Five-storey apartment block set to rise 85m from Qrendi church

A five-storey residential development, which is set to rise 85m away from the Qrendi church incorporating a historic farmhouse, has been recommended for approval by the Planning Authority case officer.

The recommendation comes despite more than a 1,000 public representations warning of a significant and potentially irreversible transformation of the village edge 85m from the parish church and opposite the primary school.

The proposal by Ciantar Properties Ltd, involves the restoration and integration of a vernacular building dating back to at least 1911 on Triq il-Kurat Mizzi, alongside a large residential extension on adjacent vacant land rising to five storeys.

While the farmhouse is now retained within the scheme—marking a shift from earlier iterations that implied the loss of the historic structure—its context is substantially altered, with the building largely absorbed into the development and functioning primarily as an entrance element to the new residential complex rather than as an intact heritage asset.

The scheme provides for 46 residential units build over five floors, including maisonettes, apartments and recessed penthouses, together with two basement levels accommodating 47 private garages and seven public service vehicle spaces.

Although the application formally preserves the farmhouse façade, the overwhelming majority of the site is given over to new-build development on what is currently open land surrounding the farmhouse.

The SCH had previously described the proposed development as “unacceptable from a cultural heritage perspective”, and had expressed its concern that the scale and massing would generate overbearing party walls and exert a dominant visual presence on the edge of Qrendi’s historic core.

The heritage watchdog also had warned that such development just outside the Urban Conservation Area (UCA), and within proximity of the parish church, risked triggering a “domino effect” of similar schemes, gradually eroding the spatial and visual buffer that defines the village’s historic character.

It had also called for a significant reduction in rear development and a more terraced approach to mitigate impact on the UCA setting.

But the SCH changed it stance after the submission of new plans which integrates the farmhouse in the development and “the creation of a harmonious transition to the UCA through terracing.

While the case officer notes that the incorporation of the farmhouse addresses part of the heritage concern, this is framed as a design mitigation rather than a fundamental change in development intensity. The underlying bulk, height and site coverage remain largely unchanged.

Objectors which included Moviment Graffitti argue that the project represents an “entirely incongruent” insertion into a sensitive village context, warning that height limitations in policy are being treated as automatic development rights rather than upper thresholds requiring full contextual assessment under design policy.

More than 500 representations were submitted opposing the application, citing concerns over visual impact, loss of rural character, pressure on infrastructure, traffic generation, and cumulative impacts on nearby schools and community facilities.

The case officer report, however, concludes that the scheme is compliant with the South Malta Local Plan and DC15 policies, particularly height limits and parking standards, and that stepped massing together with the retained frontage provides an “acceptable transition” towards the nearby Urban Conservation Area.

It further notes that consulted authorities, including heritage, environmental and infrastructure bodies, did not ultimately maintain objections subject to conditions.

The Planning Authority is expected to take a final decision on the application on 13 July.  Interviewed by MaltaToday in 2024, Antoine Cassar, an outspoken poet living next door to the farmhouses, had expressed his sadness at the application.

“They will be eradicating the roots of my family; five generations of them... if they approve this,” he says of his fear that his childhood memories will be wiped off by a developer’s whims and the Planning Authority’s say-so.

In a statement, residents NGO il-Kollettiv has renewed its opposition to the application, arguing that the proposal to construct a five-storey block opposite the parish church and village square in Qrendi was reactivated shortly after the election cycle.

The group also points out that the applicant, developer Darren Ciantar—who is a member of the Malta Developers Association (MDA)—has been pursuing the scheme for several years through a series of revisions, including incremental changes submitted after objection periods had closed.

It raised concerns about the cumulative effect of these amendments and questions the handling of the case within the planning process, particularly given the volume of objections submitted. The collective further contends that the final decision, expected to be taken by a three-member Planning Authority commission on 13 July, effectively sidelines the role of local councils and civil society input in determining the outcome.