Winning the ODZ lottery

Every few years hundreds of people win the planning lottery as the planning goalposts are moved in a way which properties with little value suddenly appreciate exponentially. 

This happened on a massive scale in 2006 through the so-called rationalisation. It also happened with Annex 2 which converted building heights in floors to a metric height which effectively allowed more floors. Thanks to these two measures many sold off properties to big developers and became ‘sinjuri zghar’ (little rich people).

On Friday owners of properties in the development zone but which illegally encroached in the ODZ had reasons to celebrate. For they have won the latest edition of the ODZ lottery.

The situation as it is that some people including people who inherited such properties were stuck as one cannot sell a property with illegalities which can't be sanctioned according to policy.

It is far too easy to blame these people or call them greedy.   

Surely the latest crop of lucky winners includes some fat cats but also people who struggle with life and who ended up lumped with an asset which could not use. The regularisation will change all that enabling them to sell and become richer. In reality they will be doing what everyone would do in their position; sell and ensure a better future for themselves and their families.

But while governments have a role in maximising happiness, it is also the role of the state to regulate and defend the common good. 

It is true that some of the illegalities commonly found in these buildings like the size of internal yards and internal heights are hard to resolve without knocking down entire dwellings but still I cannot fathom why excessively large swimming pools, stores, gazebos or even rooms should not be simply removed and possibly rebuilt according to existing policies. 

The problem here is that a number of ODZ properties particularly in Gozo where you find more properties along the development zone boundaries will end up in the market which also means that many would end up sold to developers resulting in cumulative pressures in the future. 

For example, while present policies limit the size of pool areas to 75 sq.m you would end up with properties with larger pool areas and additional structures which have now been incorporated in the legal footprints of these properties. Developers will naturally apply to redevelop them using the floor area gained through this exercise to refashion these properties.  Inevitably this will result in ‘'windfall' profits.

Sure, the government will get a ‘cut’ from the hefty tariffs imposed to regularise the illegalities but this pales in comparison with the potential profits from selling and redeveloping these properties. 

I am wary of comparisons with 2006 rationalisation which released very large tracts of land for the development of residential blocks of apartments. On the other hand, this measure will probably result in more applications to redevelop partly ODZ properties by utilising the limited floor space gained through this exercise.

But like the rationalisation this measure will not only enrich those who won this particular lottery but would inevitably increase cumulative pressures on the countryside.  And while illegalities can only be regularised if located within curtilage of property identified in the site plan in the original permit, problems will arise when determining the exact boundaries of properties developed before the setting up of the planning authority. 

And while the approval of applications to regularise is not automatic the planning commission deciding on the regularisations is chaired by Elizabeth Ellul whose term as chairman of the board responsible for ODZ applications was marred by controversy.

In the end this decision exposed the biggest contradiction in Labour’s way of governing; that between enabling self-enrichment and defending the commons.  It is a hard balance to keep when it comes to safeguarding the ODZ from development pressures. 

And while the government’s main concern may well be that of addressing the frustration of families stuck with properties they cannot sell, it will be the major developers who will end up buying many of these properties with the aim of making more bucks by redeveloping them in to new homes for other fat cats.