Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1542413
5 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 7 JANUARY 2026 NEWS A planning application has been submitted to demolish the existing Calypso Hotel in Marsalforn, Gozo, and replace it with a large mixed-use devel- opment comprising 141 apart- ments, a four-star hotel, six restaurants and a convenience shop. The proposed develop- ment would occupy the 8,900-square-metre site cur- rently covered by the hotel and its ancillary facilities. It is divided into five blocks of var- ying heights, with the tallest reaching 12 storeys. The exist- ing Calypso Hotel rises to sev- en floors. The application also proposes the removal of existing tennis courts and abandoned sports facilities located within an out- side development zone (ODZ). This area would be subject to what is described as "ecolog- ical restoration", with the aim of creating an "open-air formal recreational area". But the development as pro- posed also foresees a substan- tial vertical extension in the area facing the ODZ currently occupied by two storey build- ings. The project is being put for- ward by Le Mer Limited, a company set up in 2025. Its di- rectors include Silvan Fenech and Oliver Brownrigg. The largest shareholder in the ven- ture is OS Developments Lim- ited, which is jointly owned by Tum Invest and BT Group Limited. Other shareholders include BBT plc, another joint venture between the Tumas Group, BT Group and V&C Investments Limited; Bigeni & Bigeni Co Limited, whose owners include project architect Alex Bigeni; and Elzan Properties Limited, owned by Francesco Raniero Grima. In its initial response to the application, the Superintend- ence for Cultural Heritage re- quested photomontages from different angles of the pro- posed development to assess its visual impact. The site lies within an Area of High Landscape Value and is located approximately 33 me- tres north of the Church of St Paul. The Environment and Re- sources Authority has also re- quested further details before determining whether the pro- ject requires a full environmen- tal impact assessment. The BBT Group's website al- so includes the new project as part of the company's portfo- lio describing it as one which "reimagines the original ho- tel, blending hospitality, resi- dential, and commercial uses within a layered architectural strategy that responds to Mar- salforn's historical and cultural context". The website also includes visual renders of the proposed development. According to the site the project will include a 52-room hotel and 136 apart- ments. But the latest plans in- clude four more apartments. 12-storey development proposed on Calypso Hotel site in Marsalforn Project by company led by Oliver Brownrigg and Silvan Fenech includes 141 apartments, a four-star hotel and multiple commercial outlets The existing seven storey hotel (left) and (below) a rendering of the proposed development as published on BBT's website JAMES DEBONO jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt A 38-year-old Vietnamese woman was taken to Mater Dei Hospital with griev- ous injuries following a traffic accident in Lija on Tuesday morning, police said. The incident occurred at around 8:15am in Triq in-Naxxar. Initial inves- tigations indicate that the woman, who resides in St Paul's Bay, was hit by a King Long bus driven by a 38-year-old man from Ghana who lives in Msida. The woman was given assistance by a medical team at the scene before being taken to hospital by ambulance, where she was later certified as suffering from serious injuries. Police investigations into the circum- stances of the accident are ongoing. Woman grievously injured after being hit by bus in Lija