John Everitt
Presents
BUILDERS OF TORTOLACrispin (Cris) Ruffell Smith Cris is a native of Cockfield, Sussex, UK although he “never really lived there”. He currently resides at Hannah’s, near Nanny Cay, Tortola. Prior to coming to Roadtown Cris worked in the Middle East (principally Saudi Arabia) for fourteen years, in hospital management, construction, and administration. With the skills he acquired, he came to the BVI to help his father operate Omega International, a glass and wood working company, on September 9 1988.
After working with Omega for two years, he moved on to work at Tool Town (Island Equipment Ltd.) in the Port Purcell estate. This company offers sales, service, and rentals of construction equipment – an important set of operations in contemporary Tortola.
When Cris started with Tool Town it was owned by George and Noreen S…… Cris later bought a part of the business, acquiring the balance of the company in January 1995 when the original owners retired.Given the state of the construction business in Tortola for the past twenty years, both Cris and Tool Town have been in the thick of things, and Cris and his company have probably had a hand in building most of the newer houses, as well as other buildings on Tortola.
There have been many changes, arguably both good and bad over the past twenty years, in the BVI . In addition to the building changes (both numbers and heights) Cris also notes the tremendous increase in traffic over the past two decades, coupled with no apparen increase in driving skills, as well as a rise in the crime rate (especially gun crimes), more pollution, and an increase in multiculturalism – which can be viewed both positively and negatively. Cris is married to a Filipina and is involved in the growing community on Tortola that hails from the Philippines. This year they entered a community float in the Festival parade. He also notes the increase in the yachting fraternity, as well as an improvement in transportation modes such as ferries as important changes in the cultural landscapes of the BVI.
Cris has actively involved himself in community affairs during his years on Tortola. In particular he has been active in the Humane Society (since 1988), VISAR (he’s a 19 year veteran and has a Queen’s Medal for service), as well as helping several schools on the island with improvements in technology, training, as well as financial aid.
Life has changed over the past twenty years in Tortola, and not always for the better. Progress has come in many ways, and the financial and tourist industries have been important in Cris’ mind as they have created wealth, which in turn has led to many other changes – such as the larger and more modern airport. Many of these changes have brought improvements to all parts of the BVI. On the other hand there are some more controversial changes such as the cruise ship industry, which has generated some wealth but has also increased traffic problems – particularly in Road Town. There are also endemic challenges with services such as electricity. Even the internet, a significant new innovation, can be problematical if its service cannot be guaranteed.
In some ways change may have come too fast, and government may have become too large and too inefficient – especially impacting the small businesses on Tortola. Paperwork can be a major hassle. As an instance Cris notes the amount of time he has to spend in court dealing with people who don’t pay their bills – which could be better spent at Tool Town. Although many Tortolans are better off as a result of ‘development’, the high salaries provoked by the financial industry in particular have caused some challenges. The high salaries are out of reach for many local people as they lack the necessary education and training, and these salaries have led to increasing costs in many other parts of the economy as well – causing prices to rise and difficulties to occur in other parts of the economic system. Cris still sees a number of cultural divides in the BVI that are not closing as rapidly as they might be, with different rules and mores for different groups being divisive in some instances.
Although Cris would do much differently if he had his ‘Tortola time’ over again, he does hope to sell Tool Town in a few years to somebody “younger and keener”. If he could have bought land earlier in his BVI career he would have, but as it is he has more mobility and flexibility and may move to the Philippines where he would settle down, buy some land and start another career.
Draft of August 14th, 2009 of interview of 31st July, 2009
Builders of Tortola Guide