Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1345126
4 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 28 FEBRUARY 2021 NEWS The Planning Authority has issued proposed planning parameters which will guide future development in the northern part of the Area of Containment (AoC) at Tal-Ħandaq in Qormi. This planning review is being issued for a third phase of public consultation, after considerable changes were carried out to the draft policy that had been published in September 2017. This new proposed policies for this area seek to establish the land-use zoning, building height limitation, design parameters, sustainability issues, transport and parking provisions and road alignments within this existing AoC which is directly adjacent to the Tal-Ħandaq Industrial Zone. The newly proposed revisions to the local plan for this area will ensure a general improvement in the visual appearance of the AoC and its surroundings with proposals including improvements in form and treatment of the elevations, providing detailed and large-scale visual interest and enhancing the industrial streetscape and the surrounding environment through higher quality design. The draft planning policy together with the proposed maps and submissions received from the public during the 2nd phase of the public consultation may be viewed on the Planning Authority's website; www.pa.org.mt/consultation The Authority invites the public and interested parties to send their comments and feedback related to this latest proposed review. Representations are to be made in writing and sent through email address: handaq_north@pa.org.mt Submissions must be sent to the Authority by not later than 1 st April 2021. www.pa.org.mt PLANNING AUTHORITY HAVE YOUR SAY OPEN PUBLIC CONSULTATION Partial Review of the Cental Malta Local Plan - Area of Containment (AoC) at Tal-Ħandaq in Qormi (Phase 3) Rent: landlords to be paid by State in multi- million spend MATTHEW VELLA LANDLORDS of properties bound under pre-1995 leases will be able to claim up to two per cent of the property's market value in rent, in a major reform announced Saturday. Government will be pay- ing the additional rental costs thousands of families are ex- pected to face as a result of constitutional challenges to Malta's rent laws. Almost 10,000 families will be affected by the reform. Pensioners and social wel- fare beneficiaries in pre-1995 housing leases will have their rental costs covered in full by the state up to a maximum of €10,000 per year, while tenants in full-time employment will pay a maximum of 25 per cent of rental costs. Tenants in high-value prop- erties where rent runs to more than the €10,000-a-year limit will be offered alternative ac- commodation by the state. Rent will be established by the Rent Regulation Board, which will appoint an architect to val- ue the property in question. Prime Minister Robert Abela said that tenants affected by the change will be offered help and free legal advice by a new department to be set up within the Housing Authority. "Ten- ants should not be made re- sponsible for the State's failure to act quicker and more deci- sively," Abela said. Maltese law bars landlords from refusal the renewal of a pre-1995 lease, and they must contend with 'fair rent' con- trols. But that law was successfully challenged in local courts as well as the European Court of Human Rights. "This is a fair reform that will give certainty, reassurance, and justice," Abela said. "This solu- tion means government will provide for these rents, pro- tect the rights of Maltese and Gozitan citizens – both those who have the right to housing and those who deserve appro- priate compensation for the use of their property." Abela said the court sentenc- es condemning the State to pay millions in damages for the unconstitutionality of the rent laws, led to people living in fear of ending up homeless. "This reform puts these people's minds at rest." "Considering that around 10,000 families are affected by this reform, I am convinced that everyone understands the burden it entails," housing minister Roderick Galdes said. "We had the courage to find a solution that strikes a balance between giving protection to those in need and doing justice to the owners." "We have come forward with a solution that protects those most in need, protects the fam- ily home, but shifts the burden of the social contribution from the owners to the welfare state and the housing system we cre- ated." Prime Minister Robert Abela and housing minister Roderick Galdes "This is a fair reform that will give certainty, reassurance, and justice" - Robert Abela