Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/478858
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 15 MARCH 2015 11 News that the project will not obstruct this sightline. When asked about the expected annual energy consumption of seven million kWh cited in MEPA's screen- ing report, Fenech replied that the development will include various energy conservation measures and the developers will be seeking LEED certification. LEED, or Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design, is a green building certification programme that recognises best-in-class building strategies and practices. To receive LEED certification, build- ing projects must satisfy prerequisites and earn points to achieve different levels of certification. The number of points a project earns determines the level of LEED certification that the project will re- ceive. "We will be aiming for the highest level of certification, which is plati- num certification, and we will surely get gold certification if we do not manage that," Fenech promised. Malta's first energy-efficient build- ing SCM01 in Smart City has been awarded LEED Silver by the US Green Building Council. The new Tigne Point Business Tower is also aiming for LEED certification on completion. Critics point out that LEED pro- vides benchmarks rather than a set of standards giving de- velopers the opportunity to pick and choose from a laundry list of green- ing strategies to reach a green building design. Demand for offices When asked whether there is enough demand for offices considering the various concurrent projects ranging from Smart City, the Metropo- lis in Gzira and Sky Parks, Fenech replied that de- mand is so big that at Portomaso they have an enormous waiting list and no office space is empty. He referred to sectors like the gaming in- dustry whose hunger for office space in Malta is insatiable. "For every office we lease, we have 10 others in the waiting list," Fenech said. But the major ad- vantage for the new development is its central location, near to the country's major financial in- stitutions like HSBC and Bank of Valletta and near the country's residential and recreational areas. Moreover the development aims at transforming Mriehel itself into an of- fice hub; by providing office support services, recreational facili- ties for employees like gymnasiums, a day care centre and a supermarket. The project will include these facilities apart from offices. " P r e s e n t l y there is a lot of business activity in Mriehel but little support facilities to support em- ployment in a modern busi- ness environment." According to Fenech studies will be com- prehensive and will not only include an assessment of the visual impact but also of other themes like that on the micro climate and shadowing. The impact of the project The project will include 39,915 square metres of office space, 1,060 square metres of retail space, a 790 square metre show room, a 1,735 square metre gymnasium and day care centre, a 1,225 square metre supermarket and 33,831 square me- tres of parking spaces catering for 1,032 cars. The towers are to be organised around a central plaza. The project will include elevated, landscaped walkways and public spaces con- necting the towers at Levels 2, 3 and 4. The towers will also have open air terraces on the other levels. The western half of the site is cur- rently being used as a car park in connection with the adjacent Gasan showroom. An abandoned farmhouse is lo- cated along the northwestern pe- rimeter of the site and is currently in a state of disrepair. The eastern side of the site is undeveloped and previously consisted of agricultural land. The southern part of the devel- opment site is already commit- ted for a multi-storey commercial complex, including a showroom, offices and car parking provision. A development permit was grant- ed to the same applicant for a five- storey development in July 2010. A Project Development State- ment presented by the develop- ers' consultants estimates that the proposal at full operation shall be consuming 7,000,000 kWh in terms of electricity and 109,600 litres in terms of water. Excavations will result in 143,000 cubic metres of construction waste. The material is not expected to be of good quality due to its clay content, and therefore cannot be re-used. The development will result in an increase of 2,800 employees frequent- ing this site. This may increase traffic and emissions in the area. A screening by MEPA's Environ- ment Protection Directorate con- cludes that the development required an Environment Planning Statement. According to the screening report the project is likely to have a potential significant impact on landscape and visual amenity in the area, "including long- distance views given the site context and its loca- tion". But the screening report does not refer to any impact on the line of vision between Valletta and Mdina. Interviewed in The Times in June, MEPA official Joe