Uniformity of St Venera’s main street challenged by new Portelli application

CF Homes Limited, a company partly owned by construction magnate Joseph Portelli, is behind a major development overlooking St. Joseph High Street in Santa Venera. The project consists of seven retail shops and two maisonettes at ground level, and 31 residential apartments on the three upper floors.

The site, which is already demolished and partly excavated, was originally designated for a bank branch and overlying apartments proposed by the Bank of Valletta which claimed full ownership of the site in 2023.

Architect Maria Schembri Grima’s plans suggest that  the new building’s recessed floor will rise above a row of uniform two-storey townhouses dating back to the turn of the 20th century. Additionally, it will introduce a bulky, elongated, and unbroken façade that contrasts with the rhythm of a street still predominantly characterized by these old townhouses. But the building will rise to the same height as an unsightly building found on the left of the excavated site.

The Superintendence for Cultural Heritage has expressed concern that the proposed development could set “a precedent for further inappropriate development” in the area, potentially impacting surrounding buildings. The heritage watchdog described the project as “totally out of scale and out of character” with the traditional streetscape.

The SCH also noted that the applicant proposes three floors on the façade overlooking Triq il-Kbira San Guzepp. The SCH warned that this would result in an unsightly blank party wall adjoining the adjacent property on Triq il-Kbira. Furthermore, the application would create a building with “a very considerable unbroken volume,” which the SCH deems unacceptable in a UCA (Urban Conservation Area) and exacerbates the excessive height of the proposed development.

In contrast, the Design Advisory Committee, a panel that advises the PA on design issues, does not oppose the proposal. However, the SCH criticized the design, characterized by a continuous series of arches, as inappropriate for the area.

The application originally envisioned the development of a bank branch at ground level and three levels of residential apartments, and was first presented by the Bank of Valletta in 2023. The application was later amended, with changes to both the applicant and the architect.

Previously, the Bank of Valletta had submitted an application in 2019 to develop four levels of offices on the same site. This application, featuring a more contemporary design, was subsequently withdrawn. The 840 sq.m site where the new development is proposed is a vacant plot where a one-storey structure was demolished after approval for a residential block, which was never constructed.