Planned airport building development causing concern at Gudja council

The planned huge development of three new high rise blocks by Malta International Airport has caused concern at Gudja local council, which has appointed architect and green party official Carmel Cacopardo as its consultant on the proposed airport buildings extension.

The new blocks, which will rise up to seven floors, will be apart from the recently built Skyparks block and the foreseen impact of the development on the community is causing concern.

Cacopardo, a former investigator in the MEPA Audit Office, has in the past advised the Birzebbugia council on planning applications linked to the Freeport and the power station.

The council’s executive secretary, Joseph Formosa, confirmed that Cacopardo will be presenting a report on the impact the massive project is expected to have on the Gudja community.

“The impact on the Gudja community is not just visual and has to be fully assessed before any decision is made on a project of such a scale on a small community,” Cacopardo told MaltaToday when contacted.

Cacopardo also insisted that the Gudja airport should be compared to smaller secondary airports in Europe and not to major hubs, as suggested by the Environment Impact Study.

According to the EIA the massive commercial development proposed by Malta International Airport will have an impact on long-distance open views of the area, and will affect the “context of the Gudja and Ghaxaq landscape” by altering the traditional setting of townscapes dominated by parish churches, as well as the rural setting, as the project is highly visible from a range of viewpoints.

This is one of the main conclusions of an Environment Impact Assessment study of a master plan presented by the Malta International Airport for the project.

A traffic impact study (TIS) carried out for the extension of commercial facilities at the Malta International Airport says three arms on Qormi Road and Triq Hal Farrug’s roundabout junction will have to be widened to two lanes on each arm.

The TIS foresees a dramatic increase of traffic on the Luqa arm of Aviation Road, from 18,665 cars a day in 2014, to 34,615 in 2029. If the project is not carried out the traffic along this road would increase to an annual average of 21,669.

Traffic along Triq il-Kunsill tal-Ewropa is expected to increase from the current 21,647 to 32,368 in 2029 if the development takes place. If the project does not take place traffic would increase to 25,131.

At Dawret il-Gudja, traffic will increase from 6,806 cars a day to 10,912 in 2029.

The development is being proposed on a rectangular parcel of land forming part of the Malta International Airport complex, which has an area of over 130,000 square metres.

The large existing centrally located car park will be roofed over, with the roof planned to accommodate an enormous 2,300m² supermarket.

A massive seven-storey block set over a 3,200m² footprint will include commercial and office space at ground level, including double height showrooms.

And a new hotel development will be accommodated at higher floors of another 1,400m² block.

Another block will consist of a commercial centre with a maximum floor area of 2,500m² per floor. The complex will incorporate both commercial and office space at ground level, with double height showrooms.

Another two-storey block will include commercial facilities on two levels, each with a floor space of 7,000m².

The existing fuel service station will be relocated to provide improved access to arterial routes.

Moreover another block will incorporate a recreational zone having a total area of 2,000m². This will replace the existing staff car park, which will be relocated to a separate area within the site boundary.