Killing the proverbial goose

The area in Attard known as Misraħ Kola was built in the 1970s and 1980s, after the government of the day designated the large area of agricultural land between Mount Carmel Hospital and St Catherine’s Hospital as an area for one-third development, that is, detached or semi-detached villas.

Building regulations were strict: building just one-third of the plot, having a 10-foot front garden, a side-drive with a garage at the end not higher than 10 feet and a back garden.

Those who bought a plot built their own house to live in it, mostly of stone and including typical features like balustrades, arches, open balconies supported by stone corbels and solid mahogany doors.

Planned in such a way as to avoid through traffic by architect Joseph Huntingford, who was himself a resident, it became a quiet residential area, with carefully tended front gardens and citrus trees in the back.

Then, the estate agents set their eyes on it and started advertising it as ‘a much sought-after’ area. Of course, a pool would enhance the building – and the digging began, while the orange trees began disappearing.

But the greatest disservice to the area came when the so-called Planning Authority started permitting semi-basements beneath the actual building, for this completely changed the nature of the building: front gardens disappeared to make way for ramps into the basement, buildings became at least a half storey higher than their neighbours, pavements were dipped, or disappeared, for better car access; stone was replaced by bricks and concrete, designs became minimalist, cubist, brick boxes on concrete pilasters, finished in drab grey or black.

This beautiful area is now a building site, complete with tower cranes, concrete mixers at all times of the day, closed streets, dust, noise.

Every time one of the original houses is knocked down, and a new one takes its place, marks another step in the process of killing the goose that lays the golden eggs.

How sad!

Joseph Muscat – Attard

Land use

If approved, new buildings would take up roughly two-thirds of the area. Photo: Għaqda Residenti taż-Żurrieq

Is it, or is it not, government policy not to allow any change in the natural inherent nature of agricultural land which, during, say, any period during the past 10 years would, or even could, have been utilised for any form of agricultural purposes?

If it is not, the government, or its fatidical Planning Authority, are freely empowered to give development permit approval for such national asset to be prostituted onto the altar of current so-called “development”.

The latest example is that of arable land of a size of some 70 tennis courts, which is now under attack in Żurrieq.

Shame on us as a nation.

John Consiglio – Birkirkara