Demolition works have begun on the Franciscan religious retreat house alongside the coast road in Madliena after the permit went unnoticed.

Lovin Malta had spoken with residents of Madliena back in February, where they expressed their fears over the commencement of the development plans. 

An injunction was filed following the approval of the permit, where the residents applied for revocation of the permit on the basis of incorrect information in the permit application, errors on the face of the record, and the lack of notice signs that should have been kept up by the developer.

These elements ultimately led to blind-siding the residents and thereby denied them of their rights to make representations in the permit application process.

The residents had also gathered to protest against the development, as they called for the revoaction of the permit.

The plans, which were approved by a planning case officer, outline the development of a massive elderly home, counting more than 20 metres in height on a footprint of 2.450 sqm.

The area was also defined in the 2006 zoning plan to be an area for a “religious retreat”, strictly prohibiting any change of use, therefore such development is going against the local plans.

The Fransiscan Friars that used to occupy the retreat house will now also be bringing in millions through this development.

The project’s applicant is Katari Holdings, which is owned by GAP’s Paul Attard, and its architect is Colin Zammit, who courted controversy after revelations that the government handed out a €700,000 direct order for a project that was never carried out.

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