Updated | Sliema council to appeal 38-storey Townsquare project

The Sliema local council will appeal against the Planning Authority’s decision to approve a 38-storey tower in Qui Si Sana.

The request for an appeal was proposed by Alternattiva Demokratika councillor Michael Briguglio, a vocal critic of the project that will be developed by the Gasan Group. In his blogpost, Briguglio later confirmed that the Sliema local council will be appealing the decision.

“We have a duty to make sure that we used all options available to us by law to ensure that Planning Authority policies are adhered to,” Briguglio said in a Facebook post. “Many residents are expecting the Sliema local council to appeal against the PA’s decision. Given that there is a very tight deadline to register an appeal we would need to do so as soon as possible.”

Sliema mayor Anthony Chircop told MaltaToday that the council is now consulting with legal and planning experts to decide on which grounds to base their appeal to the Environment and Planning Review Tribunal. 

The tribunal is chaired by planning official Martin Saliba, and also includes architect and Freeport chairman Robert Sarsero and lawyer Simon Micallef Stafrace, a former Labour candidate. Due to planning conflicts of interest, Sarsero is often substituted by Labour-leaning lawyer Andy Ellul.

The Townsquare project, approved by the Planning Authority last week, will comprise of 159 residential units, 4,719 square metres of offices, 8,241 square metres of commercial space and 748 parking spaces. It is set to become Malta’s tallest building, dwarfing the 23-floor Portomaso tower.

The Sliema council had objected its construction, with Briguglio arguing that the social impact assessment for the project - dated back to 2007 – was a “one-off anthropological study worthy of an undergraduate student”.

He also noted the absence of any reference to the economic impact of the project on residents and businesses in the area.

“We are not living in North Korea where top down solutions are imposed…this project is a source of concern for elderly people who are being told to close their windows not to hear noise,” the Green Party councilor said.

Despite signaling concern about the impact of the tower’s construction on residents, the Environment and Resources Authority (ERA) has decided not to appeal against the PA’s decision. It told MaltaToday on Sunday that it would not be appealing as mitigation measures were included as conditions in the planning permits.

“The Environmental Impact Assessment findings had predicted potential impacts associated with these developments. However, a number of measures were also identified through the EIA process to mitigate these impacts. These mitigation measures were proposed as conditions in the PA permit,” an ERA spokesperson told MaltaToday.

The Townsquare development decision was narrowly approved by seven votes to six, with the authority’s chairman Vince Cassar, his deputy Elizabeth Ellul and the PN’s representative Ryan Callus voting against it.

ERA chairman Victor Axiak did not attend the PA board’s meeting because he was indisposed for medical reasons, and the authority’s spokesperson confirmed that the law precluded them from sending a substitute representative.

Had Axiak been present and voted against, the vote would have been tied and the chairman would have been required to use a casting vote.