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GAP Holdings’ Paul Attard, who is seeking to construct three apartment blocks on what was once an open public space in Mellieha, has now applied for the area to be re-zoned, to pave the way for his project.

A planning control application for the area, comprising 5,000 square metres of undeveloped land, seeks to “establish developable area, 30% public open space, alignments.”

The submitted plans show three distinct apartment blocks that will sit on almost 3,500 square metres.

The Shift previously revealed how Attard acquired the land in Mellieha Heights from the Lands Authority through questionable means after the government signed off on a controversial contract of sale for the plot, ignoring hundreds of petitioners who live nearby.

The Planning Control application shows three massive apartment blocks taking up most of the former public land.

The application for the area’s rezoning (PC/53/23) was filed at the end of August. As the site’s prospective developer, Attard was legally bound to post a notice to residents notifying them of the application.

A copy of the notice obtained by The Shift confirms previous reports about the applicant, Attard’s T&S Property Holdings Ltd.

The notice also lists the address of Plan Group Plc., a company registered in August and wholly owned by the Attard family.

Planning Control applications regulate land use, the layout of streets and building heights, but not buildings, meaning Attard will have to submit a separate Planning Application for the building itself.

Through a company, T&S Property Holdings Ltd formed a few years ago together with Paul Vella, another developer from Mġarr known as Tal-Ballut, Attard won a tender issued by the Lands Authority for the sale of the 5,000 square metres green lung in the area known as ‘Il-Qortin’ in Mellieha.

The 5,000 square metre public plot of land, which will house dozens of apartments, was sold for less than €400,000 on a perpetual emphyteusis that can be redeemed after 15 years.

The tender was explicitly designed for Attard’s company, as a clause on the right of first refusal was inserted in the conditions, giving Attard the option to match any other competitive offer received by the Lands Authority.

Attard obtained this following the purchase of a small fraction of the large plot from another developer just a few years ago.

A 2007 development application by the previous owner seeking to construct six apartments and underlying garages on a small portion of the land was refused by the Planning Authority.

It is not yet known what position the Planning Authority is going to take and how planning laws are going to be interpreted once Attard and his partner submit their new application to turn the majority of the plot into three blocks of flats.