10-storey hotel proposed next to Augustinian convent in Paceville

A ten-storey hotel is being proposed instead of a villa and its extensive green grounds in the vicinity of St Rita’s chapel and the Augustinian Convent in Paceville.

The proposed hotel is less than 40 metres away from the top entrance of Villa Rosa. The area is considered a part of Swieqi.

The chapel, the convent and Villa Rosa are listed as heritage buildings, but they are now surrounded by sprawling development in an area once defined by low-storey villas.

The villas are rapidly disappearing amidst the relentless expansion of the Paceville entertainment district.

The 12-storey Hyatt Regency Malta, just metres down from the proposed new development, was approved on land owned by the Augustinian Order in 2018.

The Hyatt had been approved despite concerns raised by the Superintendence for Cultural Heritage and the Archdiocese of Malta.

Another eleven-storey hotel, currently under construction, was approved in 2021 in place of another nearby villa.

If the new hotel is approved, it will bring the entertainment district even closer to Villa Rosa.

The latest development, proposed by Albert Henry Xuereb, would consist of a 93-bedroom hotel built on 10 floors above ground, with five levels below ground, including a rooftop pool and complementary ancillary facilities.