Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1178032
12 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 20 OCTOBER 2019 NEWS HAVE YOUR SAY (Phase 3) OPEN PUBLIC CONSULTATION PLANNING AUTHORITY The Planning Authority has re-issued for public consulta on the dra� policy framework for fuel sta ons. The new amended dra� includes a number of changes which will make it more restric ve for new fuel sta ons to be granted planning permission. This, a�er the Authority took into considera on the numerous submissions it received from interested stakeholders and the public during the last public consulta on period earlier this year. One of the key changes is that it will become compulsory that for an exis ng fuel sta on to be granted planning permission to be relocated it needs to s ll be in opera on at the me that the development applica on is submi ed to the Planning Authority. It is also being made a pre-requisite that an exis ng fuel sta on must be crea ng nega ve issues of amenity, safety and transport within the built environment for it to get considered for reloca on. The revised changes to the Fuel Sta ons Policy may be viewed on the PA's website www.pa.org.mt/consulta on www.pa.org.mt Review of Fuel Service Station Policy (2015) You are being invited to send in your comments related to this proposed policy framework. Representa ons are to be made in wri ng and sent to postal address-: Planning Authority, Director of Planning, St Francis Ravelin, Floriana FRN1230 or through email: FSSP_review@pa.org.mt Closing date: 1st November 2019 JAMES DEBONO NEW dwellings on the tradi- tional Mnarja horserace track in Rabat's Tigrija Street are be- ing proposed instead of two old countryside structures, outside development zones. One of the dwellings is lo- cated right next to the "plieri", the stone marker for the start- ing point of the races, while the other is located a short distance away. Both applications to the Plan- ning Authority were presented by the same architect but by two different applicants belonging to the same commercial group, Jason Mifsud and Neville Bon- nici, the owners of Univest En- terprises. They want to demolish the dis- used animal farms, add on to the existing buildings and retain the old vernacular structures which will be integrated in the new dwellings. The PA was close to approving two similar applications in July after its planning commission indicated it would overturn the case officer's recommendation to refuse the permits. But both applications were withdrawn before a final decision was taken. The applications were being assessed according to a contro- versial rural policy which per- mits the transformation of old vernacular dwellings outside the building zones, into villas. The Environment and Resources Authority had objected to both applications, warning that these would result in the sprawl of urban development; but the Su- perintendence for Cultural Her- itage approved the plans on the basis of the applicant's commit- ment to retain the vernacular structures. The case officer had recom- mended refusal because old farm dwellings can only be turned into fully-fledged homes if they already include a mini- mum habitable area of 100sq.m. One building had just a habit- able area of 51sq.m, the other 43sq.m. But the PA's planning com- mission disagreed, insisting that the structures had a walled yard exceeding the required 100sq.m. In such cases, no proof of past residence is necessary. Origi- nally, the developers had failed to prove that the structures were livestock farms, which would have permitted their conversion into dwellings. Countryside buildings near Saqqajja horserace markers earmarked for new villas Rabat villas bring threat of urban sprawl in countryside The Plieri are the markers for the start of the traditional Mnarja horse races: one of the country structures is near the markers JAMES DEBONO CHANGE of plans at the Zur- rieq valley where most of the land is owned by the Garden of Eden wedding hall. Propri- etor Maurizio Baldacchino wants to replace a cluster of rural structures that were regularised last May by the Planning Authority – against the advice of the Environment Resources Authority – with a 60sq.m "agricultural store" and basement. The proposed store lies on a 3,500sq.m piece of land out- side development zones, be- tween Tal-Hniena and Gargir on the road down to Wied Babu, a Natura 2000 site. Aerial photos from 1967 con- firm the area was completely free from any development. But between 1978 and 1996, a cluster of six illegal rooms mushroomed in the area. In 2017 Baldacchino request- ed the green light to demolish the more recent additions and regularise one room dating back to 1978 and three rooms constructed in 1988. Despite ERA objections, the permit was issued in May by the PA's planning commission, chaired by Elizabeth Ellul. The ERA deemed the struc- tures excessive for the neigh- bouring agricultural plots, given that Baldacchino was not a registered farmer and no proof of arable farming in the area was ever submitted. It warned of possible future pressures for the change of use of the structures into non- rural uses like "animal parks and cafeterias" once the illegal development is regularised. It also condemned the "prac- tice of first carrying out ille- Store with a view: Garden of Eden wants to rebuild once-illegal rooms