Re. Hamburg Building Project Art Center / Alpine Group                                 10 March, 2025 
     81C Arts / Atelier St Thomas Arts Foundation  917 327 1561 81CVI.ORG  
Zachary G. Zook, Exec Dir.  
CC. Dyonna Potter, Director. Joseph Hewes, President  
To whom it may concern, 
     I write to you to express adamant support for Alpine Group’s intention to renovate the Hamburg 
building in Charlotte Amalie, effectively creating the very first Virgin Islands Art Museum.  
This potential development can do the following for our territory: 
1) 
Diversify visitor experience, offering a highly valued, VI-authentic, and one of a kind product to 
options for tourists visiting the territory. 
2) 
Create a sense of belonging and ownership for community members, VI artists, and Virgin 
Islanders whose livelihoods are spent working in the arts and education. 
3) 
Serve as a main access point for cultural preservation and important Virgin Islands storytelling 
for all residents and visitors, and for the general public.  
4) 
Heighten what historic Charlotte Amalie can offer residents and visitors in regard to an 
experience-oriented-product / positive cultural commodity. 
5) 
Provide valuable arts and culture program support to schools and organizations throughout 
Charlotte Amalie, especially the Savan/Downstreet area and especially underserved communities 
throughout the territory.  
     Our organization has worked with Alpine in a professional community partnership capacity since 
2023. We have received invaluable community programs consulting and philanthropic programs 
support from Alpine for several of our programs focused on education through student immersion in 
the arts. I can state firmly that Alpine has invested a remarkable amount of energy into crafting a 
team who not only understand the needs of this community, but who can effectively develop and 
complete projects through relationships built on a shared vision for positive community impact. As 
executive director of 81C Arts, an art and education non profit organization working in Charlotte 
Amalie since 2017, and as a full time resident of the VI since 2011 with family ties in the territory 
dating back to 1964, I can tell you that the proposed Hamburg project stands to radically improve our 
area, assist in multigenerational education and career-building, and is aligned with the values and 
long term vision shared by myself and 81C Arts. Please let me know if you would like me to discuss 
this with you further.  
 
Thanks!  
Zack Zook, 81C Arts