THE Bank of Bermuda must find a compromise design if it wants to build a flagship head office on Front Street, it has been claimed.

And National Trust deputy president William Holmes believes the fact that controversial plans for the new office block have been scuppered shows that the system of safety checks to limit development are in place and working.

Mr. Holmes spoke after the Development Applications Board (DAB) rejected a proposal by the bank to build a seven-storey glass and steel office block on the site of the former Trimingham?s store.

The DAB turned down the plan ? which had already undergone one revision ? last week, ruling that ?the siting, scale, massing, setback encroachments, appearance and layout of the proposed development is not considered to be appropriate to this site and will not enhance the surrounding area?.

The bank has since announced it expects to appeal to Environment Minister Neletha Butterfield to overturn the decision.

But yesterday Mr. Holmes said the National Trust was not surprised by the outcome, adding that the initial application had been ?a long shot?.

And he pointed out that, while it might eventually prove necessary to build high-rise structures on Bermuda?s limited land mass, ?an iconic corner of Hamilton? was not the ideal spot for such development.

?I think that clearly the DAB has shown its disapproval with the building in a great many ways and sent a clear message that what the bank has offered has not met with their approval,? he said.

?Now the project is going through the process and, from what we can see, the system appears to be working just fine.

?The DAB seems to be doing their job in a very rigorous manner and it doesn?t surprise me that this is where we are now ? it was always going to be a long shot when you ask the DAB to take part in an exercise in discretion.

?Now it will go before the Minister and I am sure she will have a number of questions that she will have to consider very carefully.?

The Trust, along with other Hamilton stakeholders, was consulted by the bank?s architects before any designs were drawn up, although Mr. Holmes said his organisation?s input into the final design was limited.

?We put forward some ideas that we thought were important, for example not to have a massive frontage on Front Street or a blank facade on the western side,? he said.

?We just gave some of our ideas which were bouncing around the room. The only thing they did ask us about specifically was the history of the building and which parts were of greater or lesser importance.

?People were asking why the Trust approved the building but we didn?t. Just because the Trust doesn?t object to a building, that doesn?t mean we approve of it. There are things that we like about it and things that we didn?t like about it. From the Trust?s point of view, were the public benefits, such as the art displays and walkways, going to offset any negative aspect.

?I think what the bank now needs to do is try and come up with a balance between what they want and the clearly expressed views of the Bermudian people ? that Front Street should keep its Bermudian character.

?A lot of cases can be made for building up and the Trust isn?t against that in spirit but this site is an iconic corner of Bermuda. Without cast iron protection orders for the buildings ? which are pretty sparse right now ? you can do X, Y, or Z and so these buildings are under threat.

?But it seems that at this point everything is working out in the way that it should. The bank will I am sure be able to come up with a plan that meets their needs and is also something that meets the needs of the public.

?The strength of Bermuda lies in its individuality and its special accents ? protecting them should be the responsibility of everyone on the island.

?That?s not to say that in the future if we put in strong protections on Front Street we will not have to go higher elsewhere ? the two are not incompatible.?