Six-storey Tarxien nursing home may get two new floors

A six-storey old people’s home approved in Tarxien last year may get an extra two storeys through a piecemeal application which re-proposes the original plan that was only revised after residents presented a 600-strong petition which objected to the excessive height of the proposal.

The application is being recommended for approval by the case officer who argues that the proposed additions would “visually blend with the skyline of the area”.

The case officer report also cites a policy approved last year which allows two extra storeys over and above the local plan limit on old people’s homes.  The Planning Authority will be taking a final decision on this application on 7 September.

The application was approved in October after the height was reduced to comply with the local plan’s height limitation. But if approved, the nursing home – which also has five underground levels – will rise to eight storeys.

The site fronts Triq tal-Barrani in the corner with Triq il-Palma and Triq Lorenzo Gonzi in Tarxien and could impact views at what residents describe as the gateway to Tarxien.

The old people’s home is being proposed on a vacant site where the PA has already approved a showroom and three storeys for offices and apartments in 2014.

A policy regulating building heights of old people’s homes approved last year allows residential homes for the elderly to add an additional two floors over and above the number of floors allowed in the local plan.

When the original development was proposed a petition against the proposed nursing home in Tarxien was signed by more than 600 residents. The petition deemed the development as being too high for a locality characterised by low-rise construction.