Contractor damages Gżira home's boundary wall during demolition works

Residents in Gżira are worried after workers carrying out excavation works near the seafront damaged part of their boundary wall.

The incident happened on Wednesday morning in Triq Sir Frederick C. Ponsonby.

The works in question are related to a 2019 planning application by FES Projects Ltd. The application seeks to demolish homes to make way for a takeaway, the extension of existing tourist accommodation, including three floors, and a pool.

The works are being undertaken by RM Developers.

The site in question had prompted complaints from residents earlier this week as well, after an ambulance could not pass through the street due to a construction crane blocking the street.

A resident who spoke to MaltaToday said that the contractors were given special permission to continue with demolition and excavation works despite it being carried out in a tourist area in the summer. 

"My mother was looking out at her garden when she saw the wall cracking. She's terrified in her own home," he said.

Photos sent to this newspaper show a crack in the resident’s mother’s boundary wall. The works were halted for little less than an hour, but then continued.

In an email seen by MaltaToday, the resident had pleaded with the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) to intervene.

“In addition, there are concerns that the damage may have created pathways for water ingress, including possible seawater infiltration, with potentially serious consequences for the structural integrity of neighbouring properties,” the BCA was told.

The authority replied with an automated message saying that the complaint was forwarded to enforcement officers, and to send evidence to the BCA by email.