
Team Fedeles

Featured Client: After Maria

August 6, 2019 by Team Fedeles

Lou Cerullo took a leap of faith in 2017. He made a sight-unseen offer on a condo, then flew down to close four days before Hurricane Irma. He then waited anxiously as both Irma and Maria made their way through the Caribbean. While we were not his buyer agent for that purchase, we learned later that our e-newsletters after the storm had a big impact on him.

We can’t imagine how nerve-racking it must have been to have made a commitment to buy a condo, then to watch from afar as a category 5 hurricane blew over it. It was very touching to hear from Lou that he saved all of our post-storm communication because it helped him feel more connected to what was happening on St. Croix.

During his career as an engineer on the East Coast, Lou did a lot of traveling. Over 20 years, he experienced the entire Caribbean and decided,

Someday I’m going to retire there.

For Lou, St. Croix had all the things he wanted, but not all the commercialism. After a stretch of owning a restaurant in South Carolina, it was time. He bought his condo, endured the wait after Maria, and finally made his way to St. Croix.

He poured a lot of energy into renovating his new condo, making it his perfect island home. When he wasn’t working on his condo, one of his favorite things to do on island was to find Brian McCullough Band playing somewhere. He settled right in to island life.

St. Croix just has a great small town feel. It didn’t take any time at all to meet people and make friends.

Alas, life took a little turn and Lou needed to head back to the States for awhile. That’s when he contacted Team Fedeles to sell his condo. We put together the listing, complete with the write-up and photos, and Lou said:

I loved it! I wanted to buy it all over again!

Lou wasn’t expecting to get the full listing price, but trusted our guidance. And we had multiple offers within two days! We’re pleased to hear him describe the sale as a “smooth experience”.

Now Lou is in Florida living close to family.

I miss St. Croix every day — and I’m in Florida with a beautiful view! Sure, having access to all the shopping options is nice, but I’d give it all up to be back on St. Crox.

Lou’s advice for anyone looking for a real estate agent is to find someone who cares enough to patiently answer all of your questions. He was kind to share how much he appreciated our attention to detail.

Someday I hope to really retire — and I’ll go back to David to buy my next St. Croix home.

We look forward to welcoming you back home, Lou!

Featured Client: Where Everybody Knows Your Name

April 25, 2019 by Team Fedeles

Dave and Kathy Cecil first vacationed on St. Croix in the late 1980’s and loved it then. That’s what eventually led them to buy a condo at The Reef where they have been enjoying the snowbird lifestyle for four years. Now their immaculate 2 bedroom/2bath end unit is on the market.

So why St. Croix?

It’s a U.S. Territory, English is spoken here, we’re on the U.S. monetary system and can use USPS for shipping items to or from the island. St. Croix has beautiful weather available almost 365 days a year, beautiful beaches and good food.”

The Cecil’s enjoy the beach directly across from their condo at The Reef.

And why a Condo at The Reef?

We were on vacation here on the property, this unit was for sale, the rest is history! We especially appreciate the security and friendly community environment. Plus, the amenities: golf, a pool, the beach, modern utility systems on property, and excellent dining options.”

The Cecil’s even say that the Dish TV, Internet and cellular are all better than at home in Wisconsin! The Reef community also has its own sewage treatment plant and reverse osmosis water treatment facility.

The Reef is constructed of concrete block. Dave shared that, “Hurricane Maria caused no damage. We weren’t on Island and communications with community neighbors about Maria provided good information.”

The Reef is an East End gated community with 101 tiered condos. Community amenities include a 9-hole golf course with Pro Shop, a fresh water swimming pool, tennis courts, and a sandy beach in the reef-protected Caribbean. Duggan’s Reef restaurant is in front of the community right on the beach. Dave gets a kick out of the fact that Frank Duggan, the restaurant’s owner, used to bartend at the Bull & Finch Pub in Boston, home of 1980’s TV series, Cheers. Like the Cheers theme song, The Reef is a close, friendly community Where Everybody Knows Your Name.

Dave and Kathy enjoy the turquoise blue Caribbean Sea and amazing sunrises most every morning. The night view is relaxing just watching the cruise ship lights. During our recent chat, Kathy shared that, “The Golden Trumpet tree at our patio is in full bloom! Being able to look out over the Caribbean Sea and at Buck Island from our patio or condo windows is beautiful and something we never tire of.”

