MOST people in St. George's want the parish rest home - which was closed down three years ago - to be used for housing seniors once again, according to a survey carried out by the United Bermuda Party.

The hilltop building on Secretary Lane, which was home to 12 seniors, was closed down three years ago and now a carpenter is working out of it.

But Opposition Senator Kim Swan has reiterated his call for the Government to come clean about their plans for the site.

"We in the UBP carried out a survey in St. George's and we asked people whether they thought the building should be used as a seniors' rest home, for affordable housing or for luxury condominiums," said Sen. Swan. "The overwhelming majority of those who responded said a rest home."

At the time of its closure in March 2000, Health Minister Nelson Bascome said conditions at the home had been appalling and the rooms "like cubicles".

But Sen. Swan said the building had been bequeathed to the parish for use as a rest home and questioned why no announcement had been made over the last three years about the Government's plans for the site.

"In the three years since it closed, the Government has had time to renovate the building and have it back in use as a rest home," he said. "The Government has wasted those three years and it's an affront and an insult to the people of St. George's.

"On the quiet, they've started to allow someone to use it as a carpenter's shop. The trees have been allowed to grow up around it. It's a large property and I have to question the Government's intention for it."

Sen. Swan has previously voiced his suspicion that the Government intended to leave the building dormant for enough time to be able to change the use of building, according to the terms of the will in which the building was left to the parish specifically as a rest home.

A year ago, Government Senate Leader David Burch said the site was unsuitable for seniors, because it overlooked a graveyard.

Sen. Swan believed the Government might announce plans for the site in the near future, as a pre-election sweetener to try and win some East End votes. But he said the public would not accept that.

"It would not be surprising if they used the rest home for some political grandstanding," said Sen. Swan. "But it's been three years and St. George's needs this rest home. We've reached a point where we can't just sit around and hope for something to get done any more.

"The people of St. George's have seen this happen before with the post office and the police station. What it shows is that the PLP Government has no respect for our heritage. They say one thing and do the opposite."

Sen. Swan will be a candidate for the UBP in St. George's in the imminent General Election.