Planning Authority approves St Julian’s pedestrian link recommended by local plan

A new pedestrian road will be constructed on a private vacant plot of land between Triq Sant’ Elija and Telghet Birkirkara in St Julian’s after the Executive Council at the Planning Authority gave its approval to a Planning Control application.

The new pedestrian link, which had been recommended in the North Harbour Local Plan of 2006, will be accessible to the public and will retain a narrow width of not more than 6 metres, similar in width to other streets in the village core area of St Julian’s.

As much as 15-20% of the pedestrian passageway must be landscaped without obstructing the access for emergency and service vehicles.

The historical building fronting Telghet Birkirkara will be retained, however, under the guidance and recommendation of the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage, a small one-storey derelict part is to be demolished to enable the formation of the pedestrian road requested by the same Local Plan Policy.

In addition, the main two-storey historical building will be fully restored and integrated within the new elite project.

This planning control permit obliges that any eventual development application within the site of the pedestrian link should provide suitable treatment to adequately safeguard the setting of the site's designation, as an urban conservation area and the historical building on Telg]et Birkirkara. Any development shall be of a design, form and scale that is proportionate to village core areas.