‘Piecemeal tactic’ to give ODZ home for the elderly in Gudja five floors

Owners of a home for the elderly in Gudja have presented a second, piecemeal application to add two storeys to what was originally approved as a two-storey high home in 2013, and on which an extra storey was approved in 2017.

In what may turn out to be a textbook case of piecemeal development, applicant John Ghigo’s home for the elderly may well grow into a full-blown five-storey structure. The latest application would increase the number of rooms from 74 to 124.

What originally paved the way for this development on 3,000sq.m of agricultural land was an outline permit issued under the previous administration in 2009. The permit was issued at reconsideration stage, a year after the PA had turned down the permit.

As it was intended originally: a two-storey home

The PA’s planning directorate had recommended the refusal of the permit due to the take-up of agricultural land and the encroachment outside the development zones.  

The PA had previously turned down an application to construct two dwellings on the site.

The old people’s home, which is still under construction, is located in Triq il-Pitiross, Gudja. The development is partly located in a rural hamlet and partly outside development zone.

While no construction is normally allowed in ODZ, development in the rural hamlet is limited to two floors.