Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1377253
6 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 26 MAY 2021 NEWS Darren Debono JAMES DEBONO LANDOWNER Carmelo Borg has presented a zoning appli- cation seeking to change the designation of a 2,743sq.m plot of land in St Julians from public open space as envisaged in the local plan to permit residential and commercial development. Plans submitted in the zoning application foresee 5,226sq.m of residential development, 3,048sq.m of retail development and 1,536 sq.m of office develop- ment. The development is being proposed in two separate blocks, one consisting of five floors and another one consisting of nine floors above Triq il-Baltiku. 500sq.m are allocated as a pub- lic pedestrian area. Three underground levels of parking are also being proposed together with an underground sports complex and pool. The site earmarked for the pro- posal is located besides the Mik- iel Anton Vassalli Bridge, fur- ther uphill from the St Julian's school in the road leading down to Spinola Bay. It is accessed through the road leading from the left hand side of Triq MA Vassalli at the north end of the Regional Road Tunnels. The site used to form part of Wied Għomor valleyside prior to being cut off by the road junc- tion design. The site is identified by the 2006 North Harbour Lo- cal Plan as a "public open space" and is safeguarded by the provi- sions of policy NHRL 01 which prohibits the loss of urban public open spaces. The same land had been previ- ously identified by TUM Invest Limited for a 24-storey hotel next to the Regional Road tun- nel, following a promise of sale agreement with Borg, which was subsequently rescinded. The Environment and Resourc- es Authority had shot down the proposed high-rise hotel, insist- ing the development would be in breach of the local plan. ERA said the proposal would result in intensive development of "one of the few remaining green lungs in the area". It had warned that the introduction of the proposed high-rise on the edge of the res- idential area would "contribute towards urban sprawl which would also increasingly domi- nate the underlying valley". The land has belonged to the Borg family for generations and part of it had been expropriated in the 1960s for the construction of Regional Road. Residents ob- jecting to the latest zoning ap- plication warned that approval would exacerbate traffic prob- lems in the area. Nine-storey commercial development proposed next to Wied Ghomor bridge JAMES DEBONO A planning application to demolish a modified pillbox just five metres off the Kalkara Naval Cemetery to build a two-storey home, has raised the alarm of heritage watchdogs. The traditional farmhouse in the rural part of Kalkara was modified into a pill- box early in the Second World War, and formed an integral part of WWII coast- al defences. The applicants wants to built a two-storey residential unit with a ground-floor garage. Unfortunately, two unsightly two-sto- rey buildings are already being built ad- jacent to the historical property, which Fondazzjoni Wirt Artna wants sched- uled. Concerns have now been raised on the impact of an increase in buildings heights on the scheduled naval ceme- tery, and the scenic country lane which has been marred by new developments over the past decades. The pillbox formed part of the sec- ond line of defence which started at the back of Fort St Rocco in Kalkara and ran across along the contours of the land to Fort St Leonard, Fondazzjoni Wirt Art- na CEO Mario Farrugia. At that time the Xgħajra coast was considered to of- fer one of the best landing areas from the sea. The structure still includes a splayed gun port. The structure is considered unique as it represents a rare adaptation of ready existing rural structure for military pur- poses. FWA is insisting on the preservation of the structure, warning that its demo- lition would destroy part of the histori- cal defence line which is still intact. The defence line backed the first line of defence along the stretch of coast at Ricasoli in Xgħajra. All the other com- ponent posts in this line remain are in relatively good condition. The structure, denoted in military records as L42, is the only one not purposely built as a concrete post but adapted from an existing building. Following an inspection of the site, the Superintendence for Cultural Heritage has recognised the building's high de- gree of historical value and has called on the proposal to be amended, to en- sure the "the preservation and restora- tion of the existing building" while not excluding its integration in a new devel- opment. Unique WWII pillbox in Kalkara could be demolished