Żabbar council calls public protest after approval of five-storey development
The development will be a stone's throw away from the parish church
Żabbar local council has called a public protest after the Planning Authority approved a permit application for a home for the elderly that will tower over the town's urban conservation area.
The protest will be held on Monday in Żabbar's main square.
The council said the five-storey development was approved despite its objections.
The site is located at Misraħ tal-Madonna Medjatriċi and Triq Ganni Bonavia. The square includes the Notre Dame Hall, the Żabbar Sanctuary Museum, and Dar Sagra Familja, a children's home run by the Church. Next door to the Żabbar Sanctuary Museum lies Żabbar’s parish church.
The plan, submitted by Daniel Zahra through architect James Bonnici Camilleri, is to demolish a two-storey building while retaining the façade, to construct the elderly home.
The council said the development will go up right at the edge of the Urban Conservation Zone, a stone's throw away from the parish church.
It will be higher than surrounding buildings, jar with the context of the area and also hinder fireworks, the council said. Furthermore, the developer may also apply to build an additional two floors in terms of the policy for old people's homes.
"This development will be hugely detrimental to the character of Ħaż-Żabbar and the quality of life of our town," the council said, as it called on all residents, associations and those who love the locality to gather at Mediatrix Square on Monday at 10am.
The council insisted that the permit must be rescinded immediately.
Labour mayor Jorge Grech was scathing when he criticised the development late last month, saying the project was "horrific" and would “rape” the locality.
He said that the development was a “destruction” imposed on the community which would “permanently erase the identity and character of our city”.
The council has argued that any buildings higher than three storeys next to the Żabbar Sanctuary Museum would be severely detrimental to the predominant character of the church "located in one of Malta’s most beautiful streets and its finest squares, adorned and designed in classical architecture”.
The development will include a basement level with a car park with 19 spaces, a kitchen, a morgue, and a laundry room.
The ground floor will host the lobby, offices, a chapel, a dining hall, and an outdoor area for residents. The remaining floors will be occupied by 32 residential rooms housing 73 residents.
The development was approved on November 25.