The Planning Authority has rejected plans for a restaurant structure rising above the St George’s Bay promenade, potentially blocking the public’s views of the bay. 

The seaside restaurant, Paranga, sought permission for a new structure to extend the current establishment, rising several metres above the public promenade. 

Works on the site began last year without a permit and were quickly stopped by the PA’s enforcement unit. The application included a request to regularise the works already carried out.  

The Planning Authority’s board upheld recommendations for refusal by the planning directorate as it would have an “unacceptable visual impact” on views from the public road and promenade towards the sea.

The directorate also cited a local plan policy that requires any new minor structure not to exceed the height of existing structures within the site. 

The Superintendence of Cultural Heritage had also come out against the proposal, noting that works would include an increase in height and volume along the shore, impacting views of the bay, and had urged the PA to “implement its relevant policies to ensure the safeguard of the natural and cultural landscape”.

The developers argued that the proposed structure will feature clear glass railings and apertures that would “offer more transparency and view of the bay than the original heavy metal railings”. 

They also argued that the proposed lightweight structure, which serves as an extension to the existing structure, is lower than the existing masonry structure within the site, which is already covered by planning permission. 

But the Planning Authority’s board had none of it and rejected the application.