Almost 2,000 Applications For Catering Establishments Approved Between 2013 And 2022
Between 2013 and October 2022, a total of 2022 applications for catering establishments in Malta were approved by the Planning Authority and the Environment and Planning Review Tribunal.
“1977 applications were approved by the authorities after initial review, while 45 applications were rejected at the same stage,” said Public Works Minister Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi in Parliament.
“Following those refusals, 46 appeals – for 43 applications – were made before the Environment and Planning Review Tribunal,” he continued.
“Of these appeals, 42 were subsequently accepted and four were withdrawn.”
Data presented to Parliament by Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi, in response to shadow Transport Minister Toni Bezzina, showed how many planning permits were approved in each of Malta’s localities between 2013 and October of 2022.
The figures show that Valletta, St Paul’s Bay, St Julians, and then Sliema have had the most planning permits approved since 2013.
Over the 9-year period included by statistics, these localities respectively saw 248, 175, 144, and 111 approved catering establishment permits.
While 2013 saw the fewest permits for catering establishments approved across the islands, at 118, 2019 brought a peak of 260 approved permits. In 2022, 224 permits were approved.
This data was prompted by Shadow Minister for Transport and Infrastructure Toni Bezzina asking for information about how many catering establishments in predominantly residential areas had received approval.
“How many of these applications were approved and how many were rejected?” was one of Bezzina’s questions.
The answer to this question, it would seem, is that while 45 applications were initially rejected, on appeal, 42 of those were accepted. Essentially, three of the applications filed for catering establishments were rejected.
These figures have been released at the end of a long decade of seemingly unbridled construction and development across the Maltese islands, with catering establishments making up a fairly small chunk of the total mass of new builds.
As development continues, environmental NGOs – and local people – are becoming increasingly frustrated.
Though there may be economic benefits to enabling the development of new businesses in Malta, many would argue that in the long term, these will be offset by the economic and social detriment caused by rendering Malta an unattractive place to live through unbridled construction.
If short-term economic gains come at the cost of irreparable cultural and environmental upheaval, is it likely to have been worth it?
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