Xmas consultation for Sliema Skyscraper

MEPA has asked the Sliema Local Council to give feedback regarding the proposed Skyscraper on top of the Military barracks at ex-Fort Cambridge site. When the original permit was given to the Fort Cambridge developers, the apartments were approved on condition that the ex-military barracks is preserved. Now, the developers are proposing to build a 40-storey tower on top of the building. A few metres down the road, another skyscraper is being proposed by other developers for the Townsquare project. The consultation period provided by MEPA is bang right in the middle of the Xmas period and before the next Sliema Local Council monthly decision-making meeting.

 Sliema Local Council was informed as follows, re. Ref: TRK 159681 (EA00019/15) 

Reference No:      TRK 162247 (EA00030/15)

Location:              Site at, Triq Tigné c/w, Triq il-Ponta Ta' Dragut, Sliema, Malta

Proposal:               Retention of the historic existing facades of the Fort Cambridge barracks building and demolition of the existing southwest facade and internal structure. Proposed excavation and construction of a new high-rise hotel Class 3B including all ancillary facilities and amenities.

Kindly be advised that the abovementioned development application requires an Environmental Planning Statement (EPS) as per EIA Regulations, 2007 (S.L. 504.79).

 A Project Description Statement (PDS) for the proposed development has been submitted and may be found on the following link:

http://www.mepa.org.mt/permitting-ea-cons

Kindly provide, within 21 days of receipt of the email (7 January 2016), any information that you wish to see included in the Terms of Reference of the EPS. Kindly email your comments to eiamalta@mepa.org.mt.

Residents, NGOs and civic-minded citizens are invited to send me proposals at mbrig@hotmail.com so that I may propose together with my colleague councillors within Sliema Local Council. 

New law paves way for Fort Cambridge skyscraper – Sliema council

James Debono
Malta Today 3 September 2015
http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/56717/new_law_paves_way_for_fort_cambridge_skyscraper__sliema_council#.VegWtfRUJ94

A new law gives precedence to all other types of plans over development briefs designed to give specific guidelines on specific sites such as Fort Cambridge in Tigné.

The Sliema local council has expressed concern that by relegating development briefs to the lowest rung in a hierarchy establishing the precedence of plans, the proposed Planning Act could pave the way for the approval of the Fort Cambridge 40-storey tower development.

This is because as proposed, a new law gives precedence to all other types of plans over development briefs which were originally designed to give specific guidelines on development on specific sites, such as Fort Cambridge in Tigné.

The order of precedence is that of the spatial strategy over the subject plan; the subject plan over the local plan, the local plan over the action plan or management plan and the action plan or the management plan over the development brief.

According to a local plan approved by the Malta Environment and Planning Authority in 2006 the maximum building height for the former military barracks that had recently housed the Holiday Inn in Sliema – now proposed for a 40-storey hotel tower – should be retained at the existing four floors.

But the latest development proposal envisions the retention of the historical building’s façade and the construction of a 40-storey tower on top of it.

The 2006 development brief is still legally valid and any changes to it have to be approved after amendments are issued for public consultation.

The height limitation in the Tigné area was introduced “in order to conserve the ex-military barracks building”, the brief reads.

According to the brief, the existing ex-military barracks building “is to be retained due to its historical and architectural importance”, but internal alterations are allowed.

The development brief states that this building should act as a buffer between new higher development on the site and the surrounding residential blocks. “No additional floors are to be allowed over this landmark building,” the brief says.

“Apart from its historical importance, (the building) also significantly contributes to the character, identity and local distinctiveness of the area,” the Fort Cambridge development brief reads.

In its written submissions on the new law, the Sliema council claims that by relegating the development brief to the bottom of the planning policy heirarchy MEPA is defying the notion of subsidiarity.

“There is no logic in creating precedence among policies, as all policies ought to be in line with each other,” the council argues.

Moreover if, exceptionally, there is a conflict between plans then the local plan and the development brief should take precedence as they are specific to the conservation and protection required of a particular area.

According to the council this article seems to be placed intentionally to undermine “the good work done under previous administrations in creating development briefs” which ensure sustainable development in specific locations.

“The Sliema Council is particularly concerned about the implications of this new hierarchy on the application of a hotel to be developed on the Fort Cambridge site”.

Will Government schedule Tigne' Military Barracks?

