The ongoing Affordable Housing initiative, started by Julianna O'Connor Connolly and the former government, was a very welcome idea, Leader of Government Business, the Hon Kurt Tibbetts told Brackers at a public meeting Friday, 2 June.

Mr Tibbetts said that, with the additional funding available from 1 July, they will be able to start on four houses at the West End location and four at the Watering Place location.

There are two options for house plans: a two bedroom home around 800 square feet, or a three bedroom home between 1,000 and 1,100 square feet, he said

The whole idea is that once these first eight homes have been built and sold, the funds can be recycled and eight more homes can be built, so there can be continuity, he explained.

Mr Tibbetts said it would not be possible for Government to provide capital injection to the project every year. However, Government is going to provide land to use as equity, and infrastructure.

Mortgages are to have a single fixed interest rate for twenty-five to thirty year loans, in order to bring them down to a level that the people who need them can afford. Private institutions, including the Cayman Islands Development Bank, would provide mortgages.

"There will be criteria, so only people who need affordable housing can access it," said Mr Tibbetts, who denied recent accusations that the Affordable Housing Project would have any element of favouritism.

"This process is going to be transparent and open," he said. "Given sufficient time, everyone who needs these homes will get one."

He felt sure the project would keep up with demand and said there was sufficient land in the various locations to do so. He noted that they were also asking contractors to do their part in keeping costs down.

Touching on road developments, Mr Tibbetts said that both the Ann Tatum Road and Charlotte Bluff Road were two projects that were in the minds of a lot of people. These would both access the Bluff from the coast road.

Mr Tibbetts noted that at the Ann Tatum Road, the Bluff is very sheer and land acquisition has to take place. In the meantime, development of the Charlottes Bluff road could get underway, since all necessary land has been acquired.

$600,000 has been approved for roads on the Sister Islands for this financial year, and it would be difficult to fund both these two roads plus maintenance on existing roads.

However, he promised Brackers that there would be more funding than ever for roads on the Island.

Application forms and the questionnaires are now available at the District Administration Building, Post Offices and the Brac Business Executive office in the West End.