A would-be conservationist has made an impassioned plea to the Department of Planning to save the old Plantation restaurant and Leamington Caves from possible condo development.

Once a popular tourist attraction and eatery, the property has been up for sale since 1997 when owner Carol West closed the doors on the failing business.

Last week the Development Applications Board (DAB) deferred a decision on whether to approve a plan to develop the three-acre strip of land at Bailey's Bay as condos.

The deferral results from an objection from Government hydrogeologist Mark Rowe, who has asked for more information on where exactly the caves lie in relation to the five condos proposed, before making a recommendation.

But Planning has also received a letter from a private individual besieging the Department to refuse the application as she would like to purchase it and restore the property to its former glory.

Baroness Elizabeth Raben-Levetzau wrote to the Planning Department on July 26, 2002 in objection to the proposal. The objection is well over time however, as the application for the development was submitted in November, 2001.

No objections were received to the proposal at the time it was advertised. Although the Bermuda National Trust made a number of minor suggestions to protect the caves and the environment, at the time it supported the proposal.

“As I am sure you are aware the above property is currently on the market for sale,” the Baroness wrote to Planning.

“I would like to draw your attention to the following alternative. We have been in ongoing communication with the owners following their advertisement in The Royal Gazette in February in attempt to purchase the above property.”

The Baroness - a local woman who married into the Dutch nobility - could not be contacted for comment.

But owner Carol West said she had no idea who the Baroness was and had received no formal offers of purchase at all.

“All I want to do is sell it to the first person who comes along with the right money and best deal for my shareholders,” she said.

The property was listed for private sale at a price of $1.7 million in February.

The letter from the Baroness continues: “We do not want to develop it, nor turn it into more condominiums. We do not want to see it pulled down at all.

“We propose to renovate the existing buildings to turn this beautiful Bermuda landmark back to its former glory. We propose to turn the restaurant building and yellow cottage back into traditional Bermuda landmarks as they once were and preserve some of our heritage.

“We want to clean up the unique caves and open them up to educational groups, some school groups, research groups, BUEI etc., free of charge of course.

“Currently the caves are in total disrepair and open to vandalism and irreplaceable damage.

“(They) are vulnerable to damage and extensive demolition if construction works are to be carried out.”

However, the Baroness claims that the owners will not consider her alternate proposals if granted permission to demolish the current structures and build condos.

But Ms West said that was not the case. She said the property is very dear to her and she would love to see it restored as a private home. “I am very attached to the property,” she said. “That's why I am not involved in its development.”

Ms West and her husband bought the property in 1980, but it has a much longer history as a commercial, tourism and geological institution.

The property originally opened as a business venture in 1918, and in its peak year - 1984 - the caves were attracting more than 30,000 visitors.

As such, Bermuda's heritage must be placed above the another condo development, the Baroness suggested.

“I feel it would be appalling, in such a unique area of Bermuda, to destroy such beautiful, old buildings that everyone recognises and remembers,” she wrote.