Will Government schedule Tigne military barracks as per MEPA advice or is new policy there to permit 40 storey hotel?

New policies apply for Tigné’s 40-storey hotel

Original four-storey limit stated in development brief for Fort Cambridge ‘does not apply’

James Debono
Malta Today 5 July 2015
http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/54746/new_policies_apply_for_tigns_40storey_hotel#.VZqYC8sw92Z

The Malta Environment and Planning Authority is claiming that a policy on hotel heights approved in 2014 has superseded the 2006 development brief for Tigné’s Fort Cambridge, which banned any additional storeys on the historical building.

GAP Holdings’s 40-storey tower hotel proposed atop Fort Cambridge’s former officers’ mess will now be assessed according to the new hotel heights policy, and not according to the development brief approved in 2006, which limited development to just four storeys.

“The proposed development will be evaluated according to current policies,” a spokesperson for MEPA replied when pressed on how the authority is considering the tower building on the former military barracks, when the development brief clearly stated that no additional storeys should be allowed on the historical building.

The new policy regulating the heights of hotels allows four- and five-star hotels to add any number of storeys over and above the number allowed in the Local Plan, as long as the resulting design “constitutes a landmark having unique aesthetic characteristics within the urban context”.

But the development brief, which set the planning parameters for the area before it was leased to GAP Holdings in 2007, clearly banned any additional heights on historical buildings.

The brief, which is still legally binding, had set out the building to “act as a buffer between new higher development on the site and the surrounding residential blocks. No additional floors are to be allowed.”

Delay in scheduling crucial for approval

There is an apparent snag: the new policy on hotel heights does not apply to development on “scheduled sites” like historical buildings, such as the former military barracks.

But the former barracks is not a scheduled building. A MEPA spokesperson recently confirmed that the site “has been proposed by MEPA for grade 2 protection”, which would not allow the application of the new hotel heights policy.

But no final decision has been taken about the grade 2 scheduling.

What this means is that any policy allowing an unlimited number of storeys to be added to the former barracks would be applicable only because the government and MEPA have yet to schedule the site.

There are no doubts about the historical importance of the building. The former barracks, an eye-catching structure, are the last remaining military barracks building in Tigné. It was designed and built in the early 1900s, and therefore together with Fort Cambridge offers a valuable link with the British colonial period. As stated in the Fort Cambridge brief: “Apart from its historical importance, it also significantly contributes to the character, identity and local distinctiveness of the area.”

Moreover the lease agreement signed with the government in 2007 also obliged the developers to restore the barracks before 2017. The proposal made by GAP Holdings is to restore the façade of the building while allowing its internal demolition.

Conflict in interpretation

MaltaToday is informed that there are conflicting interpretations about whether the new policy on hotel heights can supersede a development brief.

Experts contacted by MaltaToday pointed out that applications are normally determined according to the policy in force at the time of the decision.

“This has been a long established legal principle,” one expert on law and planning pointed out.

But the same planning expert also pointed out that in this case the discrepancy is between two completely different documents: between a site-specific brief which sets the parameters for development in a part of Sliema, and a generic policy affecting hotel heights in the whole country.

In its reply, MEPA failed to specify which “current policies” apply to the proposed development.

But MaltaToday is informed that the new development proposal will be judged according to the policy regulating hotel heights, which allows hotels an unlimited number of storeys over what is permitted in local plans.

The site is located in Tigné, one of the five zones where building of over 11 storeys can rise using the floor-area ratio, the formula use to make buildings higher of more open space is created around them.

But there is clearly not enough open space left in the barracks site to allow as compensation for a 40-storey high building.

Landmark Portomaso decision paves the way

The question on whether new policies supersede older commitments was the subject of a decision by the appeals tribunal (Environment and Planning Review Tribunal) handed down in December 2013.

The tribunal, appointed by the newly-elected Labour administration, allowed the construction of 46 villas in a new lagoon at Portomaso, despite a prior MEPA commitment not to allow any further development on the site.

Back in 1995 the planning authority had imposed a condition in the original permit, prohibiting further development on the site. In 2012, MEPA cited this commitment as the reason for refusing the application for the villas.

On appeal, the tribunal held that that condition was no longer applicable since the 2006 local plan, which came in force after the condition was applied, designated the site of the proposed villas as developable. So the local plan was applied and the condition restricting the development was ignored.

