Dear Sir,

Kudos to minister Zane De Silva for his well-overdue and well-researched housing initiative. I attended the Boaz Island town hall meeting in December for clarity on the housing situation. We learnt that there are a lot more than 100 people living in their cars! That state of affairs is a sad indictment on our country, a country with a standard of living that (notwithstanding the cost) is the envy of most of the world.

Wherever I travel, I brag of how Bermuda has no income tax (that’s usually weaponised by jurisdictions that do); no real poverty (the average poor neighbourhood doesn’t qualify); hurricane-proof houses; no snow; the friendliest people in the world; self-governance; and an electoral system of one man-one vote. But now I have to admit, in spite of all that, we have a serious housing crisis here. I try to avoid the topic.

I’ve been designing houses for decades, and I applaud the legislation that mandates our adherence to the “Bermuda image”. However, I wondered, as housing gradually became the problem it is today, why would we not have houses that could be exempt from that requirement.

Build them where they are not readily visible. Our existing prefabs were a good effort, but still not as cost-effective as we’d like.

Fast forward to the Boaz Island situation. Government proposes temporary modular housing; only nine of them. A brilliant idea!

However, to my horror, there were at that meeting a cadre of self-serving ignoramuses, seemingly (hell)bent on obstructing the process. They cited concerns about flooding, overcrowding and unsightliness. I mentioned that with that lot being 0.6 of an acre, zoned as Residential 1, the legal wherewithal exists for 12 units each with a potential of as many bedrooms as anyone wanted. That put and an end to that tomfoolery. Or so I thought. I was wrong. There are now formal objections lodged at the Planning Department to prevent the approval of the application.

Imagine, people who have a warm, cosy house to live in objecting to a proposal to help people who don’t. For shame!

Thankfully, the Development Applications Board is not stupid. I’m sure these objections will be seen for exactly what they are; (to be polite) horse feathers! I’m sure they will be summarily deposited in the circular file where they belong.

CALVIN K SIMONS

Sandys