The Curia has suspended an application to turn an abandoned property in ODZ land in Rabat into a house with a pool.

Times of Malta reported on the application, which is being objected to by the Environment and Resources Authority (ERA), on Tuesday.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Curia said that it was suspending the application to clarify issues concerning that ERA assessment, which it is contesting. 

The planning application submitted by the Archdiocese proposes to make habitable an existing single-storey dwelling which the Curia says it repossessed from squatters and to remove illegalities squatters introduced.

ERA has said that the changes proposed are of "significant environmental concern". 

But the Curia is arguing otherwise, saying the interventions "will neither alter the footprint of the existing building nor add additional storeys."

The rehabilitation will include replacing more than 50 square metres of the existing concrete roof with an insulated wooden roof; restoring an external stone staircase and building a water reservoir to service the garden, it said. 

"No excavation whatsoever will be carried out. Nor will any existing trees or shrubs be removed. On the contrary, indigenous species will be added including citrus trees, pine trees, oleander and bougainvillaea."

The Curia said the suspension period will also provide an opportunity to undertake further archaeological studies on the site and effect minor revisions – including reconsidering the presence of a five-metre-long pool on top of the reservoir, it said.

The Curia also issued various photographs of the site in its current state.