Developers lobby group denounces piecemeal development brief changes

The developers lobby group has denounced piecemeal changes to development briefs, which it claims are used to circumvent local plans and accommodate individual projects.

The Malta Developers Association called for a holistic national plan in the wake of various changes to development briefs being suggested by the Planning Authority.

Although the MDA made no reference to particular plans, over the past weeks, the PA has initiated public consultation exercises to change the development briefs for Corinthia’s Ħal Ferħ complex, the Jerma hotel site, and the Marsa sports grounds.

“We cannot keep treating development briefs like chewing-gum. Development briefs should be part of a holistic vision and not a tool which could be used only to accommodate individual projects,” the MDA said in a statement signed by its director Marthese Portelli, a former Nationalist MP. 

The MDA said the public and potential investors are being short-changed through these “so-called” reviews, which it described as “unfair and unequitable” and a case of constantly moving goalposts.

The lobby group argued that Malta needs a solid, long-term development plan which will establish the country’s vision for the coming years based on more sustainable development, greener areas, and more open recreational spaces for the public.

The PA recently proposed changes to the development brief for the Ħal Ferħ development in Għajn Tuffieħa to allow residential development on the site now owned by the Corinthia Group.

Other development briefs being drafted or changed include those regulating the Jerma site in Marsaskala, and the Marsa sports grounds that include the horse racing area and the Center Parc shopping mall on its outskirts in Qormi.