PA set to regularise massive Montekristo illegalities against €500,000 contribution

The sprawling illegal Montekristo zoo and family park on ODZ land are recommended for regularisation by the Planning Authority against a contribution of €500,000. 

The site covers a whopping 45,000sq.m at Ħal Farruġ in the outskirts of Luqa and Siġġiewi. It is owned by the Polidano Group. 

The recommendation for approval was made by the Planning Authority’s Development and Management Directorate. 

A final decision on the fate of Malta’s largest ever illegal ODZ development—which has come to symbolise the impunity of developers in Malta—will be taken by the Planning Board on Thursday 10 July. 

The regularisation of the zoo will be considered together with another application seeking to sanction illegal extensions to the winery and bottling plant originally approved in 2005 and 2007. The extensions will increase in the gross floor area of the partly legal winery and bottling plant from 4,560sq.m to 21,831sq.m.  

The illegal facilities being regularised include a zoo with 60 animal enclosures, a grazing park, a cow shed with dairy production, two roofed equestrian arenas, an outdoor equestrian area, a zoo keeper room, and a so-called ‘folklore museum’. 

Other areas to be sanctioned include several restaurants, a venue catering for weddings, conferences and fairs, and a car park for 235 cars. 

Significantly, the permit will allow Polidano to use the outdoor area for events including, but not limited to, weddings, fairs, and conventions. 

The only permit ever issued on the site dates back to 2005 for the demolition of a pig farm and the building of a winery and bottling plant with a nearby vineyard. This was subsequently extended through another permit issued two years later. 

The case officer is recommending the imposition of a €500,000 planning contribution, which can either be paid directly to the PA as a lump sum or used on site or in any other area, provided the works are approved by the authority. 

Additionally, Polidano is expected to pay an unspecified amount in accrued fines. However, since the application dates back to 2010, he will not be subject to the heftier fines introduced in 2012. 

Case officer’s reasons for regularisation 

Significantly, the case officer does not cite specific policies to justify the regularisation because no such policies exist. 

One of the reasons given for the regularisation of the zoo area is the “legal status” of the adjacent winery and bottling plant.   

The illegal extension of the winery and bottling plant is also justified on the basis of the permits issued in 2005 and 2007, despite subsequent illegal extensions that increased the development fourfold. 

Other justifications cited include the “uniqueness of the scheme,” which provides a “one-of-a-kind facility within the Maltese panorama.” 

The report also refers to the the zoo’s “role in conservation, education, and research” and its potential to serve as a hub “for protecting endangered species, educating the public, and advancing scientific understanding of animals.” 

The case officer also refers to the “unique international equestrian facilities that project Malta at an international level in relation to this sport.” 

Another justification is the “need for diversification to compete with current market demand and to offer the best possible experience to national and international visitors.” 

The case officer acknowledges that the Rural Policy and Design Guidance, which regulates ODZ development, is meant for relatively small-scale activities present in the Maltese landscape at the time the policy was issued. “It does not cater for international facilities and large-scale zoos,” the report notes, adding that “this proposal cannot be assessed solely through the Rural Policy and Design Guidance document but with a much wider optic tailored to the uniqueness of the case.” 

The zoo includes a range of land and avian species, including exotic and endangered animals. An inventory presented by the developers refers to 10 tigers, three pumas, two lions, two Hamadryas baboons, three camels, and 12 water buffalos. 

How the illegalities sprawled 

According to an ERA report, the most intensive phase of development occurred between 2008 and 2012, during which agricultural fields to the south-west and south-east of the bottling plant complex were cleared and pathways created. 

The car park, the outdoor and indoor equestrian arenas, and the southern end of the animal park were completed by 2012. The animal park was later extended northwards, taking up more fields by 2016. Moreover, between 2016 and 2018, further clearance and hard surfacing occurred in areas south of the bottling plant complex. 

The closest the Planning Authority came to enforcing the law was through a highly publicised enforcement action in 2014, during which PA officers started to pull down illegal structures at the Montekristo estate. But the authorities later turned a blind eye, with political candidates from both parties organising activities on the site despite its illegal status.