Edward Scicluna's Warning

Times of Malta, 13 June 2016

“Economic booms contain the seeds of their own destruction... None of Malta’s economic sectors should be allowed to overheat and reach overcapacity... Malta’s healthy growth needs to be managed to stop it developing into an unsustainable boom.”

These words were pronounced by Edward Scicluna, Malta’s Finance Minister, during a recent Finance Malta conference as reported by the Times of Malta.

Scicluna, an economist, warned against the “supermarket” mentality in the construction industry, whereby developers try to compete with large-scale projects irrespective of the demand.

Coming from the Minister of Finance, this statement has certain weight. It can be interpreted that within Labour’s Cabinet there are those who do not simply subscribe to an oligarchy which seems to be more interested in defending its short-term interests over the common good.

It also shows that one of the best performers of the current government is giving importance to sustainability.

Scicluna is not the first to put forward such views. In recent decades, these views were also pronounced by different voices within academia, civil society and politics.

It seems that Malta’s economic growth is a coin with two sides. On the one hand, this provides jobs and relative stability. On the other side, there is growing social inequality and environmental precariousness.

The latter could have a direct impact on the former if short-term economic considerations are treated like unquestionable dogma. Spain can teach us something about this.

Some relate such considerations to the ‘tragedy of the commons’, a concept proposed by Garret Hardin some decades ago, wherein short-term interests of free-riders could bring ruin to all.

Maltese land is seen by the construction industry as a resource to exploit, and little consideration is given to holistic, cumulative and long-term impacts

One can also go back to the texts of Nicos Poulantzas, who once wrote about the economic state apparatus and the way it functions. Were the Greek sociologist alive today, he would have plenty to write about if he considered Malta as a case study.

Indeed, Maltese governments have depended too much on the construction industry and vice-versa. One provided jobs and economic growth, and the other provides the necessary infrastructure, incentives and policies to facilitate matters. Often, the State also provides land at dirt-cheap prices for developers so that they can go on with the construction frenzy.

Hence Maltese land is seen by the construction industry as a resource to exploit, and little consideration is given to holistic, cumulative and long-term impacts of this. Corporate social responsibility and community investment remain buzzwords fit for propaganda but rarely seen in everyday life.

Take Manoel Island. The land was practically given to developers at a pittance and they simply stopped developing when they no longer saw it profitable to do so. In the meantime, much of the island is a rundown mess, with dirt and litter accumulating in various places, while other places are declared out of bounds for the public.

Take The Point. The pedestrianised square is now facing a huge building which has practically blocked the sea view for visitors. As long as an extra buck is made, the commons comes second.

Take Fort Cambridge. The same developers who want to develop a 40-storey skyscraper in violation of the original development brief, have left parts of the surrounding area looking like a shanty-town, with wires, bricks and other eyesores all over the place.

In the meantime, an environment planning study on development in the area warns that residents could be elbowed out of Tignè and Qui-si-sana.

I can go on with other similar examples around Malta. It is difficult to predict if and when this economic bubble will burst. Yet, in the meantime, the general public is bearing the brunt of overdevelopment, loss of public space, construction nuisance and traffic problems.

The public is also subsidising such big developers. Arthur Gauci, CEO of Seabank, could not have put it better, when he told the Times of Malta the following words regarding the proposed development on public land at St George’s Bay:

“If we were to pay commercial rates for the land, a hotel on its own would never be viable. The numbers just don’t add up.”

Townsquare SkyScraper decision on 23 June

This letter was sent to Statutory Representees re. Townsquare Skyscraper Project

Application Number: PA/01191/05
Location: Old Union Club, (between) Tower Road, Hughes Hallet Street,
Tiqne Street, Qui Si Sana Lane, Ix- Xatt Ta' Qui-Si-Sana, Sliema, Malta
Proposal: Excavation of the site and construction of underground
parking and service facilities. Construction of low rise buildings including a 38 storey tower, in a pedestrianized mixed development of retail and office outlets, food and beverage outlets, and residential units. Change of use of Villa Drago to cater for retail and food and beverage establishments.

Development Planning Act, 2016

Notification of Development Permit Application Report and Board Meeting Date

Further to your submission on this application, your are hereby being notified that the Development Permit Application (DPA) Report has been prepared.

