Residential development at Ħal Ferħ would show a lack of commitment towards better and more intelligent planning, the Church’s Commission for the Environment (KA) said.
In a statement on Thursday, it expressed satisfaction at the Planning Authority’s decision to grant Villa Frere in Guardamangia maximum protection and praised the issuing of guidelines for more attention to be given to scheduled buildings and monuments during the processing of applications for development close by.
It hoped that the spirit of these guidelines would not be undermined by members of commissions who decided on such applications.
The KA said that for development to be sustainable, more intelligent planning was needed and it appreciated the Environment Ministry’s goodwill in this aspect.
However, it was a shame that changes to development plans and policies which showed a lack of commitment to better development were still being proposed.
Allowing residential development at the Ħal Far site, for example, was unacceptable as this was one of the nicest zones in the Maltese island where only quality tourism development should be undertaken.
Plans for the redevelopment of the former Ħal Ferħ site near Golden Bay into an upmarket low-rise mixed development were announced recently by International Hotel Investments.
The KA said that, unfortunately, this was not the first time that use of government property was changed giving one to understand that the commercial interests of entities which had gained public land through concessions came before the duty to protect the country’s tourism infrastructure.
If the request for residential development in this area to be allowed was accepted, it would be bringing to nothing the government’s declaration that development zones were not being extended.
This was because while this would not seem to be done on paper, it would be continuing through permits in zones which had previously not been earmarked for residential purposes.
This was done through policies, such as the Rural Policy and Design Guidance, which permitted the development of residential blocks to replace mounds of stones in the countryside, or through development plans such as the government was requesting in the case of Ħal Ferħ.
The commission said it had already objected to this during public consultation for the revision of the northwest local plan and the Ħal Far development.
In its objection, it encouraged the government to ensure that all development in the country would be the result of intelligent planning that safeguarded the built and natural heritage of the country.