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MALTATODAY 14 March 2021

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maltatoday | SUNDAY • 14 MARCH 2021 CONTACT Adriana Farrugia or Erika Arrigo on 21382741 for sponsorship opportunities SCAN THIS CODE USING A QR SCANNER APP TO WATCH THE LATEST EPISODE ON YOUR SMARTPHONE Hamrun kiosk piazza extension 'oversized' JAMES DEBONO A kiosk in Fra Diegu square wants a permit to erect a retractable canopy in- stead of existing umbrellas covering its seating area, which it wants extended from 8 to 11 tables. The application requests the sanctioning of LED advertising screens, which have increased the height of the kiosk. The proposal has already been shot down by the Su- perintendence for Cultural Heritage, the Malta Tour- ism Authority and the case officer who is calling on the PA to refuse the appli- cation. The Superintendence said the encroachment of the seating area will add further clutter to the pi- azza, which is already im- pacted by the "over-sized kiosk, which is visually overpowering the rest of the open space... There- fore, the proposed canopy and expansion of the seat- ing area are not acceptable from a cultural heritage point of view." The MTA also declared its objection to "enclosing" outside catering areas. The case officer recommended refusal because the canopy and a 1.1m-high perspex enclosure would detract from the characteristics of the piazza. In 2017 the PA approved the kiosk's redevelopment but turned down a 'drive- in' carved into the public square. As approved, the kiosk gained 12sq in excess of a 20sq.m limit for kiosks. TM objects to Lapsi slipway tables JAMES DEBONO TRANSPORT Malta has objected the regularisa- tion of a Carmen's Bar platform for two restau- rant tables erected on a public slipway at Għar Lapsi, insisting it remain unobstructed at all times. The Superintendence for Cultural Heritage is also objecting to the re- placement of the "un- authorised umbrella" already present on site with a "more permanent and unsightly alumini- um structure and glass railings", while the Envi- ronment and Resources Authority insisted it will not condone chairs and tables covering a public open space. The PA has already is- sued an enforcement or- der against the change- of-use of part of the slipway to accommodate the placing of tables. Concurrently, the ERA is objecting to a TM pro- posak to fill an existing cavity on the Għar Lapsi coastline with concrete. Ironically in 2016 the PA had rejected an appli- cation by Carmen's Bar to cover the same cavity with a platform for chairs and tables. The 'concrete decking' and repairs of a dam- aged masonry structure are being proposed "to protect the side of the slipway from further sea erosion".

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