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James Debono
The new approved local plans have changed the goalposts for applicants hoping to develop an extra storey or penthouse.
The retroactive plans mean that anyone who had previously applied for the construction of an extra floor will not be allowed to, if for example the new local plan prohibits more floors from being built, even if this was allowed by the plan at the time of the application.
Equally, anyone who had applied for development which was previously forbidden will now be able to do so if the new local plans allow it.
That means that developers who based their property investments on the previous planning regime could see the outcome of their application change as MEPA is now re-assessing all planning applications in the light of the new approved plans.
It could also mean that a recommendation for approval in a case officer report can be changed into a refusal.
The Malta Chamber for SMEs (GRTU) has asked the government to grant a transition period during which planning applications made before approval of the local plans are determined according to temporary provision schemes of 1988.
The GRTU said developers who had based their property investments on the previous plans would incur a high price if their planning applications are disqualified by the new plans.
Surprisingly, the developers’ case was taken on by Labour’s spokesperson for the environment, Roderick Galdes, who has often criticised the government for appeasing speculators.
“Don’t you think this will lead to inconsistent decisions by the MEPA board which would result in an unnecessary injustice these persons?”, he said in parliament.
Environment Minister George Pullicino simply replied that MEPA is simply following the law. The Development Planning Act states that any changes in the Structure Plan or local plans should not prejudice any permits granted before their approval.
But the law does not state that changes in the local plans should not prejudice applications. The law courts have also made it clear that the only valid policy is that which is applicable at the time of the planning board decision and not at the time when a developer applies.
“Every property owner applying for a permit should know that existing policies can be changed when a local plan is approved or revised,” Pullicino sad in parliament.
Since MEPA was also considering development applications in the light of changes made in the draft local plans, the losses claimed by developers could be less drastic than they claim.
The Structure Plan states that applications submitted in the interim period between the commencement date of the Structure Plan and the adoption of any particular local plan compromise the objectives of the review forming part of the local plan preparation.
jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt
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