A St. George's homeowner has had to go directly to the Minister of Finance in a bid to set straight an alleged overcharge by the Land Tax Office.

Gary Kent-Smith is protesting an increase in annual rental value (ARV) which was implemented because of a renovation.

A puzzled Mr. Kent-Smith told The Royal Gazette that no renovations have been done to the home -- a yellow house next to Somers Gardens on York Street, St.

George's -- in about 20 years.

Mr. Kent-Smith received a letter in February pointing out the ARV hike. He said the letter explained the increase was due to renovations that converted a small laundry room into a living area.

But he pointed out that no construction renovations have taken place.

"My father and I had simply done some cleaning up of the room and painted it,'' Mr. Kent-Smith said.

"In clearing out the room, we did throw away a lot of stuff. But I don't consider that renovations for which we should be charged more tax.'' In a letter to Finance Minister Eugene Cox, Mr. Kent-Smith charged that the land valuation officer who came to the property might not be familiar with kitchens.

"Perhaps the inspector that examined my parents' residence had never seen a kitchen that had not only the usual stove and refrigerator, but also a washing machine within its walls,'' he said "This was the so-called laundry area which was allegedly converted to living quarters. For the record, the kitchen in question was constructed in 1942, nearly 60 years ago.

"Maybe the person doing the inspection had no clue as to what he was examining.'' To date 340 objections have been lodged by homeowners unsatisfied with the recent draft valuation list. According to the Land Valuation Office, there are a total of 30,802 valuation units.

Objectors will begin to present their cases next month when a Land Valuation Tribunal will hear the appeals.