Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1509678
6 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 15 OCTOBER 2023 NEWS church.mt NAXXAR PARISH CHURCH INVITATION TO SUBMIT PROPOSALS The Administrative Secretary of the Archdiocese of Malta will receive two separate tenders: 1. for the supply of new exterior luminaires and 2. for the repaving of the main parvis using natural stone paving as well as the installation of the luminaires. Interested parties may submit requests for the tender documents and further information by sending an email on naxxar.tender@maltadiocese.org by not later than Monday 30 th October 2023 at 11am. Submissions should be made in person at the Archbishop's Curia, St Calcedonius Square, Floriana FRN 1535, Mondays to Fridays between 8am and 5pm, in a sealed envelope clearly marked 'Naxxar Tender', by not later than Monday 6 th November 2023 at 11am. A tender box will be provided for this purpose. Only proposals received through this tender box will be considered. The bidders will be informed in writing in due course whether their proposal was selected or not. The right is reserved to refuse any proposal, even the most advantageous one. Late submissions will not be considered. CLAIRVOYANT Mr TOURE a Marabout clairvoyant medium healer and Exorcist with an exceptional gift. Specialising in disenchantment, voodoo protection against dangers, couple problems return of a loved one, impotence and sexual issues whatever the nature. Court cases. Tel: +35677484511 From wedding hall to luxury dwellings: Wied Babu bungalows set for approval JAMES DEBONO THE Garden of Eden wedding hall within the protected Wied Babu valley is set to transform into 12 one-storey bungalows with pool. The project is being recom- mended for approval by the Planning Authority's develop- ment management directorate. The PA's rural policy permits the redevelopment of permit- ted buildings even outside the development zones (ODZ), if the replacement is deemed to be an environmental improve- ment over the existing situa- tion. The PA's case officer said the proposed redevelopment was acceptable because of its min- imal visual impact and because the Environment and Resourc- es Authority had concluded it was unlikely to affect the in- tegrity of the protected Nat- ura 2000 site. Photomontages from sensitive views show little change over the existing situa- tion. The case officer described the new development "as one hav- ing a much higher quality rural design" than the existing build- ing, and which better respects its surroundings. The single-storey buildings were said to "blend better" with the surroundings, using earth-colour tones, curved pathways as those found in the countryside, and the addition of shrubs and plants typical of garigue landscape. The outline development, if approved, will establish the planning parameters of the new development with regards to land use and height. Other issues, such as design, accessi- bility and landscaping will be dealt with in the eventual full development application. Legality of previous building In 2022 the PA had accepted a request by Garden of Eden owner Maurizio Baldacchino to postpone a decision on the restoration back to the origi- nal garigue of an illegally built 4,900sq.m car park, opposite the wedding hall. This was considered along a parallel ap- plication to demolish the exist- ing wedding hall and replace it with the bungalow complex. The application is still pend- ing. The legality of the existing building had also been certi- fied by the Planning Authori- ty's former executive chairman Johann Buttigieg, in a letter sent to the owners back in May 2014. The letter stated that fol- lowing verifications of court procedures and legal advice, "the authority cannot state that the premises in question are il- legal or that illegalities exist on site." In fact, the court documents submitted to prove the legali- ty of existing structures at the Garden of Eden, cast a light on a series of procedural errors on the part of the authorities, 30 years ago. The court documents show how the authorities myste- riously withdrew an appeal against a court sentence that absolved the owners of con- ducting illegal work related to the operations of a nightclub – after filing it against the wrong person. How Nigret site was originally developed An original permit for a boundary wall in the Nigret site was issued to Joseph Bal- dacchino in October 1988. In January 1989 he obtained a trading licence for "an open-air disco" and to sell drinks, fol- lowing a "no objection" by the Works Department. In 1990, the licence was with- drawn in view of "unauthor- ized structures" consisting of "rooms roofed with a wooden ceiling" which had been erect- ed in the area. But in October 1990, Baldachino was found not guilty of building without a permit, with the magistrate saying there was "reasonable doubt" that the structures were built before the revocation of the police trading licence. The police and Attorney Gen- eral appealed, arguing that the 'no objection' of the Works De- partment to the disco licence did not amount to a planning permit for the illegal struc- tures. But the appeal was erroneous- ly filed against a certain Joseph Polidano, instead of Joseph Baldacchino. The error was rectified four days later. But Baldacchino contested this, arguing that this went beyond the four days the police had to file the appeal. The Attorney General subse- quently withdrew the appeal in November 1990. Still, this was not the end of illegalities on the site because an enforcement order against a makeshift car park was issued in 1998. In 2018, plans were presented to develop bunga- lows on the site of the illegal parking. But the application was later withdrawn following strong opposition from Zur- rieq residents. Another application was then presented, limiting the devel- opment to the site of the ex- isting wedding hall. The devel- opers have presented another application to restore the ille- gal car park back to garigue and thus rectify the long-standing illegality. jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt