The Planning Authority (PA) has rejected a proposal to allow building on land which lies only metres away from protected prehistoric cart ruts in Kalkara.
Developer Ray Zammit had sought to rezone the rural conservation area so he could extend the land he had previously been granted permission to develop into an apartment complex.
It would have given him an extra 180 square metres of developable land, would have shifted the building and front garden alignment and established the height limitation for the area.
But in a meeting this week, the PA voted to reject the proposal. Its executive council chair, Martin Saliba, made the case for the application to be granted but only one other council member, Martin Camilleri, supported him.
A previous application to demolish a derelict building in the area between Triq it-Turretta and Triq Patri Mattew Sultana and build 14 apartments, 10 garages and four maisonettes was granted last year.
While the approved development is situated within the development zone, the surrounding area is not zoned for construction.
The site is very close to cart ruts, mysterious grooves in the rock dating back thousands of years. Activists feared development could damage the archaeologically sensitive area.
The cart ruts were given protection as a Class B site of archaeological value in 2002, which does not preclude development close by. The planned development proved to be controversial as part of the area scheduled for development fell within the buffer zone set up to protect the cart ruts.
In a previous hearing, the superintendence of cultural heritage had said that, without an archaeological evaluation, the site could not be properly assessed and the application should be refused as it lies 16 metres from the protected cart ruts and within an area of high landscape value.
According to the SCH, the evaluation resulted in the discovery of a number of features, including well, trenches and cart ruts.
However, it did not outright object to the possibility of development on the site.
“The superintendence may consider development at this location, provided that features are preserved. The architect is therefore to submit amended drawings that acknowledge this feature and which illustrate a commitment to the preservation of this feature.”
Tara Cassar, an architect active with Din L-Art Ħelwa, said the application should have been refused at the first sitting, “since under the development and planning act land cannot be rezoned for development through a planning control application”.
Cassar said the discovery of cart ruts should have warranted a refusal from the cultural heritage watchdog.
“There was no need for further monitoring once the assessments carried out so far already proved the site to be of archaeological value,” she said.