Portelli behind major Birkirkara development on GO exchange

Another major commercial and residential development is in the pipeline on the site of a former GO exchange building in Psaila Street, Birkirkara, which has been closed for the past year.

A zoning application on the 3,628sq.m site occupied by the building which fronts two other residential roads outside a secondary school, was presented in November last year by Excel Ltd, a company owned by Mercury House developer Joseph Portelli.

No details are given on the development set to take place except for a description of the proposed use of the site as being both “residential and commercial”.

As stated in the application the site is still not owned by Portelli’s company.

The zoning application proposes a public, pedestrianized piazza and a new access from Psaila Street for ambulances and fire vehicles, which will bisect the site and enable development around it. A new planning application will be required for the buildings set to replace the existing offices.

The site is not large enough to accommodate high-rise developments through the floor area ratio mechanism, which is only applicable to sites over 4,000sq.m. Existing planning policies limit development on the site to five storeys.

The application was presented by architect Maria Schembri Grima, who was appointed chairman of the Building and Construction Authority in April 2021.

In the past months, companies linked to Joseph Portelli have also presented major development applications on the site of the Dolphin Centre in Balzan, where 100 apartments and various shops are being proposed; and on another site opposite Villa Bologna in Attard, where 41 apartments are being proposed. Portelli is also behind a major office development approved last year opposite the Decathlon centre in Qormi.