Illegal development bordering airport runway ignored by PA

An illegal development, which includes large storage facilities and a private horse racing course, located a mere few metres away from one of Malta International Airport’s (MIA) runways, has been allowed to exist with impunity for years, with the Planning Authority (PA) completely failing to address illegalities on the site.

Fenced in on one side by the airport’s perimeter and two-metre-high walls on the other, the development flies in the face of enhanced development restrictions intended to ensure there is no interference with the airport’s operations.

Equipped with CCTV cameras and guard dogs throughout the surrounding neighbourhood, the entire zone appears rife with illegalities, some of which were sanctioned by the PA. The site in question is sandwiched between the airport and a disused quarry.

According to the PA’s Policy Map for the airport, the illegal site falls outside of Mqabba’s development boundary. It also falls within the area designated in the Local Plan as an airshow safety area.

Although the contours of the illegal site are clearly visible on the PA’s Map Server, there are no planning applications covering it. The PA has also failed to issue an enforcement notice.

As if the high walls around the perimeter of the site weren’t enough to hide the owners’ identity, the total lack of enforcement means that the person responsible for committing these illegalities hasn’t even been formally identified by the authorities – let alone held accountable for doing so.

This website was alerted about the blatantly illegal site by a concerned reader, who noted that “ordinary citizens face enforcement for minor changes like a roof canopy while this monstrous development operates in broad daylight with impunity”.

In addition to commercial use, the site appears to be occupied, as it is linked to multiple buildings. A small plaque at the main entrance, complete with a small letterbox, notes that the property was named San Mikiel u San Innoċenzju.

A detailed search of Government Gazette records for the property name did not yield any results.

The government’s recently announced plans to expand MIA’s capacity and physical footprint will likely not be affected by the illegal development in question, as the main site expansion will occur on the east side of the airport, adjacent to the main terminal.

Overall, the site’s formation clearly attests to the rampant impunity that results from the PA’s widespread failure to punish wrongdoing, a problem that is set to worsen if the government proceeds with its plan to dismantle all remaining environmental and planning safeguards.