of a property at Southside where it wants to build houses even though contractors have already begun work on the site.

BHC general manager Raymonde Dill confirmed yesterday that the lease had not been executed, although there was agreement in principle with Bermuda Land Development Corporation (BLDC), which owns the site at Texas Road.

Local Progressive Labour Party MP Arthur Pitcher, who has a contract from BHC to build the houses, started demolition of the asbestos-ridden buildings on the site and started construction before he had a permit.

Mr. Dill said BHC and BLDC were still in discussions with "agreement in principle to finalise legal work''.

He said BLDC had supported the application for a permit to begin demolition when it was submitted to the Planning Department.

"The application (for demolition) can be submitted by anyone and the process involved approval by the legal owners (BLDC) and such letter exists,'' said Mr. Dill. "Demolition has always been a plan of BLDC in any event. The demolition work we put in an application for was supported by BLDC and this was just an acceleration of their plan.'' The application to build the 20 homes went before the Development Application Board (DAB) yesterday and local residents attended to object.

It emerged at the meeting, held at the Bermuda Industrial Union headquarters in Hamilton, that BHC also had approval to build two other developments in St.

David's for low income families.

Local residents claim they have been kept in the dark about the main proposal at Texas Road. They were only shown the plans for the development at a public meeting in May by which time planning approval in principle had already been granted.

Lawrence Fox, a residents' representative who addressed the DAB meeting, said he knew nothing about BHC's plans for a five-unit development at Lighthouse Hill and for two units at Cove Valley Lane until Mr. Dill revealed it yesterday.

Referring to the Texas Road application, he said: "Why was this going through planning when they don't even have the right paperwork?'' However, Mr. Dill rejected the claim that residents were not kept informed, saying all the applications had been advertised in the normal way in the legal section of the newspapers.

He said: "As was explained this morning, the building permit application process is one that's been used in this Country for 25 years.

"Any application submitted by anyone has to be advertised in the newspapers, and it was done with the two sites in St. David's some months ago. Residents around the Country are appraised using that process.'' Mr. Dill said BHC went beyond the normal process by informing residents about the plans at a public meeting, but it had backfired on him.

The DAB is expected to make a site visit and will decide whether to approve the application for Texas Road next week.

The proposals have been plagued by controversy. Mr. Pitcher was ordered by an environmental health officer to stop demolition work on the asbestos-ridden buildings on the site while experts were called in to treat the hazardous material.

The Royal Gazette revealed this week that relatives of one young worker, backed by an asbestos expert who saw the demolition, said Mr. Pitcher's staff had no protection when they handled the potentially deadly material.

Mr. Fox said he felt "hurt and betrayed'' by Mr. Pitcher's behaviour. He said: "We feel a certain individual has been trying to get rich quick and not letting the residents know what is going on.