In accordance with the provisions of Regulation 12(6)(ii) of the Development Planning (Procedure for Applications and their Determination) Regulations, 2016, you are invited to make written submissions, if you so wish. Any written submission received will be referred to the Planning Board. Written submissions should reach the Planning Authority by 23 June 2016. Late submissions and/or submissions with erroneous reference numbers will not be considered by the Planning Board.

This application shall be decided by the Planning Board at the meeting to be held on 23 June 2016.
The sitting will be held from 11:00 hours onwards, at the La Valette Hall, Mediterranean Conference Centre, Valletta. Subject to the maximum seating capacity, seats can be reserved on request for the applicant and registered representees. For further information or queries regarding the sitting date or venue, please contact the Planning Board Secretariat on 2290 2020.

Official studies state that this project will comprise 10 months of excavation, 4 years construction and (together with Fort Cambridge) 6000 extra cars daily. For Further Information about the Townsquare Skyscraper Project, please click here and scroll downwards.

A few metres up the road, another skyscraper is being proposed, at Fort Cambridge, in violation of Government's development brief.

Both projects are being rushed so as to avoid a temporary cessation on highrise development before a national holistic plan on such development is carried out, despite calls for this by Alternattiva Demokratika - The Green Party (2010-), Partit Demokratiku (2016), Civil Society Network (2016), ENGOs and Change.Org petition (2016).

Residents' protest against TownSquare proposal - click here for more info

Proposed Sliema car park will be below street level, Independence Gardens will not be touched

Neil Camilleri

The Malta Independent 8 June 2016

A new underground car park in Sliema will be built underneath the existing playground near it-Torri and the project has nothing to do with Independence Gardens (photo above), the Sliema Local Council has clarified.

Some Sliema residents were claiming on the social media that Independence Gardens “would be destroyed to make way for a three-storey car park that would obstruct sea views and destroy trees.” One resident even said the project would affect the resident feline community.

But the Sliema council has explained that the proposal, currently at application stage, is for a 180-space car park to be built under street level at the site of the small playground (near Exiles). A new playground will replace the existing one on the same site.

It is understood that residents might have been given the wrong impression because of a technicality on the PA map server – the project boundary lines might have overlapped onto Independence Garden – but that mistake is being corrected.

The council noted that there are currently only thirty odd parking spaces near Exiles – an area that is flooded with beachgoers during the summer months. Some drivers end up parking their cars on the rocks for a lack of space. The new carpark will help alleviate the huge parking problem.

The council explained that the project was proposed to make use of Urban Improvement Funds given to the local council by the Planning Authority – the funds can only be used on traffic management/parking projects.

This newsroom was also informed that an EU standard accessible-to-all playground will be built on top of the carpark.

Furthermore, Independence Gardens will be upgraded through a new lighting system, new benches and an added number of trees. 

To obtain information about the development proposal, and to submit feedback to the Planning Authority, please go to http://www.pa.org.mt/SearchPA?Systemkey=162805&CaseFullRef=PA/01956/16

Sliema Council to sue government over residents' parking scheme ban

Times of Malta 8 June 2016

Sliema Council has warned that it will file court action against the Ministry of Transport after the locality's residents' parking scheme was stopped.

The council said today that while the ministry had raised doubts about residents' support for such a scheme, a survey it had commissioned showed that 72 per cent were actually in favour. The survey was conducted by Misco.

Copies of the survey findings have been sent to the prime minister and the transport minister.

The council said the way how its parking scheme had been stopped was discriminatory.

It recalled that it started working on the parking scheme in 2009 but the scheme was suspended soon after implementation started in June 2013 when the Minister of Transport hinted that such schemes were to be revised. 

In June 2013 the Transport Ministry issued a legal notice which specifically targeted Sliema and, the council said, legally annulled its right for a parking scheme.

During meetings with the ministry, the minister had said that Transport Malta was preparing a new parking policy applicable to all localities, but nothing had happened since. 

Rather, the minister had said that the parking policy was no longer a priority and he would  await the impact of the new bus service on traffic and parking.

Up, up and away: the tower economics of high-rise buildings

Kurt Sansone - Times of Malta 31 May 2016 

Standing at 23 floors, the Portomaso tower in St Julian’s is Malta’s tallest building, but it could be dwarfed easily over the next decade or so.

There are several plans, some more advanced than others, by private investors for tower blocks to rise in the Paceville area and Tigné Point in Sliema.

At least two of the projects that have been mooted would rise up to 40 floors, reaching skyscraper status, with others following close behind.

