Development, Opportunity and Government Services Minister Terry Lister yesterday said the door is open for any contender to take over the development of the 250-acre Morgan's Point property.

Mr. Lister said since Morgan's Harbour Investment Ltd. has lost the exclusive right to develop the site, Government is ready to listen to any competing proposal.

"We are not opening the bidding process at this time but there is no exclusivity,'' Mr. Lister said. "If someone else comes along today and says they have a plan we will look at it. We are in the position to talk to other parties. We are open to other parties.'' He was responding to calls to re-open the bidding process for developing Morgan's Point. Morgan's Harbour won the bid to develop the property two years ago but ran into delays when the principals failed to get investment backing for the $290 million project.

The Bermuda Land Development Co. (BLDC), which is in charge of the property, then declared Morgan's Harbour no longer had the exclusive right of development.

New bids for Morgan's Point welcomed by Government A financial backer, whose name has been kept secret by Morgan's Harbour, stepped into the breach last year and is now in negotiations with Bermuda's new PLP Government.

"We are evaluating the project on the basis that we have only had it on our laps for three months,'' Mr. Lister said.

He said Government wanted assurances from the proposed backers that the houses being built on the site will be affordable to ordinary Bermudians.

Morgan's Harbour proposes to build a championship golf course, a 200-bed cottage colony, a village centre, a marina, and 318 residential units.

"We are ensuring that they will create something for the good of Bermuda,'' he said. "The last thing we want is another Tucker's Town. We want houses for the Bermuda marketplace and that are affordable for Bermudians. It's really the crux of the matter. We want to have an understanding about how the houses are to be priced and marketed.'' Meanwhile Mr. Lister acknowledged the financial backer was looking for assurances limiting future liability for oil pollution dumped at the site by the US Navy.

"We don't believe that is an unreasonable request,'' he said. "We are continuing to negotiate with the US Government on the issue and hopefully we will succeed.'' Last week, The Royal Gazette reported one of the investors who competed for a chance to develop Morgan's Point was calling for the bidding to be re-opened.

Investor Kit Astwood, who was part of King's Point Land Co. Ltd., said bidding should be reopened. King's Point was one of the local companies competing to develop the site along with runner up Beam Ltd.

Since it won the bid in March 1997 Morgan's Harbour has had difficulties in raising the $290 million needed to develop its plan.

Alan Burland of Beam has said the company was open to the opportunity to develop the site.

"Clearly the deal has not closed after two years and should the opportunity arise Beam would like to meet with the BLDC and the new Government,'' he told The Royal Gazette last week.

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