Zabbar local council votes against McDonalds ODZ development

The Zabbar local council will be opposing the proposed development of a McDonalds outlet in Labour Road, Zabbar.

The decision was taken during a council meeting on Monday evening where councillors unanimously voted in favour of a motion presented by mayor Marc Vella Bonnici, for the local council to oppose the development as a whole.

The site of the proposed development

The motion was presented following a public consultation meeting organised by the council, which was prompted by the revelation that Premier Restaurants – the owners of the McDonalds franchise in Malta – had applied to build a restaurant and drive-through on a plot of land, a part of which falls within Outside Development Zone (ODZ). A 500-square metre building also sits on the site of the proposed restaurant.

If accepted, the proposed development will include a drive-through facility, outdoor seating area and car park with 28 spaces.

“The motion was based on various factors, primarily, that the development is in the most part on ODZ land, a lack of traffic impact assessment studies and associated problems, inadequate parking, problems with noise and littering, as well as the effect on good agricultural land, and a loss of trees from the site,” read a statement by the council.

It said that following the vote in favour of the motion, the council would be presenting a formal objection to the Planning Authority, arguing that the "development goes counter to the South Malta Local Plan".