A frustrated St. George's resident seeking change in his parish decided to take pictures of problem areas hoping that it will inspire action.

The resident, who asked not to be named, said that while the Town Square was being kept clean, the rest of the parish was falling into disrepair.

"I continually see these sites, and nobody seems to be doing anything about the state of them," he said. "They seemed to have put some effort into cleaning up the Square, but the rest of the parish is going to rack and ruin.

"It's embarrassing. You can't even take visitors on a walk around the area."

He said that trash was building up in bushes, on the sides of the roads and in empty lots.

"The Corporation needs to do something about the garbage that's building up in the bushes and the sides of the roads," he said.

"You also have to remember that St. George's is a World Heritage Site. If those people come back here and look at the place now, I wouldn't be surprised if they take that away."

Along with being an eyesore, he also said that the build-up of trash could become a health or safety hazard if left unchecked.

While both Dame Jennifer Smith, the MP for the area, and St. George's Mayor Kenneth Bascome have in recent months said the town was on the upswing, the resident said while several businesses have shut their doors, he had only seen two open.

"There's a little dress shop near the pharmacy, and the restaurant where Café Gio used to be (Wahoo's), but that's just a restaurant for a restaurant," he said.

"I hope they do well because they're good people."

Part of the problem comes from the lack of cruise ships visiting the East End of the Island.

While the Veendam was scheduled to make several stops in St. George's, it was left dropping anchor in Murray's Anchorage after it was discovered to be too wide to pass through Town Cut.

Even then, the ship has been diverted to Hamilton because of medical emergencies or poor weather more often than it has actually docked in the East End.

Plans to widen or dredge the channel have been discussed, but Mr. Bascome has promised no action will be taken until an independent study is done, and the public have had their input.

While the construction of a new hotel on the former Club Med site is hoped to draw more business to the town, for the time being the resident said he felt the town was being left to crumble.

Last night, Mr. Bascome said that many of the areas where trash was building up were outside of the town limits, but he promised he would contact Works and Engineering about the issue.

He also said that several other businesses have opened up in the town, including a bedding store and a second clothes shop.

"We have held several meetings, not only for the business people, but for people in the community to come forward and tell us what types of business would do well in St. George's.

"What we are doing is helping young entrepreneurs to come to the East End and take advantage of this opportunity."