Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1498713
10 NEWS maltatoday | SUNDAY • 7 MAY 2023 JAMES DEBONO THE Superintendence for Cul- tural Heritage is calling for a re- design of the Villa Rosa project at St George's Bay, to minimise the visual impact of the pro- posed 34 and 27-storey towers on the setting of the historical, art nouveau Villa Rosa designed by architect Andrea Vassallo in the 1920s. The Superintendence en- dorsed recommendations made in one of the environ- mental impact studies that called for a "redesign" and "re- duction of floors" of the Villa Rosa project, to minimise the visual impact on the villa that will be dwarfed by the pro- posed 34 and 27 storey towers. The visual impact assessment shows Garnet Investment's project will alter and in some cases completely obscure and redefine views of the historical villa. But the planning consult- ants ERSLI said in their conclu- sions in the EIA did not include any measures to mitigate this impact noting that the visual impact – an inevitable conse- quence of designating the area as a business hub which must also be considered along other developments taking place in the area. In its reaction to the EIA, the Superintendence described the lack of mitigation measures to address the visual impact of the project "a major omission", and recommended an update to the EIA "to fully investigate meas- ures that reduce the impact on significant cultural heritage as- sets". The SCH also endorsed a recommendation to consider lowering the height of the pro- ject, made in a technical report assessing cultural heritage im- pact, by Archaeology Services Cooperative. ASC recommend- ed "a redesign of the project, that may include the reduction of floors and footprint, to min- imise the visual impact on the general cultural landscape of St George's Bay and particularly Villa Rosa and its gardens." The report was part of the EIA process but its recom- mendation for a redesign of the project was not included in the final EIA report. "It is very clear that with the proposed development, the present sky- line, with Villa Rosa perched on a hill and dominating the bay, will be lost forever," the EIA emphatically concludes. The Superintendence also noted that although the dem- olition of the Moynihan and Dolphin houses, two British era buildings fronting St George's Bay, was approved in a previ- ous application by Garnet In- vestments, it still insisted that "these structures are undenia- bly of cultural heritage signifi- cance." The SCH endorsed mitigation measures included in the EIA, including that made in a geo- logical report assessing the im- pact of excavations 15m from the upper chamber of under- ground cave Għar Ħarq Ġam- mien. The Superintendence there- fore agreed with the recom- mendation that a chainsaw cut should be made at the closest excavation line to introduce an air gap between the site to be excavated and the cave. It also endorsed the recommendation in the cultural heritage report that the cave is continuously monitored to avoid impacting its structural integrity. jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt St George's Bay project should be redesigned, says heritage watchdog Superintendence for Cultural Heritage says Garnet's St George's Bay project should be redesigned to protect Villa Rosa views Existing view of St George's Bay (left) and a photo montage of the proposed development (right)