Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1514895
9 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 24 JANUARY 2024 NEWS JAMES DEBONO jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt THE Zejtun local council is ob- jecting to the development of 80 apartments instead of four dwellings and adjacent farm- land along Triq Hector Dalli in the locality. The proposed developed will rise to five storeys and the Ze- jtun council is claiming it will result in increased density and traffic and would negatively im- pact on the townscape. The property in question is located 330m from the St Cath- erine's parish church and 70m from the locality's urban con- servation area. This development proposed by J. Portelli Projects Ltd, a com- pany belonging to construc- tion magnate Joseph Portelli, will see the demolition of four houses and the construction of 1,340sq.m of green space en- closed within the surrounding residential properties. The lat- ter also includes a large old cis- tern which will be destroyed. According to the council the well still provides water to several residents living in old houses along Triq Santa Kata- rina. The proposed development includes 44 garages at base- ment level, five garages and two shops at ground floor level, and 68 apartments on the overlying four floors and penthouses with pool on a receded level. The council warned the de- velopment will result in the destruction of an "urban lung" consisting of agricultural land which is still being tilled and its replacement with an apartment block which would increase the density of the area. The council is concerned the new block would have a neg- ative visual impact on the old traditional townhouses fronting Triq Santa Katarina and warned the development would result in "over-population and an in- crease in traffic". If approved, the proposal will also lead to a significant visual impact on the townscape of Zejtun. The area is distantly viewed from Tal-Barrani Road and Vjal il-25 ta' Novembru and when viewed from Triq San An- nard, it lies on the foreground of St Catherine's Parish Church, thus presenting a 65m long, three storey blank wall along the north-west side. According to the council the development will also impact on the skyline which is pres- ently dominated by the parish church which stands as the highest building when one en- ters the town from Tarxien. "This view is an integral part of the skyline and the identity of every Zejtun resident who feel a sense of pride when approach- ing the town." Moreover, the development will create a blank party wall of three floors on adjacent build- ings. NGO Wirt iz-Zejtun which is also objecting to the develop- ment has also warned that the proposal, if approved would radically increase the popula- tion density in this area, which till now is considered as a quiet residential area, on the periph- ery of the Zejtun Urban Conser- vation Area. The organisation claims that the population density for this development, considering a minimum of 3 person per unit, will reach 113,200 people per square kilometre. Zejtun council objects to Portelli development Annual rate of inflation in December 2023 stood at 3.6 per cent Council concerned with visual impact on Zejtun's skyline and 'over population' in this presently low- density residential area THE highest annual inflation rates in De- cember 2023 were registered in Food (8.7 per cent) and Other goods and services (6.5 per cent). On the other hand, the lowest annual inflation rates were regis- tered in Transport and communication (-1.4 per cent) and Clothing and footwear (-1.0 per cent). In December 2023, the largest upward impact on annual inflation was regis- tered in the Food Index (+1.86 percent- age points), largely due to higher pric- es of vegetables. The second and third largest impacts were measured in the Other goods and services Index (+0.48 percentage points) and the Housing In- dex (+0.40 percentage points), mainly on account of higher prices of cleaning products and rents, respectively. The downward impacts on annual in- flation were registered in the Transport and communication (-0.30 percentage points) and the Clothing and footwear Index (-0.07 percentage points), mainly reflecting lower prices of mobile phone services and garments, respectively. In December 2023, the Food Index registered the highest annual inflation rate at 8.7 per cent, of which Food ex- cluding restaurant services and take- aways registered an annual rate of 9.2 per cent and Restaurant services and take-aways registered an annual rate of 7.1 per cent. The Transport and communication Index registered the lowest annual in- flation rate of -1.4 per cent, of which Transport registered an annual rate of -0.5 per cent and Communication reg- istered an annual rate of -4.1 per cent. Annual rate of inflation by top 10 main groups