Activists are urging the Planning Authority to reconsider a recommendation for approval of a planning application to demolish a modernist house in Balzan, ahead of a hearing tomorrow.

Walmarville, or the Diamond House, as it is known among Balzan residents, has an iconic pink facade and features signature green, diamond-shaped glass panels incorporated in the galvanised steel gates and railings that face Old Railway Street.

The building is a favourite among photographers, having been featured on popular blogs such as Malta Doors and even immortalised in a minimalist print by local design house Te fit-Tazza.

An application by DRZ Properties seeks to demolish the building and construct a maisonette and three apartments, including a pool at penthouse level, with a garage and four car spaces at basement level. The application was re-commended for approval by the PA case officer.

The superintendence of cultural heritage objected to the complete demolition of the property, strongly urging that the facade of the building be retained for preservation.

“The property in question is a fine terraced house built in the second part of the 20th century (c.1960), which forms part of a relatively significant and legible streetscape still composed of two storey houses in a similar style,” the superintendence said in its submissions.

“The superintendence finds the property has a degree of architectural value, being a typical example of a double-fronted townhouse from the period and having significant design features, including its apertures and railings.”

It said it was not favourable to the total demolition as proposed and urged the preservation and integration of the facade and of significant architectural features present within the building.

The very institutions that the government has appointed to protect heritage are being undermined

The superintendence of cultural heritage also expressed its concern on the proposed increase in height, noting the resulting creation of unsightly blank party walls and the negative impact that these would have on this “relatively legible tract of streetscape”.

“This proposed application will also put inevitable pressure for further vertical development along this streetscape.”

The application has received dozens of representations against the development, including one from Heritage NGO Din l-Art Ħelwa, which is calling for the modernist features of the Balzan building to be protected.

It says this house is just one in a series of double fronted townhouses. As a result of the blanket application of policy, planners are not looking at the stretch of houses as a whole.

Thus, “this house that echoes the spirit of the modernist era will be completely destroyed, despite the superintendence of cultural heritage asking that, at the very least, the facade not be destroyed,” a spokesperson for Din l-Art Ħelwa told Times of Malta.

“What worries us, and we echo the sentiment of many who have urged us to take a stand against this, is that an entire era of buildings will be destroyed to the detriment of the surrounding area.”

Din l-Art Ħelwa said this was particularly problematic as the development backs into a large garden which is believed to belong to a convent and is a scheduled building.

“The application document does not even illustrate what the back facade of these flats will look like nor was there any attempt by the architect to retain any portion of the house facade as requested by the superintendence.

“The very institutions that the government has appointed to protect heritage are being undermined and this goes against the spirit of planning legislation.”

Photographer Daniel Cilia told Times of Malta that it was “horrendous” that a house with such elegant features and a typical example of the modernist style was set to be torn down.

“This is part of our history,” he said.

“We cannot think only in terms of temples or baroque buildings as heritage, what is being built in this century can be equally important. Would you consider tearing down Piano’s parliament just because it was not old,” Cilia asked.

“Architecture is what makes our country in the good as well as the bad and we have to take care of the buildings that make a country. Our modernist buildings are being destroyed and no one is defending them.”