The One Bermuda Alliance said unanswered questions remain on the roll-out of modular homes in Bermuda.

The Government announced this year that it would set up a series of “modular and expandable” units as part of a pilot scheme to determine if they could provide a long-term solution to housing needs.

In response to questions put forward by Michael Fahy, the Shadow Minister of Housing and Municipalities, a written response from the ministry said that the units intended for the pilot were purchased from Henan Sinova Construction Co, based in Zhengzhou City, China.

The purchase included a combination of one and two-bedroom capsule units and two and three-bedroom container homes.

Figures released by the housing and municipalities ministry stated that the one-bedroom capsule units cost $24,980, while the two-bedroom capsule units were priced at $25,850.

The container homes carried lower price tags, with the two-bedroom units costing $7,850 while three-bedroom units cost $8,150.

It was also estimated that the shipping costs for the units would be about $9,000 each, but costs would vary based on the size and shipping time.

The Government said that three vendors were consulted for design and price, with the other vendors being Hengxin Expandable Containers and Jiangxi Qianglin Ltd.

The written responses added that no travel costs were incurred by Zane DeSilva, the Minister of Housing and Municipalities, or any public servant.

However, a technical officer with the Bermuda Housing Corporation took part in site visits to view the capsules in situ while on leave and provided a verbal assessment.

Input on the project was provided by the Ministry of Housing and Municipalities, the Bermuda Housing Corporation, the Department of Planning and Brunel Ltd.

Mr Fahy said that he was concerned by a lack of details about the procurement methodology used to purchase the units.

He said: “I specifically asked that details of the method followed in procurement of the units be shared. This was not given.

“The reason this is important is that before purchases are made of major items, certain parameters are usually set by the purchaser and an RFP issued.

“I would have expected assessments would have been done on cost, desired size of the units, resiliency to different wind speeds and desired life span of units before any ordering was done.

“Given these units are new to Bermuda it is important to measure twice and cut once.”

In response to a request from The Royal Gazette for comment, a Government spokesman said yesterday: “The procurement process was conducted in accordance with Bermuda Housing Corporation policy and procedure.”

The Ministry of Housing and Municipalities is scheduled to hold a town hall meeting tomorrow from 7pm at the Western Zone Community Clinic to discuss the initiative.

Elements to be discussed then include how the pilot fits into Bermuda’s long-term affordable housing strategy, who the units are intended to support, site layout, design features and safety standards.

Attendees will also hear how tenancy, maintenance and site management will be overseen, and learn more about the planning process, expected timelines and opportunities for public input.