A Planning Authority application to build a home for the elderly on Outside Development Zone land in Naxxar has been recommended for approval, despite the Environmental and Resource Authority describing the development as “unacceptable”. 

The Planning Authority’s case office recommended the three-story, 47-room development on the periphery of Naxxar for approval on Friday. 

If approved, the permit would allow the demolition of existing broiler houses, the construction of a basement-level parking area and the building of a care home with ancillary facilities.

The project is being proposed by Naxxar councillor and council minority leader Mario Brincat, with Samuel Formosa as its architect. Brincat is a shareholder and co-founder of CE Installations, a local construction firm. 

Mario Brincat. Photo: Facebook

The recommendation to approve PA/05041/17 came despite objections from ERA and environmental groups.  

“While the site is already occupied by a disused farm and is not located within a virgin rural area, the massing of the proposal is considered visually intrusive and will dominate an area located at the rural/urban interface with little scope of mitigation through landscaping,” ERA said.  

“ERA consider that the current proposal is unacceptable from an environmental point of view,” they said. This type of development can easily be accommodated in the urban area, the environmental authority added.   

Naxxar council opposes plans

The Naxxar local council also objected to the development, saying that the application goes against PA policies.  

The development, they said, should be in an urban zone to safeguard the rural character of the area and to ensure that the area is conveniently accessible by public and private transportation and on foot.  

“We are in favour of the project, just not in ODZ,” Naxxar mayor Anne Marie Muscat Fenech Adami told Times of Malta.   

Environmental groups also voiced their opposition, including Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar, Din L-Art Ħelwa, Ramblers Association, and Nature Trust Malta. 

A computer-generated render of the planned development, as submitted by the applicant. Photo: PA

“Nature Trust Malta objects to this development application as it will lead to urban sprawl in ODZ with consequential traffic, noise, light, (and) air pollution”.

“The quaint rural setting of this area will be ruined forever,” Nature Trust Malta said.  

Still, the Case Officer recommended the permit be approved, saying that a site selection exercise did not find a suitable alternative within the urban zone.   

It is now up to the Planning Authority's decision to approve or refuse the application.