A huge fight erupted in the House of Assembly yesterday over Government's decision to pay $325,000 for a parcel of vacant land in Paget on which it wants to build a new post office.

Opposition MPs demanded to know who owned the land and charged that an inflated price was being paid because the owner was a powerful white person.

"I have never known real estate to have a colour element,'' said Works & Engineering Minister Mr. Leonard Gibbons , who said a private appraiser had placed a $400,000 value on the 0.25-acre site in 1993.

"I think it's an excellent buy at $325,000,'' Mr. Gibbons said. The purchase finally passed in a voice vote, over objections from Progressive Labour Party MPs.

Heavy traffic and a lack of parking made the existing post office in Paget dangerous for the public and uncomfortable for staff, Mr. Gibbons said.

Works & Engineering staff had been looking for a site for years, and one had finally been found at the southwest corner of South Road and St. Michael's Road, between the Modern Mart supermarket and Trimingham's.

Government planned to build a modern post office with 1,000 post office boxes and parking for 17 vehicles. The purchase was subject to approval in principle from the Planning Department, which had been received.

"The price negotiated is certainly a fair one having in mind its location,'' Mr. Gibbons said. "It would be a commercial lot.'' Shadow Works Minister Mr. Stanley Morton said the new site was just as congested as the old one.

And $325,000 for a quarter of an acre was too much money, Mr. Morton said, noting that it amounted to $1.3 million per acre.

And was there really a need for another post office, Mr. Morton asked, noting that it was the era of E-mail and other modern forms of communication.

Paget contained some of "the wealthiest people on this Island,'' Mr. Morton said. They had transportation and "some of the best communication systems, not only in their offices, but in their premises.'' There were other more pressing needs.

Who did the land belong to? Mr. Morton asked. "I would venture to say it depends on who you are in this country,'' he said. "There is a piece of property adjacent to the present post office in Paget which is larger than this present site.'' "It is not,'' interjected Mr. Gibbons.

Yet only $225,000 was offered for that site -- $100,000 less that what would be paid for a site which he understood was owned by the Trimingham family.

Mr. Morton recalled when Government "took away'' land where the General Post Office in Hamilton now stood. The property was black-owned and Government took it and paid what it wished, which was less than market value, he said.

"That gentleman could have got more money for that property, and they took it from him.'' Finance Minister Dr. Grant Gibbons , who represents Paget East, said the search for a new post office went back about 15 years and the present site was unsafe.

Mr. Morton had raised "a lot of spurious issues,'' he said.

Paget residents were taxpayers, too, and were entitled to "a certain amount of assistance from Government on such an important issue as a post office.'' Not just Paget residents would benefit, as residents to the west would also use it.

Opposition Leader Mr. Frederick Wade said a much safer site that was closer to the population centre could be found in the Ord Road area.

There, Government could get a house plus land for the price it was paying.

Point Finger Road was commercialising and was another possibility, he said.

Youth and Sport Minister Mr. Tim Smith , who represents Paget West, said the issue actually went back about 24 years, much longer than Dr.Gibbons said.

In choosing a site, Government faced a "classic dilemma,'' Mr. Smith said.

There was only so much land in Bermuda, the NIMBY (not in my backyard) syndrome was encountered, and "there was no perfect solution for the placement of any public building.'' Ord Road was probably not the most sensible site. On the south side of South Road, people could visit the post office on their way home from work.

Touching on something Mr. Morton said, "we might be seeing the traditional parish post office becoming obsolete,'' Mr. Smith said. "We might be moving to regional ones.'' Health and Social Services Minister Mr. Harry Soares , who also represents Paget West, said whenever Government put a commercial building in a residential area, it was criticised. But that was what Mr. Wade was now suggesting.

"There's never a perfect location,'' Mr. Soares said. "Let's stop the words.

It's time for action.'' Shadow Community and Culture Minister Rev. Trevor Woolridge said it had taken Government 24 years to come up with "a poor location.'' The site was very congested, especially in the morning, by traffic in and out of Gilbert Institute and the supermarket.

"The current site certainly is not a safe location,'' Mr. Woolridge said. "I recognise we need a new post office in Paget. But why would you move it from one bad location to another?'' The Transport Minister should be leading opposition to the move, Mr. Woolridge said.

Former Premier Sir John Swan , who represents Paget East, said workers in the Paget post office had toiled in "appalling conditions,'' but had not let that effect their efficiency.

Just last week, Sir John's wife had mailed out a cheque but forgot to put a stamp on the envelope. Although there was no return address, postal workers sent the letter back to Sir John's house because they recognised Lady Swan's handwriting.

It would be convenient to have the post office located next to a supermarket, Sir John said.

"Who owns the land?'' shouted Mr. Walter Roberts (PLP).

"Who owns the property is irrelevant,'' Sir John said. "The important thing is that Government is paying a fair price.'' "There are a number of people who would gladly buy this piece of property for commercial use and pay a lot more,'' he said. "It's in a real commercial catchment area.

"Therefore, the price tends to be much higher than it normally would be.'' Shadow Human Affairs Minister Dr. Ewart Brown said that Sir John was saying "anything done in the interests of those who already have plenty money and plenty power is fair and reasonable.'' When it came to social programmes, Government claimed it was broke, he said.

"This constitutes a misuse of public funds.'' Government was paying $1.3 million per acre. "Where in Bermuda does an acre of land cost that kind of money?'' Dr. Brown said the reason the other, less costly land was turned down was "because it is important for this Government to serve the people who help to keep it in place.

"Admit it,'' he said. "You have to pay the piper, and when the price comes up, it doesn't matter how outrageous and silly it is, you have to pay the price for being kept.'' Some said the white man's ice was colder. "Now, his land is also more valuable just by virtue of the fact that he owns it,'' Dr. Brown said. "I don't think we want to send that message to the people of Bermuda.'' He understood the land was owned by "a well-known family in Bermuda known as Trimingham's.'' Information and Technology Minister Mr. John Barritt said: "It seems that you're damned if you do, and damned if you don't.'' People had been calling for a new post office for years.

"Location, location, location'' determined the value of the property, he said.

The fact was that Government was paying less per acre for the South Road site than what it offered for the land beside the present post office, he said.

But Mr. Roberts said Mr. Barritt was "trying to bamboozle the House.'' The other land had a house on it and would obviously be worth more, he said.

Government could have renovated the building on the other site and saved money.

Human Affairs Minister Mr. Jerome Dill said Dr. Brown should not get involved in matters related to race "if he's going to trivialise these matters.'' He suggested land was worth more if a white man owned it.

"That's true,'' Mr. Roberts said.

"There are so many examples of areas where race is a consideration,'' that Dr. Brown should not be "trying to inject it where quite frankly it doesn't exist.'' Mr. Ottiwell Simmons (PLP) said he wanted to declare his interest. He used the Paget post office and "I do have a piece of land for sale at that kind of rate that they're talking about.'' "As black people...none of us are seeking to make racial issues where there are no racial issues,'' Mr. Simmons said.

He knew of a piece of property that was two-thirds of an acre, with 24 rooms on it, which belonged to a black man. "It was sold against his better judgment for $900,000,''' Mr. Simmons said.

"The fact is that the piece of property that we're now debating belongs to a white owner.''