Eurospin supermarket site in Marsa was zoned for offices

The discount-store chain Eurospin’s application for a supermarket on the site of the Bezzina shipyard in Marsa is in breach of local plans which had zoned the area for a different kind of business.

According to the 2006 local plans, the area was zoned for the development of offices and showrooms, which have different impacts on traffic flows in the busy area from supermarkets.

The latter require parking for both employees and customers, while offices require parking spaces only for employees.

While the developers say new roadworks would cater for the additional traffic for the supermarket, apart from a traffic impact assessment, the local plan itself calls for “an improvement” on the environmental corridor of Triq il-Labour, through the creation of a service road and a planted strip parallel to the carriageway.

The Eurospin supermarket could replace the industrial complex with a ground floor parking area of 6,500sq.m, and a 3,200sq.m supermarket o the first floor. That would cover 55% of the site.

By keeping 45% of the site undeveloped and limiting heights to 11m instead of the maximum 22-29m allowed, the proponents are promising “large open spaces and aesthetically pleasing materials and design” which will benefit the area, at present enclosed by high walls and structures.

The supermarket’s access point would be from the Aldo Moro road, while a secondary access point linked to Triq il-Labour, will be used solely for scheduled delivery of merchandise.

Changes to local plans

The project may still be approved if any reference to showrooms as laid down in the local plan, is ‘interpreted’ by the Planning Authority to cover any kind of retail development including supermarkets.

The developers have not presented a planning control application to change zoning rules. Other sites such as Qormi’s Decatholon complex had obtained rezoning permits for an area earmarked first for warehouses, later an old people’s home, and finally for a retail complex.

On its part, the Environment and Resources Authority has said that while a supermarket use was not specified within the Grand Harbour Local Plan, it envisaged no significant impacts in terms of land use, given that the area is already fully committed and developed.

Still, the ERA position overlooks the cost of designating possible office space for other uses, when elsewhere across Malta the demand for office space puts pressure on other localities.

While the proposed supermarket will have a lesser visual impact than a five-storey office block, the development of supermarkets outside town centres may further encourage car use. Indeed the PA’s own supermarkets policy shows preference for supermarkets located inside or at the edge of town centres, to minimise car use, a policy aimed at encouraging multi-purpose trips and making supermarkets accessible by public transport.