Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1489264
12 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 1 JANUARY 2023 NEWS JAMES DEBONO A bid by the Fino group to renew a permit first issued in 2012 for the construction of 88 apartments and 93 garages on 6,200 square metres of green, open space on the Kalkara valley slope, should not be automatic and requires further scrutiny, the Superin- tendence for Cultural Heritage has told the Planning Authority. According to the SCH the as- sessment of the application should reflect "greater (public) awareness" and policies enact- ed in the Strategic Plan for the Environment and Development (SPED), the Superintendence said in a memo on this applica- tion. The land in question was con- troversially included in develop- ment boundaries in 2002 when the government decided to protect part of the valley, while opening the part of the valley in the town centre to development. Fino's application was approved in 2012 before the SPED – which tops the hierarchy of planning policies – was approved in 2015. Renewal applications still have to be assessed according to the policies enacted after the original permit was approved. But when last renewed in 2017 the case of- ficer simply mentioned the SPED in passing, but made no attempt to assess the development ac- cording to the new policy limit- ing an analysis of what is permit- ted by the local plans which have not been changed since the first permit was issued. The SPED refers to the need to "protect green open spaces which contribute towards the character and amenity of urban areas" through the "reduction of soil sealing and (by) supporting bio diversity." It also refers to the need of "ecological corridors" in urban areas. It also states that development in "historical sites is carried out in a manner so to ensure that the skyline is not ad- versely effected." The permit renewed in 2017 is now set to expire in January 2023. In June, developer Lawrence Fino chose to file a new renewal application through the summa- ry process after withdrawing a previous application submitted in May requiring the full process. The application was already be- ing recommended for approval by the case officer in the absence of a report assessing it in terms of policy, as this was not required when the short procedure is used. But following a report on Mal- taToday, the PA intervened, reverting the application to its full process, which requires full public consultation and a full as- sessment by the case officer. The report is still being compiled. In its latest intervention the Su- perintendence for Cultural Herit- age has noted "the very extensive nature of this development, and its intensity" will inevitably have a considerable impact on the en- vironment of the Urban Conser- vation Area of Kalkara. Moreover the development will also be visible from across the harbour, "conditioning general views and vistas of Kalkara and the Grand Harbour". While the Superintendence acknowledged that this proposal is a renewal of an existing permit, it also drew attention "to growing awareness of such impacts on the Urban Conservation Area", and that "policies have evolved, and the proposal must reflect the SPED policies" regulating development in historical urban centres. Without prejudice to its eventu- al position on the development, the SCH has asked for photo- montages of the proposed devel- opment which have to be taken from the main square of Kalkara, along Triq il-Marina (Kalkara), from across the harbour at the end of St Christopher Street (St Barbara's Bastions) and the lower Barrakka. In another development, 22 res- idents living in close proximity to the development, represented by architect William Lewis, wrote to the PA expressing their concern on the geological stability of the area in question, expressing con- cern on "excessive excavation works" which may "create struc- tural problems to the surround- ing buildings as well as to the nearby bastions". Another concern of the resi- dents is related to flooding, re- sulting from the hard surfacing of an extensive area presently occu- pied by soil, in which water can percolate into the water table. The residents also insist that the project which would also destroy a number of centenarian carob trees and wildlife, should be as- sessed in terms of SPED policies. JAMES DEBONO CONSERVATIONISTS are op- posing plans to knock down the former HSBC branch in St Ju- lian's, considered a landmark in modernist architecture carrying the signature of eminent archi- tect Richard England. Located in St George's Road, corner with Triq il-Qaliet, the building has a footprint of 250 square metres in a prime location overlooking Spinola Palace and Gardens, just one minute's walk from Spinola Bay and Portomaso Marina. The application for the 67-suite hotel is by realtor Grahame Salt's Berkeley Investments, with the new design by architect Ray Demicoli. No part of the present building will be retained. This building was one of a num- ber of former Mid Med Bank branches designed by Richard England in the 1970s. Heritage activist and architect Edward Said is objecting to the complete demolition of the mod- ernist building and is calling for the integration of the building's exterior into the new develop- ment project. The St Julian's branch was one of several, each endowed with "an architectural identity conceived in reflection of the locality's size and site as well as its function." While these branches were all designed in "an international modernist aesthetic", they al- so included regionalist nuances harking to the Maltese vernacu- lar, and fine paintings and sculp- tures by eminent artists of the time were often included in the interior fabric of these branch- es. "All of this was done in a well-mannered, business-like ar- chitecture, honest to its original use," Said said. Said believes these buildings should be considered as urban landmarks, not unlike the cine- mas of the 1950s. Whilst some of the branches have been demol- ished or modified unrecognisa- bly, a few branches like the one in St Julian's, Msida and St Paul's Bay "certainly merit respectable preservation", having been de- signed by "an internationally ac- claimed Maltese architect." "Surely the present architects can sensitively integrate the ex- terior of the present building in their proposal," Said said. The HSBC branch in St Julian's was put up for sale in 2019, after the bank announced its intention to close down eight branches by the end of the year. The state- owned Mid Med bank was sold with all its branches to HSBC for Lm80 million – or €185 million – in the 1999. Massive Kalkara permit 'renewal' needs more scrutiny – SCH Richard England's modernist bank faces demolition Renewal of 2012 permit on 6,200sq.m green area is not automatic but should ref lect "growing awareness" on impact of development on historical town cores and SPED policies Bank sold by HSBC in 2019 now earmarked for 10-storey hotel