Santa Lucija braced to lose green space

A Planning Authority case officer is recommending the approval of a five-storey block of 45 residential units on an open space in the middle of Santa Lucija.

The final decision will be taken by the Planning Authority in a public hearing scheduled for 26 January.

The proposed block will be built 80m from the locality’s secondary school.

The final plans of the project will also include a 500sq.m public open space on an adjacent plot set between the new development and another plot presently belonging to the government, which was also identified for residential development in a zoning application approved in 2020.   

The open space will host seven olive trees and a carob tree. Presently the area hosts around 25 trees including 20 olive trees.

This application presented by Anton Camilleri seeks permission to excavate two levels of underground parking for 74 garages and 45 overlying residential units including four maisonettes, 35 apartments and six penthouses. The architect responsible for the project is Labour Deputy Leader Daniel Jose Micallef.

The case officer is recommending approval since the application respects planning parameters set in a zoning application approved in 2020 and because the proposed development will be stepped accordingly to follow the topography of the surrounding streets.

Residents in the area expressed concern on the loss of this open space, noting that it is these open spaces which give charm to the locality, originally planned around clusters of low-rise, social housing blocks of two or three floors.

The Santa Lucija local council has unanimously objected to the apartment complex.

No application has yet been presented on the part of the site entirely owned by government, which means the government can still opt not to develop the part of the site which has been zoned for the construction of another apartment block.

When the zoning application was approved, PA executive chairman Martin Saliba had confirmed that the land had been divided into two parcels of land so that the PA would not force the government “to transfer developable land to third parties when this land may be used more usefully for government projects”.