Prison.

In a speech to the Pembroke Rotary Club, West End Development Corporation landscape manager Mr. Malcolm Griffiths said the amphitheatre proposal was just one part of ongoing development plans for the Dockyard area.

The land beside the prison "with its high backdrop of rock face looking out over the ocean, (would be) an inspiring site for any choir to perform in,'' Mr. Griffiths said.

The site Mr. Griffiths referred to is part of the Sallyport area, which has been used as a dump site for several years.

"We envisage the Sallyport as being an integral part of the Dockyard development,'' and preliminary work has begun on a plan for the area, he said.

"Its transformation will not take place over night.'' Wedco hopes to take over the area in three phases. First would be the north end adjacent to the Maritime Museum, and next would be the south end adjacent to Casemates. The final section to be developed would be the middle area, which is still being used to dump some materials and by Wedco for its sewage treatment plant.

Wedco leases the north end, which is used by Laser Sports Skeet Shooting, Mr.

Griffiths told the club. "Several inquiries have also been made with regard to using the waterfront area as a snorkel park, there being natural groynes in this area.'' Recreation would be a major feature of development in the Sallyport area, which would also provide ample parking, he said.

"This piece of land could well be described as the last frontier, and will require a good deal of creative ingenuity -- a challenge we look forward to and relish.'' The Dockyard area is steeped in history, and Wedco wants to find ways to pass to visitors more cultural and historical information about its buildings and artifacts, he said.

The oratory in the Royal Naval Cemetery could be rebuilt, an old lime kiln near the gas station could be cleaned up, and the old convict cemetery could also be featured.

Much still had to be done, but Wedco was confident Dockyard would be a natural drawing card for both visitors and residents.

Already, projections showed a 12 percent rise in cruise ship passengers over last year, and both the ferry and bus service had improved.

Wedco was created by an Act of Parliament in 1982 after Government commissioned a study of the Dockyard area by the Department of the Environment in the United Kingdom.