Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1244022
14 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 6 MAY 2020 COMMERCIAL MORE than 3000sq.m of garden area in the urban conservation zone of Pietà, together with a row of houses in Strait street Valletta have been given Grade 1 and 2 protection status by the Planning Authority, following collaborative work carried out together with the Superintend- ence of Cultural Heritage. A number of properties in Triq Santa Monika and Telghet Gwardamanga have had the gar- den area surrounding or at the back end of the property sched- uled. This protection has been granted by the Planning Author- ity to safeguard these open spac- es which are not only integral to their adjoining property but also to the morphology of the Pietà village core area. The buildings of all the prop- erties had been scheduled by the Authority some years back. The extensive gardens sur- rounding the Parish dedicated to our Lady of Lourdes have been given the highest grade of pro- tection. Over 20 other properties in Telghet Gwardamanga, in the close vicinity of St. Ignatius School, which include Casa Gwardamangia, Villa Calypso, Dar Ida have had their gardens scheduled as Grade 2 properties. Further down the street, door number 28 was scheduled as Grade 3 so that a stretch of simi- lar houses now all have the same protection. This property forms part of five identical adjacent houses that have the same massing, rhythm, design and traditional features. They are protected for their collective value. A row of houses in Strait street Valletta, opposite Vincenti Buildings, was also given a Grade 2 protection status. The houses, although not monumental in style and character, were built in 1787 by the Assembly of the Venerable Langue of Provence to increase their revenue. They chose to build these houses in the back garden of their Auberge which overlooked Strait Street. The Assembly appointed well- known architect Stefano Ittar to build a workmanlike structure suitable for its purpose, which was to provide urban residential units as quickly and as inexpen- sively as possible. The facade is adorned with a tight row of windows on the first and second floor and three stag- gered wooden balconies. The buildings are full of ap- ertures mainly because Strait Street was narrower with natural light being limited. Although the facades are rather plain, there is a flash of the old brilliance in the carved pedi- ments of the second floor. Today, the houses are used as one single building by the Min- istry for Home Affairs and Na- tional Security. In Malta, Polish-born Architect Stefano Ittar is primarily known for the design of the Biblioteca in Valletta. He was commissioned by the Council of the Order of St. John after having worked and exten- sively contributed towards Sicil- ian architecture. His masterpiece remains the facade of the Basilica della Col- legiata in Catania. To view all scheduled build- ings and properties in Malta and Gozo you may visit www.pa.org. mt More than 3000sq.m of urban gardens in Pietà given high protection status