No decision yet on Marsalforn tall building planning application

No decision has yet been taken on a developer’s planning application to develop a tall building in the idyllic seaside village of Marsalforn, the Planning Authority (PA) said on Tuesday.

The authority was reacting to concerns raised by environment NGO Flimkien Ghal Ambjent Ahjar over a planning application that seeks to increase the height of apartment blocks in the Gozitan village to 11 to 12 floors.

According to the PA, the board will not be discussing the planning application but to reconsider an reconsider an existing development planning permission condition which was imposed back in October 2016. The condition was imposed after the applicant had requested certain amendments to a development permission which had been issued in 2006 and renewed in January 2013.

“The condition imposed a Bank Guarantee of €50,000 to ensure that by June 2017, the retaining walls around the site are constructed and any hoarding or obstructions beyond the building alignment, encroaching on the public pavement or road are removed. The condition also requires that the road and pavement surfaces are reinstated to the satisfaction of the local council,” the Planning Authority said.

It added that the condition was imposed to address the inconvenience that the hoarding and obstructions of this site was creating to residents and traffic in the area.

The PA went on to point out that the on-going development at this large site – fronting Triq Il-Qbajjar, Triq ta' Barda u Triq Il-Forn – was granted a planning permission in August 2006 through the Floor Area Ratio (FAR) policy.

In January 2013, the applicant had been granted permission to renew the permit.

“The new FAR policy, approved in May 2014, precludes Gozo as an area where the policy can be applied and used for new proposed development,” the PA said.

The FAR high-rise policy states that tall buildings go against Gozo’s character and should not even be considered.