An environmental pressure groups claims development is outpacing planning after a ten-storey condominium block was turned down – but approved on appeal.

The Bermuda Environmental and Sustainability Taskforce (BEST) said the granting of planning permission despite refusal by the Development Applications Board was "a symptom of a broken system that needs to be fixed rather than Band-Aided".

BEST said: "With the announcement that the (Environment) Minister has again overturned a well-reasoned DAB decision regarding the ten-storey Serpentine Road condo block, it is clear that development is outpacing planning," BEST said in a statement.

"We are concerned about planning regulations being overturned or circumvented through appeals to the Minister.

"Early last year, the Bermuda National Trust called on Government to establish a coherent and cohesive policy regarding higher building heights (February 2007).

"At the same time, BEST pointed out that great effort was being made to preserve Bermuda against becoming an urban mass, that planning regulations were in place to prevent buildings being built that were out of character, but that well-established guidelines were being broken though the appeal process.

"The City of Hamilton Plan 2001 needs updating."

BEST chairman Stuart Hayward added: "What is the point of having a Plan at all if it can be so easily set aside.

"Ministerial overturning of DAB decisions is a symptom of a broken system that needs to be fixed rather than Band-Aided."

He said: "Architects should not be taking the lead in defining the height, type of building, and design acceptable in Hamilton.

"This is the first ten-story residential building in the country. Such precedent-setting designs should be part of a well thought-out Plan, not ad-hoc or driven by market forces."

The condo block, at 70 Serpentine Road, was turned down by the Development Applications Board because members said it did not comply with the maximum seven storeys of the City of Hamilton Plan 2001.

But property owner Dennis Chin and agents s.h.y. Architecture appealed and this was upheld on August 21 by Environment Minister El James, who agreed with a Planning Inspector's recommendation that planning permission 'in principle' should be granted.

Inspector Peter Cuming said the development would meet some of the goals of Sustainable Development – particularly the need for "higher density smaller accommodation".

Mr. Cuming said: "It seems to me that viewed on a case-by-case basis, the height of some modern development in Hamilton has exceeded the City Plan limits without discernible harm having been done."

"The Bermuda National Trust objected to Mr. Chin's application, saying: 'This application is the latest in a number of recent applications for buildings which seek to exceed the storey and height limits of the City of Hamilton Plan 2001'."

But architect for the project, Simon Hodgson, said that despite the ten-storey height, the development would not impinge on the Hamilton skyline or the Cathedral Corridor.

"In that area, because of the low topography we can easily consider a ten-storey building because residential structures do not exceed the 138 ft height of the ridge of the Cathedral."

The condo development, at the junction of Dundonald Street with Park Road, will consist of 30 "affordable" one-bedroom units for sale and rental, with parking spaces for 40 motorcycles.