Żurrieq council plans €6m community hub

The Żurrieq local council has filed plans for a new building that would house its offices, a community centre, health and fitness facilities and underground parking.

The application, PA/03026/26, was published by the Planning Authority (PA) last week. It proposes excavating an undeveloped site on Triq Gervase Mathew to create two underground levels. The lower floors would include a training and day centre, an indoor pool and parking.

Above ground, the building is planned to have council offices, education and community rooms, an exhibition centre and a roof garden.

Plans show the mayor’s office, council offices and the boardroom on the ground floor. The first floor is planned for a performance space for about 270 people, with a ticket booth at the entrance.

Although the building appears designed to serve as the council’s new headquarters, Żurrieq mayor Rita Grima said the council was still unsure whether all the staff would be transferred to the new building. The council’s current offices on nearby Triq Pietru Pawl Saydon are more central and fully owned by the council.

“It is still debatable,” she said.

The project is estimated to cost up to about €6 million and take some four years to complete, Grima said, adding it had been “longed for and planned for a long time”.

Plans for a new council and community hub were published last week. Graphic: Planning Authority

Early stage

“Żurrieq is a big village – one of the biggest – and, unfortunately, we don’t have a village hall. Very often, when we have meetings with the public, we hire the school hall,” she said.

“Our council has the Orkestra Żurrieq and, to perform and rehearse, we hire halls from nearby villages, so you can see the great need for a hall. We also hire garages for stores, so, if we finish it, everything will be under one roof with no paying of rents.”

The mayor said the council also plans to offer parking for residents at the new centre, “especially during the evenings and nights”. But she stressed that the plans are still at an early stage and still require permits.

The ground floor will house council offices. Graphic: Planning Authority

A 270-seat capacity performance space will occupy the first floor. Graphic: Planning Authority

“We really need these premises but it will take time,” she said.

The site covers around 1,600 square metres in the Tal-Bebbux area, less than a 10-minute walk from the current council offices. The application says some trees would be uprooted and an existing boundary wall demolished.

The land was transferred from the Lands Authority to the local council in January last year.

The application is awaiting a recommendation. A similar application filed in 2015 was later suspended at the architect’s request.