George's has asked Government's permission to collect all the wharfage on goods brought in at the airport.

"We would like to look after ourselves and believe that the revenue from the airport would help us stand on our own two feet,'' St. George's mayor Lois Perinchief said yesterday.

Noting that the Corporation have been working with a budget "just under $2 million for the past few years'', Ms Perinchief held that the funds are grossly inadequate for the work required.

"We work with just under $2 million a year while there are many small businesses with larger budgets,'' she said.

"We had the meeting in either November or December, with the Premier and other Ministers, but have not heard anything back from them as yet,'' she said.

"We are planning to call them in the next week or so for a response.'' But Corporation Secretary, Nancy Hooper described the response of the Government officials as "sympathetic''.

"I do believe our requests will be sympathetically looked at,'' she said.

"It is unfair of us really to present this to the Government who were unaware of the problem and expect them to fix it overnight but that is what we've had to do.'' The Corporation used to collect all the airport wharfage but according to Ms Perinchief, "the UBP Government stopped that several years ago''.

Currently Government pay an annual fixed rate of $750,000 to the Corporation of St George's from the wharfage they collect.

"We get this in twelve instalments, one a month,'' said Ms Hooper.

"In Hamilton the Corporation of Hamilton collect wharfage,'' Ms Perinchief pointed out.

But Ms Hooper warned that even if Government sanction them collecting the 1.01 percent on value of retail goods, the revenue generated may still not be sufficient to address all their needs.

"This is not the answer to our prayers,'' she said, "we have long term plans and would like very much to in 10 to 15 years, be totally independent of Government.

"But we need them right now to show us how to fish so that we can learn to fish for ourselves.

"I hate begging, I really do and that is what we've had to do every year just to function,'' she continued.

But despite the declared sad state of their balance book, the Corporation have not requested a specific dollar amount from the Government.

Admitting that they need to "better utilise'' their assets, Ms Hooper stressed that a shortage of funds has meant that several buildings have fallen into disrepair.

"We have 21 properties and when there have been problems we have not properly addressed them but simply put little band-aids on,'' she said.

And mayor Perinchief pointed out other pressing needs the Corporation is grappling with.

"Leaks keep springing up everywhere, this is an old town and we don't know where all the pipes are,'' she said.