Legal sources say MEPA seems to favour this interpretation too. Not only has MEPA failed to contest the decision of the tribunal in court, but it also used this interpretation itself in granting permits on sites which had similar conditions.

Since MEPA is now preparing a new local plan it can still introduce a specific policy regulating development on this site. In this case the local plan policy would prevail over any other policy, including that regulating hotel heights.

Developer bound to restore Tigne' Military Barracks, yet wants 40-storey hotel in Fort Cambridge Site, Sliema

GAP bound by 2007 agreement to restore Tigné military barracks

The agreement binds the developer to restore both the fort and glacis known as Fort Cambridge and the site of the ex military barracks.

James Debono
Malta Today, 2 July 2015
http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/lifestyle/property/54634/gap_bound_by_2007_agreement_to_restore_tign_military_barracks#.VZZ9Wcsw_xO

Fort Cambridge developers are legally obliged to “effect the restoration” of the former military barracks building in Tigné, Sliema by April 2017 or “any other time stipulated in a future development permit”.

This is laid down in the agreement signed between the Lands Department and GAP Holdings in April 2007.

The agreement binds the developer to restore both the fort and glacis known as Fort Cambridge and the site of the ex military barracks.

But despite this commitment to restore the barracks, the developers have undertaken no such works in the past seven years during which the site was left abandoned.

Residents in the area have even reported “a mysterious fire” and a general lack of maintenance has made it a haven for vermin.

It was only last month that plans were presented to the Malta Environment and Planning Authority proposing the erection of a 40-storey hotel and the “retention of the historic existing facades of the Fort Cambridge barracks” and the “demolition of the existing southwest facade and the ‘internal structures’.”

A permit issued by MEPA in 2010, which obliged the developers to restore Fort Cambridge, did not impose any obligations with regard to the upkeep of the British era barracks. The works on the fort and glacis were commenced recently, more than three years after the permit was issued.

When contacted in January GAP director Paul Attard claimed that the group was concentrating on the restoration works of Fort Cambridge – the pentagonal British-built fortress dating back to the 1880s, and the glacis.

“As one would appreciate, restoration is very laborious work and it takes quite an amount of time and attention.”

As regards the barracks, he pointed out that the building had been sealed.

Fort Cambridge was leased to GAP for 99 years, following a competitive tender, for Lm23.3 million (€54.274 million).

A Fort Cambridge development brief approved in 2006, which remains legally binding, specifies that the existing building height of the ex military barracks is to be retained.

But MEPA has so far not replied MaltaToday’s questions on whether it intends to change the development brief to accommodate the 40-storey development, which has already been approved by the Malta Tourism Authority and was the subject of preliminary discussions with MEPA.

According to the brief, the barracks building “is to be retained due to its historical and architectural importance”, but internal alterations will be allowed.

This building will act as a buffer between new higher development on the site and the surrounding residential blocks. No additional floors were to be allowed over this landmark building.

Fort Cambridge brief does not allow high-rise

According to the approved brief, the existing ex-military barracks building “is to be retained due to its historical and architectural importance”, but internal alterations are allowed.

James Debono
Malta Today 1 July 2015
http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/lifestyle/property/54589/fort_cambridge_brief_does_not_allow_highrise#.VZPMODPvrmJ

The maximum building height for the former military barracks that had recently housed the Holiday Inn in Sliema – now proposed for a 40-storey hotel tower – should be retained at the existing four floors according to the development brief approved by MEPA in 2006.

But the latest development proposal envisions the retention of the historical building’s façade and the construction of a 40-storey tower on top of it.

The development brief is still legally valid and any changes to it have to be approved after amendments are issued for public consultation.

The height limitation in the Tigné area was introduced “in order to conserve the ex-military barracks building”, the brief reads.

According to the approved brief, the existing ex-military barracks building “is to be retained due to its historical and architectural importance”, but internal alterations are allowed.

“This building will act as a buffer between new higher development on the site and the surrounding residential blocks. No additional floors are to be allowed over this landmark building,” the brief says.

The same brief paved the way for a 16-storey development on an adjacent site.

MEPA later approved a 20-storey development on condition that it does not surpass the height of a 16-storey development, made possible by reducing the height of each storey.

