Work on massive Villa Rosa project starts despite ongoing appeal

Heavy machinery, trucks, bulldozers, and an army of foreign workmen have taken over St George’s Bay in St Julian’s in the past weeks, demolishing buildings to make way for a massive tourism and residential complex instead of the historic gardens of Villa Rosa.

Work started a few days ago despite the permit still being under discussion following two appeals filed. The timing of the work coincides with the peak tourism season in one of the island’s most popular localities.

The Environmental and Planning Review Tribunal threw out an attempt by objectors to stop the works until a final decision on the appeal was made.

In May 2023, Prime Minister Robert Abela announced a reform in the permitting process of the Planning Authority, stating that projects would not be allowed to commence until an appeal was heard. More than a year later, the rules announced by Robert Abela are still not in place, giving further advantage to developers to get on with their jobs before the promised rules are introduced.

This has already resulted in the court striking down permits when projects were completed and sold.

The Shift has revealed how two sitting ministers, Roderick Galdes and Silvio Schembri, occupy constituent offices in buildings owned by Tal-Franċiz.

Demolition, the first phase of the project, is expected to take place during the summer months and ready by September. This includes work on both sides of the bay because apart from the Villa Rosa area, Camilleri will also be developing Cresta Quay.

While a permit was issued in 2016, fronted by architect Colin Zammit of the Maniera Group, another was revoked in 2022 for lack of information given to objectors during the process. The permit was re-issued just six months later.

At the same time, while works are now in full swing, Camilleri has also filed a new application, intended to amass even more units into his multi-million-euro sprawling project.

Camilleri is asking the Planning Authority to allow him to build three massive towers, two of which will rise to 27 floors and a third 34 storeys high.

An Environmental Impact Assessment of the development, which will take much of the shorefront property around St George’s Bay, found that it would have a major impact on the environment as well as air quality, both during construction as well as when it starts to operate.

In a rare statement, the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association also expressed serious concerns about the proposed towers, saying they would cast a shadow on St George’s Bay, ruining its attractiveness to tourists.