But it will not just be towers that will transform the landscape along the stretch of coastline between Pembroke and Sliema.

There are at least two other high-end projects, like the Corinthia’s six-star hotel proposal for St George’s Bay and the government’s White Rocks concession, that do not envisage towers.

While the flurry of plans and proposals has so far stopped at that, the lack of a holistic plan to deal with the overall impact has left many flabbergasted.

Sliema is already facing traffic gridlock as things stand, let alone with two massive towers

Concerns range from the visual impact the towers will have on the landscape, to the strain they will put on existing infrastructure, to the long-term sustainability of these projects.

Sliema mayor Anthony Chircop says that his council has put forward several concerns over the transformation of the Tigné peninsula into a high-rise district.

The proposed towers for Town Square and Fort Cambridge would dwarf Portomaso, which already looms large across the bay.

“We were given a presentation by the proponents of the Town Square project and some of our concerns have been addressed but Tigné’s streets are what they are and cannot be changed,” he says, fearing the impact the two towers would have on the town’s infrastructure.

Sliema is already facing traffic gridlock as things stand, let alone with two massive towers, he adds.

These concerns and others have prompted independent MP Marlene Farrugia to table a motion in Parliament seeking a moratorium on big projects and tower blocks. She wants these projects to be handled through a master plan, rather than in a piecemeal fashion.

The master plan should take into consideration the country’s economic, social and environmental needs, she says.

Her words echo the cautionary tone adopted by Finance Minister Edward Scicluna last week, when he commented on the “supermarket” of large-scale projects developers were trying to compete with “irrespective of demand”.

From an economic perspective, there is fear the development boom prospected by these projects could lead to a bubble that can easily burst if demand falters.

Chris Grech, chairman of Dhalia, a real estate company, told The Business Observer on May 19 that an influx of investors from overseas was fuelling demand and driving prices up. “The market is growing too fast,” he admitted.

Economist Gordon Cordina says international demand is probably likely to be sufficient to cater for the proposed developments. But he also insists the risks have to be managed, not least by ensuring the developments are adequately timed and seek to attract global clients.

“Demand from growth of existing business and relocation, while potentially important, is likely to occupy a minor share of the new developments and indeed would not be the main driver of economic growth,” Dr Cordina says.

Apart from those in the Sliema and St Julian’s area, other high-rise developments are being proposed for the Mrieħel industrial zone. Top-end office space is also expected to come on stream with the Farsons business centre in Mrieħel and the Skyparks 2 development at Malta International Airport.

In a cautionary note, Dr Cordina says feasibility studies for each project should consider the fact that other projects will also be coming up. Developers must also ensure the quality-to-price ratio is right to attract target clients and avoiding price wars.

But he also calls for better holistic management of the actual construction phases, so as to reduce the strain on resources.

“There should be an orderly development, taking into account… the timing when the projects would come on the market, so as to avoid gluts and bottlenecks,” Dr Cordina says.

Another aspect of concern is the development of public infrastructure to cater for the additional burden the projects will bring to their respective localities.

Infrastructure, including road access, traffic management, water works and electricity provision, should ideally precede the projects, he adds, noting that the private sector should take at least part of the responsibility for it.

Dr Cordina says developments should be prioritised according to “market readiness and their ability to best meet the needs of the economy”.

These criteria, he says, should be met on a project-by-project basis, as well as at regional and national levels.

The government announced the creation of a State agency to coordinate the construction works in the St George’s Bay area last October. A similar initiative was undertaken for the management of the Mrieħel industrial estate.

Whether these public-private partnerships will be enough to provide holistic plans for their respective areas has yet to be seen, but it is unlikely they will have the clout to set priorities for the country.

In the absence of a overarching national vision, a group of engaged citizens have taken it upon themselves to get the ball rolling. A Change.org petition signed by 1,000 people and counting calls on the government to develop such a holistic plan, as well as echoing calls made by independent MP Marlene Farrugia for a moratorium on large-scale developments until such a master plan is in place.

Sign the petition calling for a moratorium on large scale development - Click here

Sign the petition calling for sustainable develoment

Please click here for the change.org petition which is appealing for a moratorium on large scale development before a holistic plan is in place.

