Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1285850
8 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 6 SEPTEMBER 2020 NEWS JAMES DEBONO HOW does Mercury House develop- er Joe Portelli get to pay just €10,000 in 'planning gains' for his 11,000sq.m office block in Qormi, when the neighbouring Centerparc centre paid €210,000 on its 9,000sq.m mall? That's a question that planning watchers in Malta ask themselves about the way planning gains – a community contribution paid by big developers to local councils – are im- posed by the Planning Authority. The formula used multiplies each square metre of residential and com- mercial development by €25, but it remains at the discretion of the PA and is only applicable to projects whose impacts cannot be mitigated. Instead of an expected €275,350 that Portelli was expected to pay for his Qormi project, the Qormi lo- cal council ended up with a paltry €10,000 planning gain, proposed by Environment and Resources Author- ity chairman Victor Axiak on protest of the Qormi mayor Renald Falzon when the PA's planning directorate failed to impose any financial com- pensation. Falzon said the project's traffic im- pact on Valletta Road merited a suita- ble compensation for urban improve- ment. "The area is already jammed. It can only get worse with this project." But the planning directorate rep- resentative Jonathan Orlando disa- greed, claiming that the restoration of an old farmhouse on the as yet un- developed site, was itself a planning gain for the community. He argued that the project would not result in any lost parking spaces, as the un- derground car park will cater to the parking demand created by the pro- ject. Different yardsticks? The €10,000 contribution jars with the Centerparc payment of €210,000 to the Urban Improvement Fund. But even this cash, was at funding a pub- lic open space on the mall's rooftop and the remaining funds allocated to other projects in the locality. Farson was for example charged €362,000 in planning gains for its Tri- dent Park, an office complex of seven, five-storey blocks for 14,000sq.m of offices, the rehabilitation of the Old Brewhouse, a 700-car underground car park. The planning directorate cited its rationale over the inconven- ience caused during construction, even though the development was credited as a substantial improve- ment in urban design. Curiously this is not the first time No straight line on planning gain DB Project €1,500,000 Villa Rosa €623,325*** Farsons Trident Park €362,000 Qormi Centerparc €210,000 MIDI 17-storey block €229,023 Ta' Xbiex 15-storey block €120,500 Burmarrad petrol station €50,000* Portelli Qormi office block €10,000 ** * Planning gain was increased from €14,000 based on established formula to €50,000 by the PA board. ** Ad-hoc planning gain imposed by board after case officer failed to recom- mend any monetary planning gain. *** Decreased on appeal; currently challenged in court. Planning gains imposed (€25/sq.m) Councils are not guaranteed a decent cash contribution from large projects