Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/989894
NEWS 6 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 3 JUNE 2018 ONE of Malta's smallest Catholic feasts takes place annually inside the rural hamlet of Wardija, a hilltop village that enjoys a serene seclusion rarely found on the Maltese islands. But what is particular about the feast of Our Lady of the Forsaken (m. Il-Madonna tal- Abbandunati) is that the church was granted unto the patronage of the Manduca Piscopo Macedonia Zamit noble family, holders of the Mont'Alto and Buleben barony. Motorists on the St Paul's Bay bypass will have seen the unmistakable honey-yellow patina of the chapel jutting out on the hillside, but few may be aware of the week-long solemn celebrations that take place during the first week of June. The devotion to Our Lady of the Forsaken started with Grandmaster Ramon Perellos, a Valencian knight of the Order of St John who, as bailiff, had the church built at the Ballut garden, overlooking the bay of Xemxija and St Paul's Islands in 1689. The devotion follows on that of the Nuestra Señora de los Desamparado, the patroness of Valencia depicted with a lily in one hand and in the other, carrying the baby Jesus who bears the cross in his arms. Her posture, characterised by a slight forward tilt, earned her the affectionate moniker of the hunchback. Perellos commissioned the Maltese artist Stefano Erardi to reproduce a copy of the Valencian Virgin for the church's altarpiece. Centuries later, Count Bernardo Manduca commissioned a processional statue of the Virgin from the Gozitan statue-maker Wistin Camilleri, which he completed in 1919 – again inspired by Erardi's altarpiece. A faithful copy was also created by the Balzan statue-maker Wigi Muscat, again on Count Manduca's commission when the latter moved his family to Villa Macedonia in Balzan, for a niche to house a statue of Our Lady of the Forsaken. The religious activities of the week will kick off on Saturday 9 June, while the three-day Triduum observance starts on Wednesday 13 June, sung Mass and the First Vespers on the eve of the feast on Saturday 16 June, and the solemn High Mass and recitation of the Second Vespers on the day of the feast on Sunday 17 June. Rural Wardija celebrates one of Malta's smaller feasts, which pays tribute to the patroness of Valencia Motorists on the St Paul's Bay bypass will have seen the unmistakable honey-yellow patina of the chapel jutting out on the hillside Augustinian Order rents out St George's Bay land to Bay Street for 12-storey hotel extension MATTHEW VELLA MENDICANT orders tend to adopt a life- style of poverty, but Malta's Augustinian or- der knows better than to ignore the property gold rush on St George's Bay. In fact, one of the last remaining stretches of land owned by the Order on St Augustine Street in St Julian's has been negotiated for its release unto the owners of the Bay Street Complex. The land, currently being used as a make- shift car park, is to make way for a 12-storey four-star accommodation building and office complex, that will be developed by Bay Street Holdings, whose owners include George Muscat of GAP Holdings, and Paul Camilleri. The order's provincial Leslie Gatt confirmed the financial arrangements. "There is a rental contract on the land be- tween the Augustinians and Bay Street Hold- ings Ltd, so no sale has taken place, neither any temporary or perpetual emphyteutical concession," Fr Gatt told MaltaToday. He did not reveal any details on the rental. "No transfer of land has taken place. The property will remain that of the Augustin- ians," he said. When asked whether the Order will be ben- efiting from the sale or otherwise of any of the units in the complex, Fr Gatt said there was no such financial arrangement. The development will tower over the St George's Road, and behind the monks' con- vent and St Rita Chapel. The site area is of some 2,260 square metres, and will include 246 underground parking spaces. Objections have already flowed in, among them from Simon Decesare, a member of the Eden Leisure Group which owns a size- able chunk of real estate on St George's Road, among others the Intercontinental Hotel and Eden cinemas. Decesare said the proposed development is located in a residential buffer zone that is above the maximum height allowed by cur- rent policies, which would limit heights to four storeys. He said the development would create a large, exposed blank party wall on St Augus- tine Street. "It also obstructs the view of the existing monastery on the adjacent site along Sqaq Lourdes. The same large exposed party wall is directly in front of the existing hotel rooms forming part of the five-star InterCon- tinental Hotel. This will have a large impact on our hotel." Decesare said current planning policies precluded blank walls. "The proposed devel- opment includes offices, entertainment ar- eas and a large hotel complex. It will have a large impact on the area and will not serve as a buffer between the town and the entertain- ment centre of Paceville. On the contrary it is extending the hotel area and the entertain- ment area of Paceville adjacent to the residen- tial area." Decesare insisted that the residential buffer zone should only have development with a minimal impact, especially in terms of noise and operating times. mvella@mediatoday.com.mt ARE YOU A RESIDENT WHO BOUGHT LAND IN THIS NEIGHBOURHOOD? Get in touch with MaltaToday to tell us your story Decesare business group says proposal breaches planning policies for residential buffer zone