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maltatoday, SUNDAY, 9 APRIL 2017 2 News PA committee grants blessing for five more storeys on Gzira tower 18-storey tower proposed instead of Wembley factory JAMES DEBONO THE Planning Authority's design advisory committee (DAC) – the authority's advisory panel on the design of new buildings – has given its blessing to five additional towers on the 16-storey tower un- der construction on the site of the United Garage, in Gzira. During the past weeks the tow- er has attracted attention for its marked impact on views to Val- letta. The additional five floors proposed a few months after the project was approved, are still awaiting the PA's final approval. "The Committee is not averse to the proposal and noted that the additional height will contribute to improve the proportion of the building," the DAC said in its rec- ommendations. "However at the same time the scale of the building has certainly made a presence in the skyline and long-range views," the DAC said, which still described the architec- tural design as "commendable", describing it as "the structural ex- pression of cross bracing on the facade, which gives an interesting dynamic look". The DAC is chaired by archi- tect David Mallia and two other members, namely architect Ray Demicoli and art historian Char- lene Vella. Demicoli himself is the architect of a number of high-rise projects, including the proposed 40-storey hotel at Fort Cambridge, a new 18-storey building proposed on the site of the Wembley ice cream factory in Gzira and the four towers approved at Mriehel by the Tumas and Gasan Groups. A spokesperson for the Plan- ning Authority confirmed that the planning directorate requested the applicant to submit photomon- tages, describing this as a standard procedure in order to assess the extent of visual impact, and to de- termine whether the development fits within the site and in the wider context. "The photomontages have been submitted and assessed by DAC, who provided a positive recommendation for the project," the spokesperson confirmed. The photomontages will only be made available to the public on the PA's website once the PA's plan- ning directorate issues a case of- ficer report. The Gzira project, proposed by ADMG Estates, was the first high- rise development to be approved under the PA's high-rise policy in 2015. Subsequently, the devel- opers applied to add eight new storeys to an already approved 16-storey tower. But the applica- tion was later amended to reduce the additional storeys to five. The additional storeys will make room for five more apartments. ADMG is owned by various shareholders, including Sonnet Investments, JPK Investments, Marius Cordina and Paul Darma- nin. The directors of the company are Ian Decesare and Marius Cor- dina. The tower is being built on a tri- angular-shaped plot of land front- ing Gzira road, Sliema road, and Triq il-Rebħa, which housed the former United Garage building, 150 metres away from the Gzira parish church. The 16-storey building, consist- ing of a mix of offices and apart- ments, was approved in a record four months in August 2015. In June 2016, the Environment and Resources Authority in- formed the PA that the project, which would have a total gross floor area of 13,560 square metres, does not require an Environment Impact Assessment. A project development state- ment (PDS) for the project had warned of impacts on long-dis- tance views of Valletta, but no full environment planning statement was ever conducted. Photomon- tages showed that the project as approved would be "moderately visible" from Valletta's Hastings Garden, but that the visual impact would be expected to rise with the addition of eight floors. The PA back then also request- ed no wind studies, obligatory in EIAs for high-rise buildings, be- fore approving the project. The PDS noted that the significant in- crease in height could potentially have implications for wind circu- lation around the development and the wind microclimate of the surrounding streets. But it emerges that no such stud- ies were ever carried out. "Stud- ies on the possible changes to the wind microclimate in the area of the development were not re- quested by either the Planning Directorate or any of the agencies/ departments consulted during the processing of the application," a spokesperson for the PA had told MaltaToday after the project was approved. A Sun Path study showed that the surrounding streets are al- ready shaded and that the project would mostly impact surrounding roofs, depending on the time of the day. JAMES DEBONO AN application to demolish the existing vacant and dilapidated Wembley ice-cream factory in Gzira and construct 18 floors of office development and four levels underground, has been presented to the Planning Authority. The new high-rise is being pro- posed opposite the massive hole excavated for the as yet undevel- oped 33-storey Metropolis Tower, whose foundation stone was laid by the Prime Minister in April 2015. The Wembley application has been presented by Emil Bonello Ghio on behalf of Wembley Ice Cream Factory Limited. A spokesperson for the company told MaltaToday that the aim of the project is to address the grow- ing demand for office space in the country which could possibly in- crease after Brexit. "The demand for office space by both local and foreign companies is huge espe- cially from commercial and pro- fessional companies… The supply of office space is currently very low and such a project is very timely." The plans for the project are being prepared by architect Ray Demicoli, a member of the PA's Design Advisory Committee, the panel advising the authority on the design of new buildings. Demicoli abstains on any discus- sion about projects in which he is involved as architect. Plans presented to the PA fore- see the preservation of parts of the present building and its façade, but would add 18 new storeys on top of it. Unlike the neighbouring Mus- cat Motors building, which was granted protection together with various other modernist build- ings in 2012, the ice-cream factory has not been scheduled by the PA. The Mira buildings, demolished to make way for the Metropolis development, was also not sched- uled. The Wembley factory was com- pleted in 1937 and designed by Antonio Grech Dimech. The building is described as one of "the best examples of pre-war industri- al architecture in Malta", by archi- tect Edward Said in an article pub- lished in the Architect, an official publication issued by the Chamber of Architects. According to Said, the sym- metrical facade includes subtle features which reflect the eclectic style used in dwellings at the time. The pilasters, which divide the façade, are expressed in the Art Deco style, "giving a sense of haute verticality to the squat two-storey building". Said had called on the PA to schedule the building to protect it from suffering the same fate suf- fered by Mira Building, which has made way for the gaping hole on the other side of the street. Gzira is one of the localities ear- marked for high-rise development in a policy approved by the Plan- ning Authority in 2014. The ap- plication is still at its initial stages and is still being screened by the Planning Directorate before it is issued for public consultation. The Gzira Tower • As approved, the 16-storey building will include three basement parking levels accommodating 125 car parking spaces, 695 square metres of landscaped public open space, a cafeteria, overlying office space and 10 residential units. • The PA board imposed a planning gain of nearly €30,000 for the Gzira Local Council to use in environmental and urban improvement projects, traffic management, green transport and similar projects. The project will include a public plaza, which occupies 62% of the site at ground level. • But a part of this open space is roofed over by the tower. In fact the non-roofed open space is slightly less than the 50% of the site dictated by the policy. • A four-storey development was already approved in 2012. The project includes 125 parking spaces, which is 28 more than required by project. The building will include a green wall. The proponents say the demand for office space is expected to increase in the Brexit aftermath. The architect for the project is Ray Demicoli, a member of the PA's design advisory committee