PA turns down Mġarr petrol station relocation, 14 years after approving it
The applicant applied to relocate the petrol station found in Mġarr square to ODZ land
The Planning Authority on Thursday turned down plans to renew a permit to relocate the Mġarr petrol station found in Mġarr square to ODZ land, as the applicants breached a public deed.
The planning board unanimously voted in favour of the case officer's recommendations to dismiss the application, given that the applicant breached a public deed filed in 2018.
Plans, filed by Michael Galea and designed by architect Charles Buhagiar, proposed relocating the petrol station and a service garage found on Sir Harry Luke Street to a field along Mġarr Road. It also included plans to construct a basement and a showroom for agricultural purposes.
The site is located outside the development zone (ODZ) on Mġarr Road.
Controversial plans for the Mġarr petrol station to be moved to this field were initially approved in 2011. Excavation works took place, but the works were never completed, and the permit expired.
The PA then renewed its permit in 2018, but the applicants, once again, failed to carry out works, and the permit expired.
In 2023, the applicant filed another application attempting to renew the permit handed out in 2018 (PA/7477/16).
However, a planning case officer noted how when the permit was renewed in 2018, it was tied to a public deed that included obligations that the applicant had to comply with within three years.
These obligations included the closure and decommissioning of the petrol station at Mġarr square, and the remediation of an illegal open yard behind Mġarr Square Playing Field.
The case officer’s report found that the applicant breached the public deed and therefore, recommended that the PA declare the permit null and void.
Planning board chairperson endorsed the case officer's recommendations, and all board members voted in favour to declare this permit null and void.
This development caused quite a lot of controversy 14 years ago because while NGOs had argued against the development, Mġarr residents were in favour of moving the petrol station located at the heart of the town.
At the time, Mepa board members voted 6-4 in favour of the development.