The barracks were the last remaining ex-military barracks building in Tigné. It was designed and built in the early 1900s, and therefore together with Fort Cambridge offers a valuable link with the past British period.

“Apart from its historical importance, it also significantly contributes to the character, identity and local distinctiveness of the area,” the Fort Cambridge brief read.

On the other hand the eastern hotel block was an addition made in the early 1980s with no conservation importance.

The historical building has a facade with a series of colonnades and arches. The building also has a characteristic and interesting sheltered, quadrangular, internal courtyard following the same style.

Originally the building was constructed on two floors. Additional floors were added at a later stage, replicating the same architectural style and features of the previous levels. Apart from these interventions, substantial internal alterations were carried out in order to render the building suitable for hotel use.

GAP Holdings director Paul Attard last week confirmed that the Malta Tourism Authority had given the firm the green light to apply with MEPA to build a 40-storey hotel. But the MTA will require further information, details and MEPA permits prior to the final approval.

The application submitted to MEPA is for the erection of a 5-star hotel having 368 rooms.

“At present we are dealing with various renowned management chains,” Attard told MaltaToday.

He described the proposed hotel “as the first of its kind in Malta being a city hotel, more business orientated and not the resort type”.

He also said that the hotel will create 300 new jobs.

According to Attard the shape of the building was developed following various designs and studies with the scope to create a pleasant massing to the high rise as an “iconic building”.

40-storey hotel proposed in traffic-congested Sliema

New 40-storey hotel to ‘complement’ other high rises

Developers claim that new hotel will mostly cast a shadow on their own property

James Debono
Malta Today
25 June 2015
http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/business/business_news/54292/new_40storey_hotel_to_complement_other_high_rises#.VY0j5Msw_xN

A new forty-storey hotel in Sliema will be casting its shadow on the neighbouring Fort Cambridge apartment block, developers GAP Holdings claimed when asked on the shadowing effect on neighbouring residences.

“Most of the time, especially during the afternoon, the shadowing will be on our own property,” GAP Holdings director Paul Attard told MaltaToday.

According to Attard the effect of the hotel tower on the landscape has to be seen in the context that the Tigné peninsula has been earmarked as a high-rise area in the recently approved policy regulating building heights. “Therefore, more high rise buildings are expected to complement one another,” Attard said.

But it is this fear of a concentration of high-rise developments in an area with a population density of 4,135 per square kilometre which is creating most concern among residents.

A 38-storey tower is already being proposed next to Villa Drago, and other developments may follow.

“We are already experiencing a gridlock of traffic,” Sliema councillor for Alternattiva Demokratika, Michael Briguglio told MaltaToday.

Briguglio has called on MEPA to assess the cumulative social and environmental impacts of all proposed developments before taking a decision on any single proposal.

He said that while the Fort Cambridge development was approved by a development brief, which limited the height of the project to 16 storeys, no reference to the development of a 40-storey hotel was made in this brief.

He also told MaltaToday that MEPA has informed him that the Environmental Protection Directorate is still assessing whether an Environment Impact Assessment is required.

On his part, Paul Attard confirmed that the Malta Tourism Authority has given GAP Holdings the green light to apply with MEPA to build a 40-storey hotel. But the MTA will require further information, details and MEPA permits prior to the final approval.

The application submitted to MEPA is for the erection of a 5-star hotel having 368 rooms. “At present we are dealing with various renowned management chains,” Attard said, describing the hotel as “the first of its kind in Malta, being a city hotel, more business orientated and not the resort type.”

He also claims the hotel will create 300 new jobs. “The shape of the building was developed following various designs and studies with the scope of creating pleasant massing to the high rise as an iconic building.”

Plans for more Tigné towers raise concerns

Photo by Darrin Zammit Lupi


The Times, 11 June 2015
by Caroline Muscat
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20150611/local/plans-for-more-tigne-towers-raise-concerns.572055


A tower planned for Fort Cambridge, in Tigné is an entirely new proposal the Sliema local council insists it has never heard about.

It is one of two towers planned for the crowded peninsula, raising once again the controversy over congestion, air pollution and population density.

The topic is to be raised at the Sliema council by councillor Michael Briguglio, a former chairman of Alternattiva Demokratika, who pointed out the Fort Cambridge tower had never been on the cards.

