Pembroke group slams council over deal with db tower developers
Council urged to give up its seat for a residents' representative when the project extension is discussed within the Planning Authority
A group of Pembroke residents has hit out at the locality's council for holding talks and reaching a deal with the db Group 'behind our backs'.
In a petition to the council they said they no longer trusted it to represent them in proceedings related to the db Group's application for a permit to add more floors to the two towers that the group is currently building.
At the end of July the council announced that it had agreed not to oppose the planning application in return for €3 million, which will be spent on local projects.
“We are writing to express our unreserved outrage and profound sense of betrayal at the Pembroke Local Council’s failure to inform, consult, or even notify residents about reported meetings held with representatives of the db Group of Companies,” the petition reads.
The petitioners said the council held talks and came to a deal while keeping residents in the dark.
“At no point of drafting this contract were any residents consulted, and there were no public meetings held to discuss the nature of the contract.” the residents’ petition says.
The petition calls for a public meeting where residents of Pembroke may be informed of the talks and can make their own views heard.
db Group already holds a permit to build two 17- and 18-storey towers alongside a hotel. However, the company has filed a fresh application to extend the towers to 23 and 25 floors respectively.
In July, Pembroke local council voted unanimously not to oppose the project in return for €3 million that will be spent on a new building that will have a library, a childcare centre, a multipurpose hall and a clinic.
It will also help fund an underground car park for residents on Triq Pietru D’Armenia, with a park covering around 2,000 square metres on top.
Major projects need to be approved by the Planning Authority’s board. Councils where such projects are planned get a seat on the board during the project considerations.
But the 77 residents called on the council that represents the 2,500 or so residents of Pembroke to give up its seat in favour of someone the petitioners choose.
“The residents therefore demand that the council appoint a representative of our choosing—selected from among the signatories to this letter—to act as the council’s delegate on the Planning Board for the said meeting,” the petitioners wrote.
They also called for a full and public account of all meetings, communications, or exchanges—formal or informal—held with the db Group or its representatives and mediators.
They demanded a guarantee that no future talks would be held with the db Group or any other private developer without prior notice to the public, and for residents to be meaningfully involved.