Residents may be elbowed out of Tigne' and Qui-si-sana: Environment Impact Statement

Qui-Si-Sana high-rise a ‘new chapter’ for Malta, developers’ EIA states

James Debono - Malta Today 31 May 2016

EIA claims that people may view 40-storey tower as symbolising a “new chapter” in Malta’s economic development even if authors of other reports warn that it will have an adverse on cultural landscape

The impact of the proposed high-rise 40 storey tower hotel in Qui-Si-Sana may make pedestrians rejoice, welcoming it as a symbol of Malta’s “coming of age”, the coordinators of an Environment Impact Assessment commissioned by GAP Holdings are claiming.

The authors of both the Landscape Impact and Cultural Heritage assessments both conclude that the impact of the proposed development on the cultural landscape and visual amenity will be of “very high significance” and “adverse”.

But the coordinator (ERSLI Consultants) of the assessment disputes this finding by pointing out that the conclusion that the impact is adverse may be “the subject of discussion” because there may be receptors who would consider the tall tower ‘beneficial’.

The coordinator claims that some receptors may see the imposing tower positively as a symbol representing “Malta’s economic and technological coming of age, particularly since the ‘tower’ is often strongly associated with the financial services sector” (even if the proposed project consists of a hotel). 

“For such receptors, the proposed development may be yet another contribution to the Maltese landscape which reflects yet another chapter of Malta’s post-Independence economic history.”

The EIS also argues that high-rise development is an inevitable consequence of Malta's choice to base its economy on financial services and high tech operations.

"Different economic systems engender specific types of physical development, the absence of which may make it difficult for such systems to grow and thrive". 

The EIS also warns that given that the proposed hotel has the potential to encourage further commercial investment in the streets (particularly Triq Tigné) linking the site with the two urban centres (Tigné and Town Square), there is the possibility that residents may be elbowed out of the residential area as their properties are taken over by commercial interests. “The significance of this impact would depend on the manner in which such pressures are handled by the authorities through the Planning System”. 

A study of the impact on the cultural heritage also warns that the building of a high-rise hotel will create more shadows in narrow streets such as Triq Sant’Antnin, Triq Pace and Triq Mattew Pulis. 

“These streets house a number of dwellings from the late 19th and early 20th century, that have become a rare sight in Sliema. Such shadows as well as the rise of modern structures, will further drain the area from the little remaining character of a summer residence which Sliema once was in the 19th century”. 

Officers’ quarters proposed for Grade 1 scheduling

Significantly the report reveals that the officers’ quarters, parts of which are proposed for demolition, with only parts of the facades retained to be included in the hotel, have been proposed by the Planning Authority for Grade 1 protection which would preclude any development which would alter its context. No further reference is made in the study to the building’s proposed scheduling.  The PA has recently revealed that over 100 sites are awaiting scheduling but refused to reveal the names of the buildings because ‘external influence’ could hamper process. The Sliema local council has also officially called for the scheduling of the building.

 If the scheduling does take place the project cannot even go ahead.

This is because demolition or alterations which impair the setting or change the external or internal appearance of a grade 1 building, including anything contained within the curtilage of the building, are not allowed. 

The study warns that the dismantling and the integration of parts of the officers’ mess facade into the lower floors of a high-rise hotel means that its “mere existence as a free-standing structure will be forever lost”. 

But the report also claims that in its current dilapidated state the structure creates a danger to the community and is adversely affecting the urban fabric of the area and is leading to further damage being done to the structure itself by the natural elements as well as by human intervention. 

The cultural landscape of the area will not only be visually affected since the proposed development will be the focal point of Tigné, but the barracks and the military heritage of the area which still exists (Fort Cambridge) will be further de-contextualised. 

6,000 more cars passing through Qui-Si-Sana

The proposed development is expected to generate substantial amounts of traffic flows, particularly during the peak hours.

The annual average daily traffic (AADT) of the road network of the offices which were previously approved for the site was calculated at 530 vehicles, in comparison to an AADT of 1,527 vehicles which would be generated by the proposed hotel. Therefore, the net additional contribution to the AADT would be 997. 

This means that the twin development of the 38-storey tower proposed at Townsquare and the 40-storey hotel would result in nearly 6,000 more cars passing through the area on a daily basis.

This ‘problem’ should be addressed, as is already being done, through policies and initiatives designed to reduce the dependency of many on the private car. 

Studies also show that the project will be creating “moderate wind conditions at the adjacent public garden”.

These conditions will be “suitable for standing and sitting for a short time.” The major problem is caused by east winds. The report warns that “turbulent vortices are predicted in the zone adjacent to the north east and north west face of the building “due to the interaction of high and low pressure streams”.