While the tower at the Town Square project had been debated, the 40-storey high tower on top of Fort Cambridge officers’ mess is entirely new. It will be Malta’s highest tower block.

“We were never given any indication of such heights. I did my PhD on the development, so I know a great deal about the case. This wasn’t in the plans,” Dr Briguglio said.

Read more in Times of Malta.

Sliema faces 40 & 38 storey highrise overdevelopment in Tigne'

Sliema’s new towers to dwarf Portomaso
James Debono
Malta Today, 7 June 2015
http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/53789/sliemas_new_towers_to_dwarf_portomaso#.VXWm4s-qqko


The ‘Dubai-fication’ of the Sliema skyline is in full swing, with two newly proposed towers fighting for the honour of becoming Malta’s tallest buildings.

As far as plans go, a 40-storey tower being proposed on top of the Fort Cambridge officers’ mess is set to become Malta’s tallest tower block.

In a separate development, plans for the town square project proposed by Mark Gasan, the son of magnate Joseph Gasan, have also been changed.

Plans submitted last week show the height of the main tower increasing from the 34 storeys proposed in September 2014 to 38 storeys. In 2010 the development was limited to 23 storeys.

If approved the two Sliema towers will be higher than any other building in Malta, surpassing by far the Portomaso tower, which is 23 floors. Not very far away, the Metropolis development in Gzira is set to rise to 33 floors.

40 storeys on Fort Cambridge

The application proposing the erection of a 40-storey hotel also foresees the “retention of the historic existing facades of the Fort Cambridge barracks” and the “demolition of the existing southwest facade and the ‘internal structures’.”

The design of the high-rise buildings is being prepared by leading architect Ray Demicoli, who designed the Portomoso tower and marina developments, and is currently designing plans for the Zonqor point American University, the proposed Costa del Sol Hotel in Ghadira and the proposed extension of the Ramla Bay Hotel.

In 2014 Demicoli was also one of a number of architects chosen to sit on a committee entrusted with drafting a new policy on building heights, which was approved by the government in 2014.

MaltaToday had already revealed in January that the barracks had been identified for a high-rise hotel development.

MEPA’s Planning Directorate had held “preliminary discussions” on a proposal to develop a “new hotel” on the abandoned site of the former Holiday Inn in Tigné, Sliema, a spokesperson for the Malta Environment and Planning Authority confirmed.

When asked whether a high-rise development is being proposed in the barracks area, Paul Attard, director of GAP Developments Plc, said the company has “no particular plans” for the site but confirmed that it “is looking at all possibilities available according to the current building policies”.

The building, whose façade will be retained in the proposed development, includes the officers’ quarters dating back to the British colonial era. The building has been left in a shabby and abandoned state for the past decade, despite being proposed for Grade 2 scheduling by MEPA.

Over the past months residents have denounced “countless mysterious fires” and a general lack of maintenance which have made the abandoned building a haven for “vermin of all kinds”.

The permit issued in 2010, obliging developers to restore Fort Cambridge, did not impose any obligations with regard to the upkeep of the British era barracks. Currently the developers are conducting works to restore the nearby fort.

Although the site is adjacent to the high-rise Fort Cambridge development, it also lies in proximity to low-rise residential houses.

The barracks is being proposed for Grade 2 scheduling by the Malta Environment and Planning Authority. If scheduled, the building itself will be protected from demolition but alterations can be made to its interior. Recently the façade of the naval clinic was integrated in an eight-storey development next to the Pjazzetta at Ghar il-Lembi in Sliema.

38 storeys in Sliema Townsquare

The Townsquare project, which includes the premises of the former Union Club and the scheduled Villa Drago, which is to be restored, dates back to 2005 when an application was presented to construct a shopping hall, residential units and an underground car park on this site.

A Project Development Statement presented by the Gasan Group in 2007 proposed a 32-storey tower on the site, apart from a public square, pedestrianised areas and a number of smaller blocks.

Three years later the height of the tower was slashed to 23 storeys, but a new tower rising to 15 storeys was also proposed along with the central tower.

An update to the Environment Planning Statement presented by the developers in 2010 stated that the building heights were changed following discussions with MEPA.

In 2012, a revised environment impact study recommended that people should close their windows to mitigate the noise impact of the development, prompting a reaction by former environment minister Mario de Marco, who described this recommendation as “unreasonable”.

