Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/944442
maltatoday WEDNESDAY 21 FEBRUARY 2018 NEWS JAMES DEBONO MOYNIHAN House is set to be demolished to make way for a five-storey development includ- ing 6012m2 of office space, a lan- guage school and a restaurant. The building has been on the Planning Authority's waiting list for buildings deserving Grade 2 protection for the past years. But no final decision on its protec- tion was ever taken. The redevelopment of the his- torical building is part of the Villa Rosa project proposed by Anton Camilleri's Garnet In- vestments. The project also includes a new hotel on Cresta quay, a boutique hotel and apartments in the area next to Bay Street and 15 bunga- lows on the villa grounds. A final decision on the project, which is recommended for ap- proval by the Planning Author- ity, will be taken by the Planning Board tomorrow. The fate of the building was sealed after the Superintend- ence for Cultural Heritage con- cluded that the building is not worthy of such protection. The SCH's decision contrasted with recommendation made in a study by Archeology Services Limited included in the Envi- ronmental Impact Statement for the Villa Rosa development, which unambiguously conclud- ed that both buildings deserve protection as Grade 2 Buildings. In the report the retention of the two buildings is described as an essential element for the in- tegrity of the cultural landscape of St George's Bay, which will be "adversely impacted" by the pro- ject. Dolphin House and the Moynihan House are located along Triq Ix Xatt ta' San Ġorg and a steep hill which leads to Triq il-Prof. W. Ganado. Moynihan House The old building consists of a two-storey building construct- ed in the 1860s, that includes a memorial plaque, currently covered by vegetation, indicat- ing that it was the birthplace of Berkeley G.A. Moynihan – the internationally acclaimed Brit- ish abdominal surgeon who served as president of the Royal College of Surgeons of England from 1926 to 1932, The memorial plaque current- ly affixed on the building "will be recovered and remounted in the immediate vicinity," of the building. The Harq Hammiem Cave, a Level 1 Site of Scientific Impor- tance, is located in the vicinity of Moynihan house itself. Building not worthy of protection – Superintendence The Superintendence for Cul- tural notes that it has given its blessing to the demolition of Moynihan House after an in- spection which confirmed that the property has been subject to later interventions and extensive reconstruction, reducing its cul- tural heritage value. "The property does not have cultural heritage value that would warrant its preservation", the SCH concluded. Neverthe- less, the architect agreed to in- clude design details at this loca- tion that will evoke the memory of the British Period Building". The Superintendence has also asked the developer to prepare a Works Method Statement for excavation works to ensure that appropriate measures are taken and that works do not cause incidental damage to the Ghar Harq Hammiem cave which is located at the periphery of the property but which according to the SHC does not extend be- neath the property. The Superintendence also rec- ommended a suitable guarantee should be sought from the de- veloper by the Planning Author- ity to ensure the safeguard of the cave. This development permission is subject to a bank guarantee to the value of €255,000 to ensure full compliance with the permit conditions. The bank guarantee shall be reduced by €100,000 upon con- firmation by the Environment and Resources Authority of the cave and other geomorphologi- cal features. This project involves the devel- opment of 2,140sqm footprint of land into a 56-room, 4-star ho- tel on the Cresta quay site below road level and a kiosk at street level. The layout will allow for the use by the public of a 3m- wide strip along the coast. The development will be car- ried over a footprint of 18,345 square metres, and a total gross floor area of 82,917 square me- tres divided into 10 different zones within three different areas. Moynihan house to be demolished Photomontage of proposed development (as presented by developers) TIA RELJIC NATIONALIST MP Beppe Fenech Adami has accused the Maltese gov- ernment of "cover-ups" to prevent the murder case of Daphne Caruana Gali- zia from being solved. Fenech Adami levelled the accusa- tion in Parliament on Tuesday even- ing after asking Transport Minister Ian Borg whether he had watched the film Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri – which he said was the in- spiration behind the billboards put up by Occupy Justice in Malta. While the question was met with objections from the Speaker and other members of the House, Fenech Adami insisted that the question was not a hypothetical or ironic one. He said the billboards were "inspired by a true story which happened in the US, which had similar dynamics as those in Malta today" with the government involved in "cover-ups" to prevent Daphne Caruana Galizia's murder case from being solved. When asked by Nationalist MP Ja- son Azzopardi if it was the ministry that gave the order for the Occupy Justice billboards to be removed, Borg said that the Planning Authority is in- dependent and autonomous. The ac- tion was the PA's initiative. The reason for the billboards being removed, Borg insisted, was that they were illegal. Asked by Fenech Adami whether the minister was aware of the opera- tion to remove the billboards, Borg said that the ministry is not involved in actions taken by the PA, nor does he think he should be. "Illegality is not a question of inter- pretation. If you have a permit from the PA it should be supported by the Lands Authority – notwithstanding the fact that the billboard might not be on public land – and a licence from Transport Malta," Borg said. Responding to a question by Deputy Speaker Claudette Buttigieg, Borg said that other billboards were also removed on the day, not only those by Occupy Justice. Three billboards were also found to have been stealing electricity from Enemalta, and this was also dealt with, Borg said. Beppe Fenech Adami accuses government of 'cover-ups' in Daphne Caruana Galizia murder Nationalist MP Beppe Fenech Adami drew parallels between the film Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri and the Maltese context in light of Friday's enforcement action by the authorities to remove billboards that called for justice for Daphne Caruana Galizia