PA directorate recommends 28 warehouses in Ħal Farruġ ODZ

The Planning Authority’s Planning Directorate is recommending permission for 28 storage and distribution warehouses on agricultural land outside the development zone at Ħal Farruġ, arguing that replacing a livestock farm with warehousing would reduce environmental nuisance. 

The proposal by Sandro Vella involves demolishing the existing farm buildings and constructing 17 basement warehouses and 11 at ground-floor level, together with parking and ancillary facilities. 

The recommendation marks a significant shift in the Planning Directorate’s position, after a previous application (PA/06603/18) by a different applicant to build 11 warehouses for light industrial use was refused. At the time, the directorate concluded that the applicant had failed to demonstrate that the development would significantly reduce the farm’s adverse impacts or deliver wider environmental benefits. 

The architect had made a similar argument at the time, saying that replacing livestock farming would eliminate nuisance for residents living opposite the site. However, the directorate considered that the environmental improvement had not been adequately established. 

The current case officer accepts that replacing the farm with storage and distribution facilities would reduce odors, gases, airborne particles, and problems associated with pests and vectors.

This is considered sufficient to satisfy policy 6.2C(5)(d) of the Rural Policy and Design Guidance, which allows an alternative use outside the development zone where it brings a wider environmental benefit and the existing road network can accommodate it. 

The proposal has also been reconfigured. The 2018 application included an open storage yard on land which the directorate considered had been restored to agricultural use, as well as a water reservoir.

The current plans omit the open yard and limit the above-ground building footprint to 2,350 sq.m, which the directorate accepts as the legally established area. The new complex has a total floor area of around 4,420 sq.m, including its basement. 

Policy SMCO10 of the South Malta Local Plan designates the area as a Strategic Open Gap and seeks to prevent urban development that would undermine its open character. Separately, parts of the site fall within an agricultural protection area under policy SMAG01. 

The most notable change in the consultation process concerns the Environment and Resources Authority. ERA had objected to the 2018 proposal, describing it as an ad-hoc industrial use on land not designated for that purpose and warning against the loss of rural land.  

In March 2023, ERA again objected to the latest application, noting that it is similar to a previous application on the same site which had been refused by the Planning Authority and for which ERA had objected.  

“The ERA is concerned regarding the introduction of industrial uses within this site ODZ, the loss of rural character of the area, site commitment which occupies an area of c. 16,000sqm, together with take up of rural land.”

However, in June 2026, ERA withdrew its objection to the revised scheme, stating that it has no objection from an environmental point of view, subject to conditions. 

The earlier application had also faced objections from the Transport Planning Unit, which considered the additional traffic unacceptable without a Transport Impact Assessment.

For the current scheme, a simplified traffic statement was accepted, estimating 26 vehicle trips during the morning peak and 27 during the evening peak. Transport Malta eventually also raised no objection, subject to conditions. 

The directorate’s recommendation therefore reflects changes to the proposal and further consultations.

But the central question remains whether replacing the farm with a commercial warehousing complex genuinely meets the environmental-benefit test for development in a protected rural area. 

The Planning Directorate is recommending approval, subject to conditions including the planting of 58 trees. The application is scheduled to be decided by the PA board on 3 December 2026. 

Environmental concerns and planning inconsistencies fuel over 400 resident objections

Over 400 residents objected to the plans to replace the Ħal Farruġ farm, which they argued does not comply with several policies while being quite similar to the previously refused plans.

The Ħal Farruġ farm, they noted, is located across the road from the St Vincent de Paul elderly home, includes 2,200 sq.m of built area in a 14,000 sq.m of rural area. Found within the limits of a valley system, the land is protected under various planning policies.

While the application claims that the farm is “disused,” residents insisted that it remains active. However, the application seeks to demolish the farm and excavate the site to build a complex of Class 6A storage and distribution units with PV panels on the roofs.

This led over 400 residents, many from neighbouring streets, to submit objections to the PA, while another 130 signed a petition. Qormi and Luqa local councils, Moviment Graffitti, Din L’Art Ħelwa, u Kamra tan-Nar San Bastjan also objected the development.

In their objections, residents argue that the development is incompatible with the natural environment and surroundings, while insisting that the nearby main road would not be able to cope with the added traffic that the project would generate on a daily basis.

They noted that, although the application says the built-up area will remain the same as the existing buildings, published plans revealed that most of the site will be taken up by the internal roads, parking spaces, skip tent, a sub-station, and administration block.

At the same time, the PA had already prohibited residents from opening even small shops in the area which is considered as a residential zone by the Housing Authority, while the Agriculture Advisory Committee was not consulted on the application.

Furthermore, residents highlighted the fact that the surrounding ODZ area, stretching from the farm to the lower limits of Wied il-Kbir, currently has no Storage or Distribution units or industrial developments.

Their objections also compared the proposal to application PA/6603/18, which saw the same farm be proposed for a Class 5A industrial warehouse and car park. It was refused by the case officer and consequently dismissed by the PA.

“Permission was not even granted by the Appeal Tribunal,” residents stressed.

In 2023, the Environment and Resources Authority stated that the application in question is the same in principle as PA6603/18, and therefore objectionable from an environmental point of view.

“However, three days after this year election result, residents pointed out that ERA jumped ship and stated that it has no objection to the proposal from an environmental point of view,” they said. “No policies or regulations have been changed since 2023.”