A new prayer centre for a local Pentecostal church is being recommended for approval by the Planning Authority today, despite a similar application for a Muslim prayer centre being turned down last year.
The Live Seed Pentecostal Church (Assemblies of God Malta) has applied to convert an empty ground-floor showroom on a busy road in Blata l-Bajda into a place of worship for 108 people, creating a parking shortfall of 11 spaces.
The application, which was heard by the Planning Commission today, is recommended for approval, although the Church will have to pay €1,165 for each parking space that will be taken up, with the money going to the improvement of the locality.
Members of the local community have objected to the centre because of the expected increase in traffic and the fact that several Catholic churches already exist in the area.
The proposed Islamic prayer centre would have taken up four parking spaces, less than the 11 required by the proposed Pentecostal facility
The board presented its potential reasons for refusal to the applicant who will have to respond to them. The application will be decided on July 15.
If the PA gives the go-ahead, it will be in sharp contrast to its decision last year to turn down a similar application by the Malta Muslim Council, which had aimed to convert a large garage in Santa Venera into a place of worship for its community. On that occasion, the authority cited the lack of parking provision as a reason to reject the application, despite it being recommended for approval.
The proposed Islamic prayer centre would have taken up four parking spaces, less than the 11 required by the proposed Pentecostal facility.
The refusal of the Muslim community’s application sparked a long saga as the group sought an alternative location for its prayers, after it was also evicted from a building in Msida in December.
Some 200 worshippers met in a square close to the Msida parish church for Friday prayers on a number of occasions in January to draw attention to the situation, prompting counter-protests from right-wing groups.
The government later stepped in to offer the temporary use of the Ospizio in Floriana (earmarked for a national arts centre), while promising to help the group find a more adequate permanent solution.
The Live Seed Pentecostal Church, which was established in Malta in 2005, currently hosts the majority of its services at an Evangelic Baptist church in Mosta.
The application for a new prayer centre, on National Road in Blata l-Bajda, has drawn some objections from local residents who say the development will not contribute anything to the local community but add the burden of increased traffic.
The area is mostly home to showrooms, offices, shops and schools. Objectors said the existing Catholic churches in the area already satisfied the spiritual needs of the community and the followers of the Live Seed church would likely have to travel by car, taking up parking in the area.
The PA case officer, however, said: “The site, premises and area are considered to be ideal for this type of use, both in terms of potential impacts on residential neighbourhoods and access to the public transport network.”