Six-storey block to sprout over St Julian’s guesthouse

The Planning Authority has disregarded the advice of the Superintendence for Cultural Heritage not to approve the demolition of the two-storey Casa Pinto guesthouse in Sacred Heart Street, St Julian’s, and its replacement by a six-storey block with penthouse.

The development proposes the demolition of the building, retaining the facade, and the construction of apartments over six floors and underlying garages. 

The proposed redesign of the existing facade will see the removal of the characteristic balustrades on the old facade. The new extension will be constructed with new materials and in a modern architectural style, which includes the use of steel columns and white aluminium windows. 

The development, proposed by Alan Bonnici of AXT Properties, encroaches on the gardens of the former guesthouse and will be accessed from Birkirkara Road. 

According to the Superintendence the property dates to the early 20th century. “Although the streetscape has a number of poorly designed new developments, it still retains some significant buildings, including the Convent and School of the Sacred Heart.”

The Superintendence insisted that the design of the building does not respect “the architectural grammar of the existing façade” and the proposed extension is considered “extraneous and disconnected from the rest of the streetscape”.

In its recommendation the Superintendence had called on the developers to respect the existing heights of the adjacent property, and to retain the balustrades in the existing facade. 

In the absence of such a redesign the Superintendence recommended that this application should be refused.

The case officer agreed and recommended the development for refusal but this recommendation was overturned by the Environment Planning Commission which argued that the proposal was in line with policies and that the site does not lie within the Urban Conservation Area.