Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1503554
NEWS 7 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 12 JULY 2023 Portelli proposes villas instead of abandoned ODZ tourist complex near Mizieb JAMES DEBONO THE Planning Authority is once again facing a tricky application involving the redevelopment of an eye-sore in the outskirts of Miżieb. The development proposed by a company partly owned by developer Joseph Portelli would entail the demolition of the abandoned tourist complex known as Sunshine and replac- ing it with six villas with ex- tensive gardens and pool areas overlooking the surrounding pristine countryside. The site is located off Triq il-Palma in the vicinity of the Mizieb woodland in an area known as Tal-Argentier. The site borders on an Area of Eco- logical Importance. The development is being proposed by CF Developers. According to the planning ap- plication, CF Developers does not own the site but was au- thorised to carry out the pro- posed development through an agreement with the owner. Most of the development is being proposed instead of ex- isting development which in- cludes a farmhouse (139sq.m), greenhouses (340sq.m), dis- used apartments (640sq.m) and a former nightclub/restau- rant (764sq.m) for a total foot- print of 1,883sq.m of which 1,661sq.m are covered by per- mits issued between 1966 and 1991. But one of the proposed villas protrudes outside the area cov- ered by existing developments. A previous application pre- sented by Manwel Borg in 2008 had envisaged the demolition of the existing tourist complex, restaurant and mushroom farm and construction of 13 residen- tial units. But the application was with- drawn after it was recommend- ed for refusal by the case officer in 2020. The case officer report states that the applicant had been no- tified that "further residential uses are not acceptable." The development was also deemed to be in breach of the Rural Policy and Design Guid- ance, 2014 since the policy does not consider conversions of agricultural structures into dwellings. The proposal was also in breach of the Strategic Plan for Environment & Devel- opment (SPED) whose objec- tives rule out further urbanisa- tion of the countryside. How scenic area was ruined The first permit issued in the area dates to 1966 when a shed for growing mushrooms and an overlying glass house for out of season agricultural produce was approved. A major turning point took place in 1975 when a permit for the construction of dwell- ings beneath the glasshouses was approved. A permit for an extension of this development was issued a year later. In 1991 another permit was issued to erect a terraced house, store and a garage. But an application to extend the restaurant was refused in 1995 because the proposed development was deemed to have an adverse visual impact. But another permit to extend the restaurant was issued three years later. An application presented in 2005 by Choppers & Sons Lim- ited for the construction of tour- ist accommodation instead of the existing structures was later withdrawn. Another attempt was made in 2008 in an appli- cation by Manwel Borg. The application dragged on till 2020 before it was finally withdrawn. CF Developers a company owned by Joseph Portelli is proposing six villas each with a swimming pool instead of agricultural structures and a tourism complex approved in the 1970s The abandoned complex on the outskirts of Mizieb Architect's drawings showing proposed villas