Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/859132
2 JAMES DEBONO THE Planning Authority website has been revamped again to include all the search facilities, which dis- appeared when the new website was launched two weeks ago. These include the facil- ity to search pending en- forcements and pending applications in 'outside development zones' and in urban conservation areas by locality. The PA website already allowed users to search pending applications and enforcement for those who knew the number of any particular application. The recovery of features from the old site, coupled with the introduction of a new user-friendly calen- dar, which gives detailed information on agendas and decisions, by each PA board, makes the web site even more transparent than before. The new website, launched two weeks ago, was immediately criticised for lacking the facility to search applications by loca- tion. A day after the omis- sion was highlighted by MaltaToday, the authority re-introduced this search facility. Other search facil- ities omitted from the new site highlighted by Malta- Today were introduced last Friday. The PA has insisted that the new website was not created to deprive or re- strict the public from ac- cessing development plan- ning data but had used the analytics of the old website to guide it on what services were the most popular and commonly used. YANNICK PACE EN VIRONMENT minister Jose Herrera has thrown his weight behind Pembroke residents who have for the past weeks been pro- testing against the proposed de- velopment of a school in an un- built field in the locality. The protest was attended by some 350 residents, many of whom held placards reading 'not for sale', 'make it ODZ', and 'keep it green'. "I am here in support of resi- dents in the area," said the minister, insisting that the gov- ernment needed to do more to protect public land, and to en- sure the sustainability of devel- opment on the island. The project, which has been criticised by eNGOs like Kamp Emergenza Ambjent and Movi- ment Graffitti, would see Chis- wick School (CHS) relocate from the centre of a residential area in Kappara to Pembroke. In a statement issued on Sun- day, school director Bernie Mizzi said the school understood resi- dents' concerns about the school "occupying land that had been left vacant" when they had origi- nally built their homes. She added however that the school intended to open up its premises to the community out- side school hours. Mizzi said that the new school would occupy only "25 per cent of its allocated footprint". The government-owned plot in Pembroke was identified in col- laboration with the CHS owners after other options, including ex- isting buildings, were analysed. Mizzi said the chosen site forms part of a larger parcel of land that had been earmarked for develop- ment, for many years. The Pembroke Development Brief in the North Harbours Lo- cal Plan designates the plot of land for development and in- corporates the whole designated area of unbuilt land, not just the parcel where the proposed school is to be located. maltatoday, WEDNESDAY, 9 AUGUST 2017 News Minister attends protest as 'statement against' proposed Pembroke school PA website updated to include extended search facilities To check decisions taken on a daily basis: Simply go to the cal- endar and click on any particu- lar date. This will give a list of decisions by the different boards and a list of agendas of the meet- ings to be held on that particular day. Every Wednesday a list is is- sued with new applications in both outside development zones and urban conservation areas. To get access to planning doc- uments: All you need is an eID number through which you can regis- ter on the site. To get access to E-apps you can simply click the E-apps icon found just above the calendar. Then you can get access to documents includ- ing case officer reports and the memos sent by consulting bod- ies like the Superintendence for Cultural Heritage and the Envi- ronment and Resources Author- ity. One will also get access to plans presented by the architect. To find pending ODZ and UCA applications: Just go to the search section of the website on the left of the calendar. Then click 'advanced search' and a new menu will appear which includes a search of pending ODZ (ODZ Search Pending Cases by Local Council) or UCA (UCA Search Pending Cases By Local Council) applica- tions in any of the 68 localities. To find a list of pending en- forcements in each locality: Just go click advanced search and then click Pending Enforce- ment Cases by locality. Then just choose the locality. To find all the applications presented in any locality: Click "Advanced search" and then choose Search Application by Location from menu. Then all you have to do is to insert the name of the locality and you get the whole list of applications in each locality since 1992. You can limit the search to particu- lar streets by adding the name of the street in the locality search. This will give you a list of appli- cations presented in that street from 1992 till now. To check the planning history of a particular site: Click on the geoportal icon found on top of the calendar. You can either zoom into the map until you find the site you are looking for or use the geoportal's search engine by inserting the name of the street or the place name. For example you can write Ta' Landrijiet to get access to that area's planning history. From the menu on the left side of the geo- portal you can restrict or expand your search to include planning applications, enforcements, in- formation on the site's schedul- ing and the planning designation of the site. To get the information you want you have to click the "I" icon and then zoom in that par- ticular site. Moreover one can also get access to aerial photos taken in 1998, 2004, 2008, 2012 and 2016. In this way you can even check whether any devel- opment has taken place between those years and whether it has a valid permit. To become a full time plan- ning detective: Combining the different search facilities will give you the whole picture. For example if you see any dubious development on a par- ticular site, your starting point would be the geoportal, which would give you the planning his- tory of that particular site. For example if you think there is an illegal structure, you can easily find out whether the structure is a new one by checking if it is found on the latest aerial photos. You can also check whether the suspicious development is cov- ered by any past permit already issued on the site. You can cross check for any pending enforcements and appli- cations in that particular street and locality on the Advanced Search facility on the PA website. And if a permit has been issued on the site or is still being pro- cessed by the PA, you can go on E-apps to check details such as permit conditions and the plans submitted for that particular de- velopment. Moreover if you are monitoring applications in your locality historical centre, your starting point would be clicking 'advanced search". If you are mostly concerned about old buildings you can re- strict your search to UCA Search Pending Cases By Local Council. If you want more details on a par- ticular application, go to E-apps to check the plans submitted. How to use the website: Minister Jose Herrera addressing media at the end of the protest