Pietà five-storey block threatens row of two-storey townhouses

A five-storey development threatens a row of uniform two storey townhouses in Pietà near the Our Lady of Fatima parish church.

The church and its extensive gardens are currently listed as a Grade One building and the proposed block of flats is just 10m away.

The site of the development is currently occupied by three terraced houses, two of which form a pair of buildings constructed in the same style, while the other is in the same style as an adjacent building that does not form part of this application.

The original plans which proposed the complete demolition of the building  have been revised over the past months to retain or reconstruct some of the features characterising the present building.

Reacting to the latest proposal, heritage activist and architect Edward Said expressed his disappointment at the applicant’s insistence on developing the three mid 20th century townhouses right across from the parish church.

Writing to the Planning Authority on behalf of residents and the Guardamangia parish church, Said strongly appealed to the authorities to refuse the development and limit any development to the  restoration of these houses, “as others have done in the immediate vicinity”.

While plans clearly indicate a five-storey development in a street still characterised by two storey houses, photomontages presented by the applicant suggest that the two top receded floors will not be completely visible from Triq Santa Monika.

Yet even these photomontages, which Said describes as misleading, indicate that a blank party wall will be created on a neighbouring townhouse (not part of the proposed development) which is built in the same architectural style as the existing building.

Said described the buildings earmarked for demolition as a fine specimen of mid-century Maltese domestic architecture, particularly one of the houses which is a twin of a neighbouring property built in a fine Art Deco design reminiscent of architect’s Gustavo Romeo Vincenti’s style.

The site lies  opposite two modernist villas of architectural value on Triq Santa Monika known as Villa Gauci and The Orange Grove and forms part of a significant streetscape largely characterised by terraced houses dating to the early twentieth century.

In its submission on previous plans the Superintendence for Cultural Heritage had noted not while the internal demolition may be considered, the facades form part of a cohesive streetscape and are to be retained with “all apertures, fenestration, balconies and other finishes.”  It had also called on the developer to limit the plans to three full floors and one receded floor instead of two as being proposed.