Portelli accepts to pay €41,000 imposed by PA for ODZ permit

A company partly owned by Joseph Portelli has withdrawn a request to waive a planning gain fee of €41,075 imposed by the Planning Authority.

The fee was a condition for the granting of a permit on six villas in an outside development zone in Mellieħa.

The planning gain, charged to CF Developers will go towards the funding of environmental projects in Mellieħa. Portelli, owner of the Mercury high-rise in Paceville, is a part-owner of CF Developers.

In March, MaltaToday had revealed that the company had requested a ‘reconsideration’ of this condition.

The one-time payment was included as a permit condition in February when the Planning Authority approved six ODZ villas close to the Tal-Ħilda caves set between Xemxija and Manikata, overlooking the Pwales valley.

The six villas were approved instead of a derelict tourist complex built in the 1970s before planning policies protecting the areas outside development were even introduced.

The planning gain was recommended by the PA’s development and management directorate in view of the ODZ location where the development was approved, calculated at the standard €25 per square metre, for the total gross floor area of 1,643sq.m.

Project architect Maria Schembri Grima had formally asked the PA to “reconsider” the planning gain, arguing that the villas are replacing an already committed and approved development, that is also smaller in size.

The present structures occupy a total floor area of 1,670sq.m, while the proposed development, including the proposed terraces and swimming pools, will cover an approximate area of 1,643sq.m.

Residents opposing the project had warned of urban sprawl in the ecologically sensitive area, especially when considering that the tourist complex was approved before planning policies protecting the area came into force.