Opposition Housing spokesman Donte Hunt has questioned whether the much-delayed Harbourview Village project will hit its October deadline.

Late last year Housing Minister Senator David Burch pledged 58 homes will be ready by October in Southside, St. David's, but Mr. Hunt, who is the local MP, doubts that deadline will be hit judging from the slow progress.

Government has refused to answer questions about whether the twice scaled-down project just opposite the new Urgent Care Centre which Government boasted came in on time and on budget would hit the latest target. Mr. Hunt called on Government to come clean. He told The Royal Gazette: "It's been a long time coming. I asked in the Budget debate why it is taking so long and didn't really get a reply.

"There's been delay after delay after delay. Personally I don't think it's going to happen on time. Really it's a case of mismanagement if we look at the history."

The project has been dogged with controversy from the start.

Five years ago a developer with a track record in building low cost homes in the States offered to build nearly 200 homes at Marginal Wharf, St. David's.

One half would be sold at a market rate to help subsidise another 98 to be sold at $199,000 to winners of a lottery. International business would finance the scheme which would eventually pay for itself.

But the project company went bust when Government failed to hand over the land and the project was then moved over the road.

Government took over the project, renamed Harbourview Village, and Housing Minister David Burch said it would be ready in "early 2009" three years late for 110 families.

However that target was changed again when the project was pushed back to October 2009 with just 58 units promised and another 48 due at an unspecified time.

Mr. Hunt questioned Government's housing plan after it promised 125 affordable homes as part of a scaled-down hotel development at the former Golden Hind site in Warwick, yet it was still struggling to fulfil a five-year-old promise in his seat.

He said: "You have these lottery winners waiting so long and here comes another project that they are going full steam ahead with. Do they have a holistic plan?"

Mr. Hunt said even when all structures were complete it could take ages for the interiors to be done based on other projects he was familiar with.

"I am doubtful they will hit the deadline. It's only five months away, these are a lot of units.

"How many guys are they going to have finishing it off?"