Ċaqnu inches closer to massive Xemxija project after PA approves realignment permit

The Planning Authority’s (PA) board formally approved a planning control application filed by developer Charles Polidano, known as iċ-Ċaqnu, giving the mega-developer permission to shift a passageway near Triq Raddet ir-Roti and Triq is-Simar in Xemxija and instead introduce two passageways on the sides of the adjacent sites that are set to be developed.

Now that the PA has approved this planning control application, both the passageways and the current delineation of the sites that the complex will be built on have been amended to allow for the construction of a massive, mixed use development that will feature 141 residential units and reach heights of up to eleven stroreys.

The planning application for the demolition of existing structures on the site and the construction of the mixed use complex is still in early stages. It is currently being screened by the PA and will be open for public consultation after this stage is concluded.

Even in these early stages, the project has already elicited significant concern and resistance from the local community due to the sheer size and scale of what is being proposed.

During today’s PA hearing, St Paul Bay’s Mayor, Ċensu Galea, reiterated objections that the council has been raising on behalf of Xemxija’s residents for months on end.

After the PA’s board briefly debated the minor conditions which were imposed on the applicant prior approval of the site’s realignment, the Mayor stated that the Planning Directorate’s conclusions did not address the council’s concerns about the project.

Galea stressed that Xemxija’s infrastructure is not built to sustain the kind of load such a project would impose, including in terms of traffic and critical service systems like water and electricity.

The Mayor also complained that, since the main development application is still undergoing screening, the council has no real forum to express residents’ concerns about the project.

“Our residents are very worried because now, the site is already cleared out, even though this application has not been processed. People are getting the impression that the applicant is doing what he wants, and the local council is being bombarded with complaints from residents because they think we are not doing enough,” he added.

The PA’s board rebutted by pointing out that these concerns should be addressed when the development application is formally opened up for public discussion.

The Shift has been documenting ongoing activity on the site since last summer.

After exclusively revealing the full scale of Ċaqnu’s plans in September, this newsroom also published a letter in which Xemxija residents appealed to the EU Commission’s environment directorate-general to investigate the project’s breach of parameters stipulated by Xemxija’s Local Plan. The EU Commission refused to comment on the matter.

In November, the Superintendence of Cultural Heritage (SCH) failed to answer The Shift’s questions about confirmed inspections from SCH officers following the reported discovery of cart rut remains on the site.