During the recent State of the Nation conference, one panellist said that developers are not commercially naïve and would look at the bottom line before investing in construction. Is that really true though?

The real estate market is affected by many factors, not least of which are government-driven, such as first-time and second-time buyers’ schemes, the purchase of properties located in Urban Conservation Areas (UCA) and in Gozo, as well as refund schemes for restoration expenses.

When interest rates were at historic lows, the return from buy-to-let properties was very tempting, especially with thousands of people streaming into the country post-pandemic who all needed somewhere to live.

However, there is another factor: the buildings going up now may be constructed on sites purchased years ago (five is the standard but three-year extensions were granted a few times).

Whether they like it or not, developers who jumped on the bandwagon when the sector was booming have little choice but to press on. This is happening in spite of the fact that a year ago, it was reported by Grant Thornton and Dhalia that supply would outstrip demand between 2024 and 2025.

So the commercial argument is not as sound as it might appear. Indeed, the number of permits is slowly falling, according to the Planning Authority annual report for 2022.

We are making entire areas denser, with more people living in the same space meaning more parking, more traffic, more pressure on infrastructure, more noise, and so on

This provides scant solace for the thousands of people dismayed in the short-term by the constant construction, and in the long-term by the wanton, irreversible destruction of the islands’ urban fabric. Entire neighbourhoods have become unrecognisable as developments stretch upwards, from the once picturesque Xlendi Bay to the monster developments in the centre of Malta.

Is there any glimmer of hope? The Court of Appeal ruled last year that a five-storey building could not be built in Santa Luċija, and the Planning Authority has since turned down another application, all based on the important judgment which stressed that the maximum height limitation for an area as set out in its local plan was not a guaranteed right, and that new buildings must respect the context in which they will be built.

Will this stop the most recent attempt to develop three houses in Pietà on a lovely street? Isn’t this exactly what the Court of Appeal meant by ‘the context’?

You have to ask why people persist in applying for projects they know fall foul of local plans, which would not stand up to the scrutiny of the law?

The Planning Authority staff are often blamed for the decisions taken: according to a parliamentary question, in 2022 it was reported that over 21% of applications approved over 15 years had been recommended for refusal by the case officers. There was no information as to whether the applicant had subsequently tweaked the project – but the number is high enough to warrant concern.

We are not only changing the visual aspect of our towns and villages by tearing down old houses to build blocks of apartments. We are making entire areas denser, with more people living in the same space meaning more parking, more traffic, more pressure on infrastructure, more noise, and so on.

And it is not only buildings: a group of architects from the Kamra tal-Periti recently proposed a more environmentally friendly alternative to the Msida flyovers. Shame that it was presented too late in the day.

Thousands gathered to protest some time ago to say enough was enough. Politicians’ promises fail to reassure us that anything will change. And too many people who have donned the hat of ‘developers’ have too much skin in the game to prioritise the greater good over their own pockets. Who will save us?