The studies commissioned by the developers in 2010 – after the height of the main tower was slashed to 23 storeys – concluded that the project will have a “minor impact” with regard to the shadowing on the neighbourhood.

But the same study acknowledges that the project will increase the shadowing on the public open spaces along the Qui-Si-Sana sea-front.

“The scheme will extend this impact further over the sea. It will also impact additional areas of the rocky foreshore at noon insofar as there will no longer be patches of sunshine.”

The EPS update (based on a maximum height of 23 storeys) also assessed the impact on the landscape.

The greatest visual impact was felt from a viewpoint near the Preluna Hotel where the skyline will be broken by the tower as well as by the Fort Cambridge development. The impact on this spot is deemed to be major.

Since the site sits behind the Fort Cambridge and Midi developments, the view from Is-Sur tal-Inglizi in Valletta was deemed to be “minor”.

The development was not visible from Bighi and Vittoriosa and “barely noticeable” from Mdina and from Smart City.
Studies presented by the developers when 23 storeys were proposed estimate that the project will increase peak flows in Qui-Si-Sana from the present 24,444 to 28,874 vehicles.
 The proposal was revised following the approval of the new heights policy which identified the

Tigné peninsula as one of the sites where tall buildings over 10 storeys can be permitted.

In March MEPA informed objectors that it was awaiting the submission of a revised proposal in view of the new policy on building heights.
Tigné as the new Dubai

The Tigné peninsula, which already includes the 17-storey high Fortina Hotel and the 20-storey high Fort Cambridge apartment blocks is one of the six localities where tall buildings can be developed. The other five are Gzira, Qawra, Paceville, Marsa and Mriehel.

The Tigné peninsula was included in the high-rise zone, despite the concern expressed by the Rehabilitation Projects Office (RPO), the government office responsible for protecting Valletta’s UNESCO World Heritage status, that this could endanger its unique status.

The RPO questioned the inclusion of Tigné as one of six locations suitable for over 11-storey buildings.
“Tigné is within the buffer zone and immediate context of Valletta and a significant change in its character will severely affect that of Valletta itself – highly threatening its World Heritage status,” a report presented to the Malta Environment and Planning Authority by architects Mirielle Fsadni and Wendy Jo Attard warned.

The report warns that the World Heritage status is not an “automatic right” but can be revoked, as was about to happen to Cologne’s Cathedral following the proposal of a high-rise building in its vicinity.

MEPA replied to the RPO’s submission by pointing out that high buildings already exist in Tigné, which has been designated as a commercial hub.
According to MEPA these two factors weigh in favour of locating more tall buildings in the area. “The designation of Tigné as an appropriate location for tall buildings could be an opportunity to consider it holistically with the aim of improving the views from Valletta.”

For MEPA the issue at stake is whether “more tall buildings will result in more harm to the quality of views from and towards Valletta” or contribute to a “more sensitive and holistic approach” to the visual impact on Valletta.

New hotel proposed on abandoned Holiday Inn site

MaltaToday is informed that one of the proposals being considered is a high-rise development on part of the site, which may possibly be the highest ever in the area.

James Debono
28 January 2015
http://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/48866/new_hotel_proposed_on_abandoned_holiday_inn_site#.VMnsszN0zIW




MEPA’s Planning Directorate is in “preliminary discussions” on a proposal to develop a “new hotel” on the abandoned site of the former Holiday Inn in Tigné, Sliema a spokesperson for the Malta Environment and Planning Authority confirmed.

The building, part of which includes the officers’ quarters dating back to the British colonial era, has been left in a shabby and abandoned state for the past decade despite being proposed for Grade 2 scheduling by MEPA.

MaltaToday is informed that one of the proposals being considered is a high-rise development on part of the site, which may possibly be the highest ever in the area.

When asked whether a high rise development is being proposed in the barracks area, Paul Attard, director of GAP Developments Plc, said the company has “no particular plans” for the site but confirmed that it “is looking to all possibilities available according to the current building policies”.

MEPA did not reply when asked whether the site is eligible for high-rise development. The Tigné peninsula is one of the sites where high-rise development over 11 storeys can take place according to the new policy approved in 2014.

Over the past months residents have denounced “countless mysterious fires” and a general lack of maintenance which have made the abandoned building a haven for “vermin of all kinds”.

