Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/706995
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 24 JULY 2016 8 JAMES DEBONO TWO brand new petrol stations are being proposed outside de- velopment zones, literally next to each other on adjacent plots of land on Burmarrad Road, St Paul's Bay. The land is located opposite the Kiabi outlet, in the vicinity of the Burmarrad Commercials complex. The proponents are car dealer- ship Easysell Kia, owned by en- trepreneur Anthony Fenech, and Construction & Turnkey, a com- pany owned by Joseph Attard and Anthony Ciappara. So called 'ODZ petrol pump sta- tions' are today big business since a new planning policy allowed the transfer of licences from smaller, urban petrol pumps to larger pumping stations on motorways outside development zones. Both proposals however consist of entirely new ODZ petrol sta- tions and not the relocation of ex- isting ones from an urban area. But the Planning Authority does "not normally permit" – as the pol- icy states – a petrol station within 500 metres of an existing fuel sta- tion in the same direction of traf- fic. The PA may still favourably con- sider fuel stations opposite each other, if it can be demonstrated that traffic on the opposite lane from the existing petrol station cannot easily access it. This alone suggests that prior ap- proval of one petrol station will re- sult in the refusal of the other. Apart from encouraging the re- location of petrol stations from residential areas, the new policy on petrol stations allows brand new, 3,000 square metre petrol stations on ODZ sites near industrial areas. An exception is made for ODZ petrol stations on sites designated as "areas of containment" – which are meant to create a transition between the countryside and in- dustrial areas. These can be even larger than 3,000 square metres. As it turns out, Construction & Turnkey's petrol pump is adjacent to the area of containment, while the one proposed by Easysell is it- self located in the area of contain- ment. Construction & Turnkey is at a more advanced planning stage, with the developers having already prepared an Environment Plan- ning Statement (EPS). Easysell have also been instructed to pre- pare an EPS. ERA objects to Construction and Turnkey's proposal Both the Environment and Re- sources Authority (ERA) and the Agricultural Advisory Committee have objected to the petrol station proposed by Construction and Turnkey. The ERA objected to the take-up of "undeveloped rural land" and referred to the impact on short distance views. The AAC insisted that it objects to any development on agricultural land. Construction & Turnkey's EPS refers to the "shortage of modern fuel stations in the location" and the need to "cater for the demand of fuel due to the ever increasing number of vehicles on the roads" even if it refers to two fuel stations (Dad's and Nick's fuel stations) found opposite each other around 500m north, on Mosta Road. Until recently the abandoned agricultural area was covered with wild flowers and patches of wheat and cereal, probably originating from seeds left over from previous cultivation or carried by the wind from neighbouring fields. The soil has already been cleared to enable the developers to con- duct an archaeological survey. The archaeological investigations su- pervised by the Superintendence for Cultural Heritage did not yield any discoveries on site. According to the terms of refer- ence the soil was to remain stored on site "for possible reinstatement" once the investigation is complet- ed. The EPS reveals that the devel- opment will have a marked impact on the panoramic view from Triq l-Imdawra. The Easysell project The development proposed by Easysell is set to include a service station, a car wash, an office and a retail shop. As brand new petrol stations, these can be located either within, or opposite and adjacent to so- called areas of containment, which are ODZ areas where low-level industrial activity or storage is al- lowed. They are meant to create a tran- sition between industrial or tour- ism areas, and rural areas: in Malta there are 33 such ODZ sites des- ignated as areas of containment. They include parts of Bahar ic- Caghaq, Burmarrad, the Hal Mann site in Lija, various parts of Mdina Road, St Leonard Street in Zabbar, Tal-Balal in San Gwann and part of Hal-Farrug road. Over the years the PA refused three applications to construct a boundary wall around the site, as this was not deemed to be essential for agricultural purposes. An application presented by Easysell's Anthony Fenech to en- close the car wash area with a wall was also refused in 1995. The deci- sion was confirmed by the appeals board in 2000. The proposed de- velopment consisted in the placing on the site of a 'car wash machine' and a 'mobile office' on the aban- doned field. The Appeals Board had noted that the site had been excavated without the necessary permission, and that the excavated material was left lying on the site, which consequently started being used for illegal dumping. Similar applications were refused in 1999 and 2002. The site of the proposed petrol station is now part of a rural con- servation area but is also adjacent to a storage area, designated as an "area of containment" in the 2006 local plan. And an enforcement against the illegal construction of a wall has been pending since 1997. News Petrol pump business Two pumps next to each other vying for Burmarrad Road The ERA objected to the take-up of "undeveloped rural land" and referred to the impact on short distance views Yellow proposal made by EasySell, red proposal made by Construction & Turnkey