Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/756492
maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 30 NOVEMBER 2016 JAMES DEBONO THE Planning Directorate is recommending the approval of a new 11-storey office block set on the existing Portomaso cafeteria. The Planning Board will be taking a final decision on the proposed development a few days before Christmas, on 15 Decem- ber. The case officer is recommend- ing the application for approval because Paceville is designated as a "business hub" in the Strate- gic Plan for the Environment and Development (SPED). The decision will be taken be- fore the approval of the contro- versial masterplan for the town, which also envisions tourist de- velopment of up to 15 storeys on reclaimed land next to the exist- ing Portomaso resort. The high-rise development first proposed in July 2015 but vali- dated in July this year will not be assessed according to the terms of the new masterplan. The only reference the case of- ficer makes to the masterplan, which is still at public consul- tation stage, is that building heights of potential buildings in the area are "higher than the Hil- ton office tower." Neither does the case officer make any reference to the Floor Area Ration (FAR) policy ap- proved in 2014, which defines any building over 10 storeys as a tall building. The policy seeks to compensate height increases with the creation of new open spaces around them. The 11 storey steel structure has been granted clearance by the PA's Design Advisory com- mittee. Project architect Ray DeMicoli, who also forms part of this committee, absented himself from any discussion on this ap- plication, leaving the decision in the hands of the two other DAC members, art historian Charlene Vella and architect David Mallia. The new building, which will rise to 67 metres, will be terraced from the fifth f loor onwards, with the higher f loors occupying less f loor space than the lower f loors. In the case officer report the structure is considered to be "a landmark building which com- pliments the adjacent 22 storeys and 105 storey high Portomaso tower. Apart from the tower the highest building at Portomaso is an office centre located next to the tower, which rises to 52 me- tres. The architectural merits of the project "which plays with tri- angular shape of the site" and creates "a campanile effect that starts from the neighbouring building, ascends to the Hilton office tower and descends at the Hilton hotel" are highlighted in the case officer report. So is the use of a light frame steel struc- ture and glazing, which will also give a "light" appearance to the building. The new parking requirements are set at between a minimum of 119 and a maximum of 333 parking spaces. This calculation is based on a parking formula ac- cording to which one car space is required for every 50 square metres of office space. According to the case officer the increased parking demand can be catered for by the existing Portomaso car park, which has 2,000 park- ing spaces, 797 of which are al- located for Portomaso residents and 1,130 for the public. The car park has a spare capacity of 313. Is project in breach of local plan? In a screening letter issued in July 2015 the Planning Author- ity itself had claimed that the development "exceeds" the build- ing height stipulated in the local plan. In fact the existing local plan stipulates that the Planning Authority should "adopt a re- strictive approach to building heights within this zone" and that heights should conform to the existing height limitations applicable in this area, which is designated as a "resort zone". The Hilton Tower is described as an "exception" which should not be used to "determine future heights" of buildings in the area. The developers replied that of- fice use in the area had already been established by the Hil- ton tower itself and that design guidelines issued in 2007 already made exceptions with regard to the height of "landmark build- ings". Moreover design guidelines ap- proved by the PA in 2015 recom- mend "f lexibility" in assessing the height of buildings in "corner sites" like this one. The building has been designed using a terracing effect, which minimises the massing of the building. The present cafete- ria will be retained at the lower f loor. While the first four f loors will occupy the same area as the cafeteria, the office f loors will occupy less space from the fifth f loor onwards. The growth of Portomaso The original permit for the Por- tomaso development was issued in 1996. Various changes to the approved blocks were approved along the years. The Paceville masterplan proposes an addi- tional 72,080 square metres of f loor space in Portomaso. The masterplan does not exclude an- other tower at Portomaso but ex- pressed a preference for coastal development – including land reclamation – where develop- ment may still rise to a maxi- mum of 15 f loors. According to the same masterplan the site will have a built up footprint of 38,700 square metres, with pho- tomontages in the Paceville mas- terplan showing the new tower on reclaimed land that would obscure the classic view of the Dragonaro Casino from Sliema. The development will take place next to a marine protected area rich in Posidonia meadows. The entire area on which the Portomaso complex is built was leased by the state to the devel- opers for Lm191,000 (€444,910) a year, and eventually sold to the developers for Lm800,000 in 2006. In 2014 a permit was also issued for 46 new villas set on an artificial lagoon. News Before Masterplan, Portomaso set to get another 'tower' Photmontages of the proposed Portomaso office block