A long-awaited decision on the building of a 275-unit apartment complex on the outskirts of Naxxar was delayed on Thursday, with a Planning Authority board telling the project architect that the plans need to include more refuse rooms to cater for waste generated by prospective residents.

The development, submitted by developer Charles Camilleri, will consist of five separate seven-floor blocks on the site of an abandoned quarry, with three levels of basement garages on the corner of Triq Censu Muscat, Triq Manwel Magri and Triq it-Tin.

Project first proposed in 2008

The project has been in the works for the best part of 15 years, first getting outline approval in 2008, before a full planning application was submitted the following year.

But the application lay dormant for several years, until it was resurrected in recent years.

The plans received dozens of objections from residents, many of them concerned with the development’s impact on their quality of life.

The Naxxar local council also objected to the project’s, saying that it would cause several problems to residents in the area, adding to congestion and traffic. The council is particularly concerned about the building height, a representative said.

The plans were also turned down by the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage, which said that the development would negatively impact the town’s skyline.

Project plans show the seven-floor apartment blocks. Image: Planning Authority

Residents say they live in fear of a tragedy

Distressed neighbours, speaking at the hearing, also raised a litany of concerns, saying that the complex would tower over their homes, blocking light, causing congestion and parking problems, and negatively impacting their wellbeing.

The development will remove a series of buttresses that are part of the foundations of their homes, risking a tragedy.

“We are terrified that our homes will collapse,” one resident told the board.

Other objectors pointed to the absurdity of the application being recommended for approval because it abides by planning policies established in 2007, shortly before the plans were submitted, despite these policies having been updated in 2015.

PA board dismisses concerns

But the PA board brushed away many of these concerns.

If the project were to follow current planning policies, its density would “increase dramatically,” one board member said.

Meanwhile, the removal of buttresses causing damage to neighbouring homes is a matter for the Building and Construction Authority to deal with during the construction process, not a planning issue, another member said.

The board also gave concerns over the building’s height short shrift.

“If residents are unhappy with building heights, they should band together to request that the area’s building heights remain as is, rather than object to individual applications,” one board member said.

NGO representative Romano Cassar was the only board member to give credence to residents’ concerns, saying that the proposal should have included a social impact assessment, as was the case for other projects of a similar size.

Cassar was also the only board member to suggest that the objection filed by the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage should also be taken into consideration.

Single refuse room not enough: PA

Nevertheless, the board took issue with the project’s waste management plan, telling project architect Brian Ebejer that the single refuse room planned for the development will not suffice.

Each of the five blocks should have a separate refuse room in which to store residential waste, the board said, asking the architect to submit new plans.

A new hearing will take place on 12 December.