Seven NGOs sue the PA over 'flawed' Jerma development brief

A group of seven organisations have filed a lawsuit against the Planning Authority (PA) after its failure to withdraw what they described as “the flawed Jerma Development Brief.”

The seven organisations had sent a judicial protest to the PA last May over the consultation procedure with regards to the Development Brief for the site of the former Jerma Palace Hotel in Marsascala, which they said was vitiated and irregular.

Although the Local Plan defines the area which should be subject to the Development Brief, the PA had also included further areas within it.

The organisations say they included a green area which should be accessible to the public and where no increase in height or volume is permitted, as well as a heritage site for which there is already a policy applicable. In addition, an area of 100,000 square metres which should be developed within the site was arbitrarily laid down, they argued.

The organisations had requested the Authority to withdraw the Jerma Development Brief within ten days of the receipt of the judicial protest, but the Planning Authority had failed to do so, leaving the organisations with no option but to file a lawsuit against the PA.

They argued that if the Development Brief proposed by the PA goes ahead, it would lead to a massive development project that would have a negative impact on the infrastructure of Marsascala and the lives of residents, with no long-term benefit to the locality.

The organisations filing the lawsuit are:

1. Din l-Art Ħelwa
2. Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar
3. Green House
4. Moviment Graffitti
5. Nature Trust Malta
6. Ramblers Association of Malta
7. The Archaeological Society of Malta