The Bermuda National Trust (BNT) has stated that it never owned the historic Moonray Manor, disputing claims in a critical opinion piece published yesterday.

In the article Lynne Winfield, vice president of Citizens Uprooting Racism in Bermuda (CURB) said that plans submitted by Linberg and Simmons and Fidelity Real Estate Company were rendering the 180-year-old building, also known as the Lane School, virtually unrecognisable.

Ms Winfield said: “The bottom line is that Lane School has sadly not been restored as those who fought for its survival had hoped. Instead it has been overwhelmed and subsumed within a large, expensive home, and its simple beauty and elegance systematically stripped, sold, chopped up and transformed, no longer recognisable as Lane School.”

In the article Ms Winfield cited a 1991 Mid-Ocean News article claiming that the BNT and Fidelity had purchased Lane School, questioning if the BNT was still involved in the building’s ownership.

Responding yesterday, BNT president William White refuted the suggestion that the BNT ever had possession of the site.

“The National Trust does not own or have any control over Moonray Manor, and never has,” Lt Col White said. “Also, we are in no way involved in the Moonray Manor Trust, which we believe is the owner.

“The 1991 Mid-Ocean News article the piece refers to, to our knowledge, is incorrect. The Bermuda National Trust does, however, have an interest in the BUEI, the neighbouring property.

“The Bermuda National Trust owns Pembroke Hall and it is rented directly from the Trust to Fidelity. All this information is readily available in our publications, website or by simply talking to our staff who are happy to help.”

The BNT said that it did review the latest development application for the Lane School when it was submitted, and were happy to see changes to the proposal to allow repairs to some of the historic building’s original features.

“Ultimately, we were pleased that the old school house section was to be saved as for many years it was feared that it would one day deteriorate beyond repair,” the Trust said in a statement. “We did however, express our concern to the owners about the impact of proposed floor-level French windows/doors and asked that they reconsider as they will detract from the building’s identifiableness as a Bishop Spencer School.”

The Trust said it has long advocated for the preservation of both the Lane School and a second Bishop Spencer School in Warwick, located near the former White’s Supermarket.

A spokeswoman for the Planning Department said last month that while Moonray Manor is a listed building, it was in a “serious state of disrepair”.

“The current renovations being undertaken were approved with the knowledge that it may not be possible to recycle all the original materials,” the spokeswoman said. “For example, the roof rafters had significant dry rot and termite damage and, as such, the entire timber roof structure needs to be rebuilt.

“An engineer’s report from January this year provided the Development Applications Board with information about this and other structural issues likely to be in need of remediation. The Department is satisfied renovations are proceeding in accordance with the approvals granted, taking into consideration the challenges posed by this important but dilapidated structure.”

Ms Winfield responded that her article never claimed that the BNT currently owned the Lane School, but questioned how the property had traded hands from Fidnat [an entity whose principals were reportedly Fidelity and the Bermuda National Trust] to the Moonray Manor Trust.

“From the Mid-Ocean article it appears that for a period of time there was some interest of the BNT in the property prior to it being transferred to Moonray Manor Trust,” she said.

“The main issue is how did this happen? How did it get to this state? Maybe we were a bit naive thinking that ‘protected’ means that nothing is going to happen.”