Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/949290
maltatoday SUNDAY 4 MARCH 2018 6 News A major food importer in Malta is seeking the services of a well-connected Food Service Distributor in Gozo. Interested parties are to contact: Mr. Stephen Muscat CPA 17/1 Kevman, Triq id-Denċi, Mellieħa MLH4110 Email: smuscat@go.net.mt FOOD SERVICE GOZO REGION DISTRIBUTOR JAMES DEBONO A 23-room guesthouse built over five floors in St Julian's Ghomor valley, is being recommended for approval by a Planning Authority case officer. A final decision on this develop- ment is expected in two weeks' time on 15 March, and follows last Thursday's rejection of an old peo- ple's home in another part of the same valley. The site of the guesthouse – pre- viously occupied by a 60 sq.m ga- rage – is located outside building limits in St Julian's on the valley side of Wied Ghomor between the Tigullio complex and the Mikiel Anton Vassalli bridge. The site itself abuts a garage and an existing two-storey building, but its development is expected to visually dominate the valley ac- cording to the Environment and Resources Authority, which is ob- jecting to the development. A previous application for resi- dential development on the same site but presented by a different owner had been refused in 2011. But the policy goalposts changed after the approval of the new rural policy guidelines in 2014. In a classic case of piecemeal development in 2015, the Plan- ning Authority granted a permit to demolish the garage on site, to build a 200 sq.m villa with pool and semi-basement garage. The devel- opment was never commenced. Indeed, the PA's planning directorate (case officer) had op- posed this application, as it would have resulted in a new ODZ (out- side development zones) dwelling. But after some changes to plans the PA's planning commission ap- proved the villa on the basis of the new rural policy approved in 2014, which favours the redevelopment of existing ODZ buildings. Now, the latest application to change the villa into a hotel is be- ing opposed by the Environment and Resources Authority. While noting that the proposal would be sited adjacent to a two- storey building and opposite a row of apartment blocks, "the in- creased volume would be more visually dominant when viewed from the rear onto Wied Gho- mor," the ERA said. It also warned that the develop- ment exceeds the scale and mass- ing of the villa approved in 2015, and that it would create a precedent for similar development on existing vacant plots within this area. But the case officer contends that the height of the guesthouse is the same as that for the approved villa, with the three storeys proposed above street level being of the same height of the approved two storeys. Curiously, the case officer rec- ommending the permit cites a precedent created by a similar de- velopment in Gozo's Xlendi valley, which saw the change of use of a dwelling into a boutique hotel. The case officer points out that Xlendi valley has more scheduling than Wied Ghomor. The case officer also said the guesthouse was in line with the rural policy which permits any change of use that "results in a wider environmental benefit." But the Swieqi council is object- ing to the development because of its visual impact. "This will pro- duce a block which would be to- tally alien in terms of bulk, form, textures and scale to the rural quality of the context. The grab- bing of more protected ODZ land by developers should not be toler- ated." Guesthouse set for approval in St Julian's valley PAUL COCKS NEW legislation regulating the setting up and placement of bill- boards has done away with pro- posals to restrict the number of billboards that can be placed along 30 of Malta's major arteries, Malta- Today has learned. According to a draft legal notice drawn up in April 2017, the num- ber of commercial billboards that could be placed along certain roads was restricted, with the number that could be placed in each direc- tion clearly defined. But a new legal notice introduced on 9 February this year did not in- clude the roads list or any restric- tions whatsoever on the number of billboards that can be placed along any of the roads. The list of roads in the 2017 draft included the St Paul's Bay Bypass, where only seven billboards were to be allowed in each direction, St Andrews Road (five billboards in each direction), Regional Road (seven billboards in each direc- tion), Tal-Barrani (five billboards in each direction), Garibaldi Road (nine billboards in each direction) and the Council of Europe Avenue (five billboards in each direction). On the Salina Coast Road, 15 bill- boards were to be allowed in the west direction, on the land side. No billboards were to be allowed in the East direction, on the coast. The new legal notice, LN36 of 2018, was drawn up as subsidiary legislation under the Billboards and Advertisements Regulations of 2017 within the Development Planning Act (Chapter 552). It confirmed the €1,500 yearly fee that has to be paid to Trans- port Malta when authorisation for a billboard is issued as well as the fees due for the commercial use of the board, which can run up to €1,150 for three months. According to the legal notice, there needs to be a longitudinal dis- tance of 50 metres between succes- sive billboards of the same facing. In determining where billboards can be placed, the notice says that the general considerations should be traffic safety and the land use of the area, the scale and massing of existing buildings and whether there are any features of environ- mental, architectural or historic interest in the vicinity. The siting of billboards on very prominent sites, such as the sky- line or on the roof of buildings or in places where a strategic view would be interrupted, would not be considered "appropriate", ac- cording to the regulations. No mention whatsoever is made of particular roads or arteries, as had been done in the draft legal notice last year. Nor are any limits estab- lished as to the number of billboards that can be placed along any road. One operator, who owns a num- ber of billboards along some of Malta's major arteries, told Malta- Today that this could lead to many more billboards being installed, even after all illegal billboards are removed or regularised. The legal notice also identifies a number of cases where no permis- sion is required, including 10 bill- boards used exclusively for activi- ties and events of the Office of the President, 10 billboards advertising activities organised by non-gov- ernmental organisations and up to two billboards advertising public and EU-funded projects. pcocks@mediatoday.com.mt New rules allow unlimited billboard placements on all roads The siting of billboards on very prominent sites, such as the skyline or on the roof of buildings or in places where a strategic view would be interrupted, would not be considered "appropriate"