Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1542534
3 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 11 JANUARY 2026 NEWS Lands Authority clears db Group pool on public coast THE Lands Authority had is- sued its consent for a develop- ment application submitted by the db Group to demolish a his- toric boathouse in St George's Bay. Dating back to the end of the 19th century the boathouse will make way for a pool and deck on public land. The company does not yet have any rights on the land. The clearance was issued on 13 November, a few days before the application was validated and published by the Planning Authority. The proposal forms part of a wider development by db Group at St George's Bay. The orig- inal project, which includes a 12-storey hotel and two 17-sto- rey towers, was approved by the Planning Authority in 2021. In December 2025, the authority approved a further revision al- lowing an additional seven sto- reys on each of the two towers. The Lands Authority clearance allows the applicants to proceed with the planning application. Nonetheless, the authority made it clear that approval is strictly limited to the application pro- cess and does not confer any le- gal title or ownership rights over the land. In its planning application, the db Group had declared that the boathouse site is govern- ment-owned. This declaration prompted Momentum to submit a free- dom of information request seeking contracts, leases, or en- croachment records relating to the boathouse and surrounding shoreline, as well as minutes from Lands Authority board meetings and any previous de- velopment applications for the site. Research carried out by the Su- perintendence for Cultural Her- itage (SCH) shows that the boat- house proposed for demolition, historically formed part of the St George's Barracks complex. According to the SCH, the footprint of the structure is re- corded on the 1897 Ordnance Survey and a 1926 military plan, which confirms that the build- ing functioned as a boathouse intended to accommodate small military vessels. The SCH noted that the building may have ar- chitectural features warranting preservation, which would need to be integrated into any pro- posed development. The SCH stated that it is una- ble to adequately assess the im- pact of the proposed demolition and associated works because no internal photographs of the structure were submitted with the planning application, de- spite such documentation being required for buildings identified on the 1968 survey where dem- olition is proposed. The heritage watchdog has therefore reserved comment pending the submis- sion of a detailed photographic survey. Military plan dating to 1926 and old photo of the site