Part of a historic Birżebbuġa fort is being rented out as a milk farm but squatters are illegally occupying the rest of the Grade 1-protected structure, Lands Minister Silvio Schembri has told parliament.
Schembri was replying to a parliamentary question tabled by Nationalist Party lands spokesperson Rebekah Borg, who asked about the results of 2019 investigations by the Lands Authority into the situation at Fort Bengħajsa.
The minister said two sections of the fort were occupied by squatters – after the expiry of their cow farm lease agreements – and one part was being rented out legally.
“Part of the fort is registered for the rearing of milk cows. The rental agreement is still in force today,” Schembri said.
Another part of the fort had been rented out as a cow farm until 2011 and an eviction order was issued in November of that year.
A third section of the fort was also previously rented out for the rearing of milk cows but it too saw its lease expire in 2011. The tenant was informed it would not be renewed and an eviction order was issued after he failed to vacate the place.
The fort’s occupiers have also built an illegal house and garages inside, according to the Planning Authority enforcement notice that has been active since 2016.“The current situation is that the property is still occupied illegally and without title,” Schembri said. He did not say what uses the squatters are making of the fort, but when Times of Malta visited it last November it found a hunting complex, complete with trapping sites, hunting hides and an aviary.
The fort’s occupiers have also built an illegal house and garages inside, according to the Planning Authority enforcement notice that has been active since 2016.
The moat that surrounds the fort is littered with scrap metal, construction waste and even a dumped sofa.
The current situation is that the property is still occupied illegally and without title- Lands Minister Silvio Schembri
Built by the British between 1910 and 1912 as the last major coastal defence structure, Fort Bengħajsa was given Grade 1 status in 1996.
The Cultural Heritage Act bans any demolition or alteration work on Grade 1 buildings that would impair their setting or change their external appearance, except for restoration purposes.
Times of Malta had submitted a Freedom of Information request for documentation pertaining to Fort Bengħajsa, including leases and rents.
The Lands Authority rejected the request, saying “this request is not being accepted as per Article 36(1) of the FOI Act in that lease agreements are considered to be internal working documents”.
Another Grade 1-protected British fort occupied by squatters is Fort Binġemma. An internal audit by the Lands Authority has highlighted the lack of effort by its own enforcement division to reclaim it.
The audit report, presented to parliament in April, highlights the lack of action in ensuring the tenants were evicted so that the fort – described as part of the national heritage – could be restored.
The illegal occupiers have turned Fort Binġemma into a no-go zone, ‘protecting’ it with a metal gate and aggressive-looking dogs.
Schembri, who is politically responsible for the Lands Authority, used the fact that the fort is also occupied by an elderly woman to justify delaying the eviction, saying it would take place only once “alternative accommodation” was found for her.