The Cecil’s met while both worked for the Commonwealth Edison electric utility, Dave at a power generating station and Kathy in the nuclear division. Dave enjoyed flying and considered the cockpit of a commercial aircraft, but chose to pilot his own personal small plane; he is an amateur HAM radio operator, WB9YSK.

They brought their holiday traditions to St. Croix. “We enjoy decorating at Christmas with a traditional tree and all of the extras. And we really enjoy the Christmas Boat Parade.”

Another interesting story of good times shared of their time at The Reef: “We learned to love golf together as a couple.” Dave hadn’t played golf in 35 years and Kathy had never played!

“I don’t know if you can write about this,” Dave confessed, “but in the West End rainforest, you can feed pigs beer!” Kathy added, “animal rights activists ensured it is O’Doule’s, non-alcoholic beer.”

But now Dave and Kathy are grandparents and their retirement focus has changed. It’s time for more family activities at home in the Midwest. So it’s back to frigid winters and real snow on Christmas.

Featured Client: A Home Suited for Entertaining Ted Kennedy

February 19, 2019 by Team Fedeles

John and Tricia Thompson thoroughly enjoy the island lifestyle and entertain no thoughts otherwise. Hospitality and entertaining family and friends at their magnificent St. Croix home has been immeasurably gratifying. Now, though, seasons of their lives are changing and it’s time to enjoy the Caribbean, minus the home-ownership. Their 5 bedroom, 5 bath home is on the market, ready for new memories to be made.

Years ago, a family-owned contracting business in Atlanta, Georgia, positioned John to be subcontracting with a British firm in Nassau, New Providence Island, Bahamas, rebuilding from hurricane damage. Successful business relations led to other construction work in the area that included a hotel in the Atlantis resort on nearby Paradise Island.

Then, in 1989, the aftermath of Hurricane Hugo called John and his construction team to the U.S. Virgin Islands. Even experiencing St. Croix at its worst during this time, John saw the potential and fell in love. “New Providence Island, Bahamas, is relatively flat and low-lying…

St. Croix has knolls with views and lush valleys.”

John and Tricia have been St. Croix residents now for 22 years. Their home is atop a knoll on the East End, providing a stunning, unobstructed, panoramic view of the Caribbean Sea and other islands. There are many things they love about their home, but John notes a particular practical feature. “At this elevation, you don’t experience the salt damage and bugs like near sea level.”

Naturally, John served as his own contractor when building their home. As with his commercial work, he used local labor for everything else. “Even the architect was local, but Tricia and I designed the interior.” John laughed as he shared that the architect took a station wagon as payment.

The design is Danish colonial like downtown Fort Christiansvaern circa 1749 with cathedral style interior ceilings and arched doorways. The structure is concrete.

Another key feature of the home is the 9.7kW solar array, which is net metered.

The solar system was installed 5-6 years ago and that was a no-brainer. We saved the cost within the first 3 years or so.”

This home was definitely made for entertaining and the Thompsons have some great stories. “No question Tricia is the hospitality chairman. We hosted the University of North Carolina women’s golf team and the coaches for drinks and dinner in the winter of 2014. We both attended UNC where we met.”

Earlier on, they hosted Ted Kennedy and his family for cocktails.

My daughter and her husband were also with us. The interesting thing about this, we were all conservative in nature and were all prepared to dislike him, and within twenty minutes he won us all over. Totally a charming personality and never once mentioned politics.”

The Kennedy family visited St. Croix often. In fact, Teddy hid Vicki’s engagement ring near some coral for her to discover while snorkeling at Buck Island, which was established as a National Monument by his brother, President John F. Kennedy. Speaking of Buck Island, the landmark is about 1.5 miles north of St. Croix and easily seen from the Thompson home.

A birds eye view of the Thompson home with Buck Island in the background.

The Thompsons have family roots in Georgia and North Carolina, but don’t plan to release the island lifestyle anytime soon. Our best wishes John and Tricia — we’ll see you around!