MEPA also confirmed that a permit issued in 2010 obliging developers to restore Fort Cambridge did not impose any obligations with regard to the upkeep of the British era barracks. Currently the developers are conducting works to restore the nearby fort.

The site was inspected on Monday following “a lot of complaints from residents” about the accumulation of rubbish and debris. But according to MEPA there was no reason to issue an enforcement order against the owners.

According to Paul Attard, GAP Developments is presently concentrating on the restoration works of Fort Cambridge – the pentagonal British-built fortress dating back to 1880s and the glacis.

“As one would appreciate, restoration is a very laborious work and it takes quite an amount of time and attention.”

As regards the Barracks, he pointed out that the building has been sealed.

On its part MEPA confirmed that the ex-British barracks, which is part of the former hotel site, is being proposed as a Grade 2 scheduled building.

Green Party councillor Michael Briguglio described the site of the officers’ quarters as a mess.

“Despite its architectural beauty, it has been transformed into an abandoned site, with rubbish accumulating, and there was also a fire in the building,” he said.

Briguglio claimed that Sliema residents had been given the impression that the officers’ quarters will be restored to its former state by the Fort Cambridge developers, but instead it has been left to rot.

“This reflects a lack of respect towards residents and the locality,” Briguglio said, auguring that the bad state of the building will not be used as an excuse to obtain a free hand which would lead to unsightly over-development.

Although the site is adjacent to the high rise Fort Cambridge development, it also lies in proximity to low-rise residential houses.

The barracks is being proposed for Grade 2 scheduling by the Malta Environment and Planning Authority. If scheduled, the building itself will be protected from demolition but alterations can be made to its interior. Recently the façade of the naval clinic was integrated in an eight-storey development next to the Pjazzetta at Ghar il-Lembi Sliema.

Townsquare Development Proposal in Sliema

Sliema Local Council is looking into the proposed development of Townsquare, at the Union Club grounds between Tower Road and Qui-si-sana. Over the past years, this proposal has undergone changes and has also been subject to much debate among residents and councillors.

We have now learned that the proposed development will include various buildings including a 33-storey tower, the rehabilitation of Villa Drago and its gardens, a shopping hall, 181 apartments, almost 5,000 square metres of office space, more than 9,000 square metres of retail area, and an underground carpark for about 700-800 cars.

The Malta Environment and Planning Authority’s (MEPA) Environment Protection Directorate (EPD) has assessed the plans and concluded that the development will have an impact on air quality in an area which is already congested with traffic, and noted that the annual average daily traffic from the project would be over 27,000 vehicles.

MEPA’s assessment also notes that excavation would have an impact of major significance in terms of vibrating disturbance, but that the restoration of Villa Drago will have positive impacts.

MEPA’s study also states that the development will extend the existing shadowing of Qui-si-sana. Indeed, shadowing will impact further over the sea and will also affect additional areas of the rocky shore which would be deprived of sunshine even during midday.

Finally, the EPD report adds that the social impact on the area will be negative.

It is therefore no surprise that Sliema Local Council is registering as an objector to proposed plans. The council will be looking further into the proposed plans and speak up accordingly. We believe that improvements can be made which give more consideration to social and environmental considerations.

Here one should note that development should be sustainable, meaning that social and environmental factors should not be sidelined for short-term economic gains. To the contrary, social, environmental and economic considerations can be reconciled through holistic planning and comprehensive consultation.

Unfortunately residents in the area do not have positive experiences of the impact of some other development projects in the vicinity. Areas close to some development projects remain shabby, and at times resemble rubbish dumps, with debris being scattered in various places, and with infrastructure, fencing and other features which are reminiscent of shanty towns. Such practices are also of disservice to those developers who do engage in good practice and professional workmanship.

In the case of Fort Cambridge, it is disappointing to note that embellishment and restoration of historical sites is taking place at a snail’s pace, thus raising legitimate concern by many residents.

Adherence to development conditions requires improvement in Malta. Local Councils do not have legal power in this regard, but can act as legitimate voices on residents’ concerns. We urge authorities to ensure that development always respects the social fabric and environmental characteristics of localities.

Note (1): This article features in Sliema Local Council magazine, December 2014

Note (2): MEPA's public consultation on the project will commence in January 2015. Details will be available at www.mepa.org.mt