Scalpello specified that any develop- ment in Mriehel must safeguard views of Mdina and Valletta, "as there is a sight-line between the two (historical cities), right across Mriehel." The site for the proposed devel- opment is located on the southern edge of the Mriehel Industrial Area and covers an area of approximately 10,000m2. Is it sustainable? Astrid Vella, co-ordinator of Flimk- ien ghal Ambjent Ahjar questions the long term sustainability and viability of the project. "MEPA had confirmed that at the present demand for commer- cial premises, there will be a glut of properties once recent and planned projects are all completed," she said. Thus according to FAA the pro- posal to build four commercial tow- ers at Mriehel could jeopardise the commercial success of the Smart City, Skyparks and Midi complexes, besides the Metropolis, Xemxija Towers and Townsquare projects in the pipeline. "Can Malta afford to waste precious land on projects destined to remain empty and become eyesores?" she asked. Vella also warned that at a height of 18 storeys, this development will throw long shadows over residences for miles around, de- priving them of light and solar rights. " F u r t h e r - more, this mas- sive project to rise to 18 floors lies within the s u p p o s e d l y protected her- itage vista be- tween Mdina and Valletta, and will irrev- ocably destroy this heritage vista. If Malta is to attract cultural tourists, it needs to protect its cultural landscapes". Din l-Art Helwa president Simone Mizzi warns that through the approv- al of this project the whole industrial area will be "eventually committed to tall buildings." This would "severely impact the sight lines to Valletta", Mizzi warns. She would also have liked more discussion on highrise de- velopment. "Changing the nation's skyline per- manently and perhaps not for the better is a subject which needed more studies." She was also critical of what she de- scribed as "lego land" design. "I am sure this can be rendered more elegant with more study." Towers: Tumas to million MOSTA – situated in a quaint location, a large house of character with lots of natural light, set on two floors with high ceilings, central courtyard, spacious garage, entrance hall, kitchen, living room, laundry room and spare toilet at ground floor level. At first floor level one finds three large double-bedrooms (circa 5.6m x 4m per bedroom), en-suite bathroom, separate main bath- room and study. This property is complemented by a second courtyard with four additional large rooms which can be converted into an extension to this already spacious property or a separate flatlet. - €435,000 freehold. Call on 99434606, no agents please. Ray Fenech, director of Tumas Group insisted that the company did not request the inclusion of Mriehel in the zones identified for high-rise development in a planning document approved by MEPA last June. Flimkien Ghal Ambjent Ahjar coordinator Astrid Vella also claims that this site was included in the high-rise regulations abusively, as it was included after public consultation Planning Ombudsman David Pace had criticised the inclusion of Mriehel in the approved zones where high rise development can take place rey development will rise like a sore thumb, jarring with the far lower sky- line of neighbouring villages," Vella said of the Gasan-Tumas proposed Mriehel Towers. "It will be seen from all Malta and will cast long shadows over residenc- es, depriving them of light and solar rights. Last year, the International Council on Tall Buildings and the Ur- ban Habitat along with the UNESCO Sustainability Committee issued a re- port questioning the sustainability of tall buildings. The fact that this com- plex will consume seven million kWh of energy, the equivalent of energy consumed in a year by 1,500 to 1,600 residents, seems to confirm this. There is no indication that the devel- opers have submitted LEED certifica- tion in energy consumption, as most European developers of such projects are obliged to do." The project will rise to 18 floors within the protected heritage vista between Mdina and Valletta, irrevo- cably altering the heritage view. "If Malta is to attract cultural tour- ists, it needs to protect its cultural landscapes," Vella said. "Certain European countries, in- cluding the UK, stipulate that before being granted planning permission, sensitive developments need to show justification for their schemes, in- cluding evidence of market testing, and in some cases, a percentage of the property committed on plan. Before beginning to process such develop- ments far more is required than the Environment Impact Statement re- quested by MEPA. "MEPA needs to take on its respon- sibility as a regulator by demanding in-depth studies, including social impact and cost-benefit analysis to prove the overriding necessity for such a development and the lack of negative impact on health and eco- nomic interests," Vella said. thumb' that will destroy Mdina