ADPD opposes proposed St Paul’s Bay hotel, citing impact on residents

ADPD–The Green Party has spoken out against plans for an eight-storey hotel to replace the former HSBC bank building in St Paul’s Bay, warning that the development would worsen traffic, infrastructure strain and quality of life for residents.

Party chairperson Sandra Gauci addressed a press conference on site, saying the proposal had surprised and angered people living in the area, which she described as a strictly residential zone already under pressure from heavy traffic, sewage overflows and ongoing development.

MaltaToday reported that a nine-storey hotel is being proposed in place of the former HSBC branch in Triq San Pawl, St Paul’s Bay. The building is a modernist design by architect Richard England from the 1960s and, according to conservation experts, has considerable architectural value. 

Along with other bank branches then owned by Barclays, the building was designed in an international modernist aesthetic with regionalist nuances harking back to the Maltese vernacular.

Gauci noted that the narrow road where the hotel is being proposed is already highly congested and that traffic levels are set to increase further once a nearby civic centre, including a clinic, becomes operational. She questioned the suitability of a hotel in an area that does not offer coastal views and borders a busy arterial road.

While acknowledging property owners’ rights, Gauci stressed that urban planning must also respect neighbourhoods and consider cumulative impacts. She said a project like this fails on both counts, arguing that land-use planning should prioritise the protection of communities rather than individual developments in isolation.

The ADPD chairperson also raised broader concerns about the sustainability of Malta’s tourism model, pointing out that the country welcomed around 3.5 million tourists in 2024. She said residents in tourist zones are increasingly affected by waste management problems, noise, sewage overflows and congestion, questioning how much additional development the island’s infrastructure can realistically sustain.

Gauci criticised what she described as a “pro-business” approach by government and authorities, which she said has encouraged a rush for more hotel projects without adequate planning or assessment of their combined impact. She attributed the situation to local plans that were never properly analysed for their long-term consequences.

“Land planning is not about individual rights but more about how the community can be protected from the impact of development,” Gauci said, adding that Malta is reaching a point where it must choose between unrestrained development and the wellbeing of its communities.

ADPD–The Green Party is calling for the Planning Authority to refuse a permit for the proposed hotel, warning that it would have adverse effects on the St Paul’s Bay neighbourhood.