Massive eight-storey Mosta care home recommended for approval

An eight-storey care home for the elderly on the edge of Mosta has been recommended for approval by the Planning Authority, despite earlier concerns on the visual impact.

The case officer concluded that the development would not have an adverse visual impact although concerns were raised in a separate visual assessment.

The proposed development by Eldercare Ltd, owned by Frank Spiteri, would replace an existing house at Triq il-Farinal with a 156-bedroom facility accommodating around 362 residents. The building would rise to 25 metres, using a policy allowing retirement homes to exceed normal height limits, and include three basement levels and 58 parking spaces.

The case officer is recommending approval subject to a €113,300 planning gain contribution towards the development of landscaped public open spaces.

The site lies on Mosta’s south-western edge, where the built-up area meets agricultural land towards Naxxar and Is-Sgħajtar. The surrounding streetscape combines residential buildings with open plots, while a six-metre landscaped buffer separates the residential area from the Mosta Technopark.

Although the site is now within the development zone, it formed part of an area brought into the development boundary through the 2006 rationalisation process. The Central Malta Local Plan establishes a normal height limit of three floors with a semi-basement, equivalent to 17.5 metres. However, the Height Limitation Adjustment Policy for Retirement Homes allows two additional floors.

The Superintendence of Cultural Heritage did not object to the development in principle but warned that its height and overall massing would appear unduly prominent at the edge of the built-up area, where it meets open land. It recommended limiting the building’s height and volume to better reflect the scale of surrounding development.

The case officer considered the revised design acceptable, arguing that the proposed white rendering, timber-like ceramic cladding, glazed apertures and railings would be compatible with neighbouring façades and respect the area’s visual integrity. The report concludes that the development does not create an adverse visual impact.

However, an Urban Design Study prepared by AIS Environment presented in November 2025 had identified major adverse impacts from several nearby viewpoints before mitigation. The effects remained moderately adverse from several viewpoints after measures such as stepped-back upper floors, landscaping and vertical greenery were included. The study argued that future development on neighbouring sites could eventually reduce the care home’s relative visual prominence by creating a higher surrounding roofscape.

Following the preparation of photomontages, minor changes were made to the design to introduce setbacks and address blank party walls extending above neighbouring buildings.

The case officer’s report does not directly discuss these findings and the changes made to address these concerns.

Residents have challenged the scale of the development, arguing that a facility accommodating hundreds of residents cannot reasonably be considered a small-scale institution within an established residential neighbourhood, as required by the Central Malta Local Plan.

Objections also questioned the provision of just 58 parking spaces against the case officer’s calculated requirement of 180. The transport assessment, however, estimates peak demand at no more than 33 spaces, based on parking patterns at another elderly home in Tarxien.

An adjoining resident also raised concerns about potential overshadowing of photovoltaic panels, loss of natural light and privacy, and the effects of extensive excavation on neighbouring properties, calling for further technical assessments before the application is determined.

Other objections were submitted by Moviment Graffitti, Flimkien għall-Ambjent Aħjar and the Mosta Local Council, citing overdevelopment, visual impact, residential amenity, traffic and the compatibility of the additional height with planning policy.

The case officer concluded that the development was acceptable in principle within the residential area and would provide facilities for elderly people. The recommendation is subject to a public deed tying the permission to the continued operation of the site as a retirement home, with any future change of use potentially requiring the removal of additional floors granted under the height adjustment policy.