Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1533434
5 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 19 MARCH 2025 NEWS JAMES DEBONO jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt MAYA GALEA mgalea@mediatoday.com.mt Three to stand trial over involuntary homicide of construction worker Planning Authority imposes new safeguard for Balzan trees A court has ruled there is enough prime facie evidence for three individuals to stand trial over the involuntary homi- cide of a construction worker in 2024. On Tuesday afternoon, the court, presided over by Magistrate Ann-Marie Thake issued the prima facie de- cree, declaring there is enough evidence against Kurt Galea, 33, Anthony James Fisher, 42 and Oratorian Cap- ital Ltd director Luca Miceli Demajo, 33. The court also ruled Samuel Borg, who is also a direc- tor at Oratorian Capital Ltd, will not stand trial. Bari Balla, 51, a father of six, was working at a Sliema construction site in April 2024 when the roof of the property caved in, burying him beneath the rubble and causing his death. On 20 February, four men were charged with the invol- untary homicide and safety violations following Balla's death after a building collapsed on him in Sliema last year. The Building and Construction Authority (BCA) con- firmed that no application had been filed for the works, rendering them illegal. The Occupational Health and Safety Authority (OHSA) also stated that it had not been notified about the construction activity. The compilation of evidence will continue on 24 April. Lawyers Stefano Filetti is representing Kurt Galea and Anthony James Fisher while Charles Mercieca is repre- senting Samuel Borg. Lawyers Michael Grech, Joe Giglio, and Michaela Giglio are representing Luca Miceli Demajo. Attorney General prosecutors Ettienne Savona and Manuel Grech are leading the case, with lawyer Frances- ca Zarb appearing as parte civile. Bari Balla, a father of six, died when the roof of the Sliema property he was working on caved in, burying him beneath the rubble Bari Balla (Photo: Go Get Funding) THE Planning Authority has in- troduced an additional condition aimed at safeguarding two iconic Ficus trees in Balzan when issuing a permit for the creation of an eight- metre-wide pedestrian road. The road passes through the Dol- phin Complex, around which the new development will take place. The new condition stipulates that the kerb around the trees must be clearly indicated in the plans. Moreover, access to the proposed pedestrian road will be limited to emergency vehicles and will not be available for service vehicles as ini- tially proposed. The issue was raised by Balzan council architect and Nationalist MP Toni Bezzina, who highlight- ed plans clearly showing that one of the trees is well within the 'visi- bility splay' of the new pedestrian pathway, which will only be used by emergency vehicles. "One of the trees is part of the splay of the new road. It is meaning- less to say that the trees should be protected when this is not the case," Bezzina said. This prompted the intervention of Chief Executive Johann Buttigieg, who proposed the new condition. While PA chairman Emmanuel Camilleri initially insisted that there was no risk to the trees—cit- ing the fact that the Environment and Resources Authority had not objected to the proposed pedestri- an passage—Buttigieg agreed with Bezzina and proposed an additional condition ensuring that the public pavement around the trees is clearly indicated. Project architect Maria Schembri Grima also agreed with the pro- posed condition. Balzan mayor Angelo Micallef had also raised the issue, insisting on the importance of the two trees for the locality's identity and promising that the council would do everything in its power to protect them. He was backed by two other residents who attended the meeting. Following the inclusion of the new condition, the PA's Executive Council approved the creation of an eight-metre-wide public pedestrian footpath connecting Triq il-Kbira with Triq Wied Ħal Balzan, cutting across the Dolphin Complex. Apart from creating this new pas- sage, the proposal also includes a "slight realignment" of the building line on the southern part of the site fronting Triq il-Kbira. According to the case officer, this "slight change" in alignment will shift the development frontage clos- er to the public pavement, posing "a significant risk to two large mature trees just outside the site." While noting that ERA has issued its clearance for the zoning applica- tion, the case officer is now recom- mending a condition "to ensure that these trees are protected or suitably replaced if absolutely necessary." The condition further states that "if either of these two trees is dam- aged during the implementation of any development permission, they shall be replaced by other trees as indicated by the Environment and Resources Authority." This condition has now been beefed up with the requirement for the developer to clearly indicate the extent of the public pavement around the trees. The zoning application aimed at creating the new road was proposed by CF Homes, a company part- ly owned by Joseph Portelli after a previous permit for the erection of a massive 88-apartment block in- stead of the Dolphin Complex was revoked by an appeals tribunal. The fate of the two Ficus trees was completely overlooked in the previous permit. In fact, when re- voking the original permit in 2023, the Environment and Planning Re- view Tribunal (EPRT) noted that "it is clear that the execution of the permit would have necessitated the cutting off of a substantial part of the mature trees since these extend on the site in question." Photo: James Bianchi/MaltaToday Condition proposed by CEO Johann Buttigieg ensures plans for new pedestrian road passing through Dolphin centre must clearly indicate the pavement around the trees