Burmarrad set to get new four-storey shopping complex

Burmarrad could get a new four-storey shopping complex as the redevelopment of a former car repair and rental depot site has been recommended for Planning Authority permission.

Located in an Outside Development Zone, designated an Area of Containment (AoC), in Triq Burmarrad, the full-development application will be discussed by the planning board on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the case officer’s recommended decision is to grant permission to demolish existing structures on site, excavate and construct four underground levels for parking and build four overlying floors dedicated to commercial activities, including a supermarket, retail outlets, food and beverage establishments and offices “in line with partial local plan review”.

An update of planning policy guidance for the locality has paved the way for the development: the PA’s Partial Review of the North West Local Plan (2006) for the Burmarrad Area of Mixed Uses and of the Area of Containment was directed by the government because the guidance did not adequately address the development requirements of the commercial area and did not make efficient use of land, the case officer’s report pointed out.

How the four-floor mall in Burmarrad will look.

Spread over a total area of around 6,000 square metres, the mall would be located on the site of Burmarrad Commercials Complex, its applicant, and is designed by architects JG Periti.

The scheme has been “designed with an interesting alternation of solids and voids” and is proposed to reach a maximum height of 17.5 metres, the report noted.

PA/02583/21 was found to follow both the Strategic Plan for the Environment and Development, which highlights the need to follow a containment strategy to limit urban sprawl, and the Partial Review of the Nort-West Plan for the Burmarrad Commercial Area, which is guided by the SPED.

The Development Management Directorate also considered it in view of “an industrial and deteriorated urban fabric that is being recomposed to provide legibility, identity and liveability with the new contemporary building that aims to create a fresh attraction point”.

The development was being proposed on a site that accommodated a number of industrial uses related mainly to the selling, maintenance and storage of vehicles, now relocated to the Ex-Union Print site in Marsa. While the primary land use in the immediate vicinity of the site was agricultural, other uses included commercial and communal, with a large retail centre, a small private hospital, a petrol station and a cemetery in the area, and a few residential buildings, including rural holiday accommodation.

The closest residential property was located approximately 30 metres away, and the Burmarrad Urban Area (Development Zone) boundary is around 113 metres to the south.

A photomontage of the the Burmarrad development.

Objections to the development highlighted the need to take into account the volume of the proposed development and its environmental and traffic impacts, as well as the effect of the proposed excavation on adjacent properties and potential structural damages to retaining rubble walls, buildings and mature trees, when considering the application.

The Light Awareness Pollution Group expressed concerns and the San Pawl il-Baħar Local Council had objected to the proposal on the grounds that it was ODZ.

But the case officer’s report pointed out that although the land was still considered to be outside development zone, it has been designated an Area of Containment and turned into a Commercial Area in the North West Local Plan Review.

The environment, cultural heritage and transport authorities had no objection to the application, which was being favourably recommended.

The Environment Resources Authority observed that the proposed development would be limited to the Area of Containment and had no objection from an environmental point of view, but requested that landscaping consisting of indigenous and fruit trees be introduced on site, particularly the side overlooking ODZ.

The applicant was requested to submit current and projected increases in traffic flows in Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT), taking into consideration all the development interventions on site.

Transport Malta also gave its clearance to the project, while the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage expressed its concerns about its possible negative impact on the surrounding landscape, including views and vistas from Wardija and the archaeological site of Tal-Qagħadi.

But following the submission of revised drawings and photomontages, the heritage watchdog said the proposed development was not objectionable.

An impression of the new shopping complex.

The site history lists a number of applications for sanctioning and enforcement action against illegalities. But these have been suspended as the proposed demolition plans of the current application would address any infringements on site.

Along the years, Burmarrad transformed from a sparsely developed characteristic rural area to a more developed and urbanised area with an adjacent Area of Containment, the case officer’s report noted.

The designated Area of Mixed Uses had been identified for comprehensive development subject to zoning, with a preferred location for built structures for vehicle repair and storage, showroom, retail and administration land uses.

Other zonings in the policy covered the requirement for a green belt, open storage yard for heavy vehicles, the need for a junction redesign south of the Mixed Use Area and the removal of a current plant yard without a planning permit that is required to be reinstated back to agriculture.