If you would like to learn more about the opportunity to be the next owner of 5G Teagues Bay, contact Kristi at kristi@fedeles.com or 340.778.7000 x114.

Steph Featured in St. Croix This Week

December 17, 2018 by Team Fedeles

Our very own Steph Schoyer and her artist father, Toby Schoyer, are featured in the December and January issues of St. Croix This Week. Steph’s pride in her father’s artistic ability is evident throughout the Island Art interview on pages 36 and 59 in the December issue. We especially enjoyed reading about how her father influenced her skill at recognizing the perfect light for her photography.

…one of my favorite memories was when he drove me to school in the morning and would point out the different ways the light changed the landscape.

Steph is such a talented photographer. Her work will be exhibited at Cafe Christine in January and February 2019. If you haven’t met her or seen her work yet, consider stopping in during Art Thursday or for lunch one day. Of course, we get to see her excellent photographer’s eye in action when she shoots our new listings.

Another favorite part of this month’s article is the moment when Steph discovered her passion for photography.

I wanted to paint like Toby and loved doing it and then one day I picked up a camera and as soon as I heard the shutter release I felt something shift and knew I had found my niche.

We’re so lucky that Steph also loves St. Croix and believes that “introducing it to new buyers is a wonderful way to spend the day!”

If you’d like to check out Steph’s handiwork beyond her masterful real estate photography, visit www.schoyer.com. And definitely be sure to pick up this month’s and next of St. Croix This Week!

Featured Client: Years of Memories in a St. Croix Home Built for Entertaining

December 16, 2018 by Team Fedeles

Bud and Joan Woelfel have thoroughly enjoyed the St. Croix snowbird lifestyle for more than 50 years — with nearly 30 years in their spectacular home that is now for sale.

Joan and I have two sons and I was a school teacher in Massachusetts. Our vacation time was limited to 10 days, so in February 1964, we left winter in Massachusetts to briefly enjoy the warm winter temperatures in Florida. Well, it was colder than normal that year and we had to buy coats to keep warm. I decided then that we needed a more predictable vacation weather.

So the very next year, the Virgin Islands, then specifically St. Croix, became their choice vacation destination.

After teaching for 20 years, Bud launched his successful business in the construction industry. He is quick to say, “I just enjoy what I do.” Bud and Joan live in Harwich Port, Cape Cod, Massachusetts, and have enjoyed vacations, then retirement, in winter on St. Croix. During stays on island, the couple would do home tours and Bud was particularly interested in the island construction.

One particular property in Cotton Valley caught their attention. It’s structure, having been built with conventional construction, did not survive Hurricane Hugo. But Bud and Joan had a vision to recreate the estate according to the original design, now using substantial, hurricane-resistant construction materials and techniques.

Designed by John Randal McDonald, an architect often compared to Frank Lloyd Wright, this estate embraces the importance of a natural setting. McDonald encouraged homeowners to be aware of the elegance of the natural environment. At 600 feet above sea level, the intentional design maximizes the stunning St. Croix views. Valance lighting accents the construction elegance both inside and outside. “At completion, we invited Mr. McDonald to visit and see his design return to life. He cried as he witnessed our appreciation for his creation.”

Just like he had placed the order yesterday, Bud shared, “There is 15,000 linear feet of Redwood, 300 cubic yards of concrete and 30,000 lbs. of rebar.” He does enjoy construction and is a strong believer in preventative maintenance which he personally continues to this day.

The Woelfel’s have hosted up to 80 people for dinner. Bud describes his wife as a true hostess. “She had this down to an art-form, with all that was needed from tables and chairs to dinnerware and silverware.” Dining can evolve inside and outside, and, consistent with what first brought them to St. Croix, the weather is highly predictable. “We could plan a dinner for next month and be reasonably certain the weather would be as expected.”

I remember my 50^th birthday celebration. We invited 26 friends from Massachusetts and it lasted 2 weeks! Dinner parties among friends are common on St. Croix and we used to average about two dinner parties here a week.

Bud and Joan enjoy cruises and plan to continue the snowbird lifestyle, yet leave the hosting to others. We wish them well as they shift into yet another season of their lives! And we look forward to meeting the next owners who will appreciate this knoll-top masterpiece.