Major developer fails to answer for ‘unsafe’ excavation works at Xemxija

Construction company Attard Brothers failed to answer questions to address public concern after excavation work at one of the company’s sites in Xemxija was flagged by experts as “risky” because it exposed concrete piles precariously positioned on a blue clay slope.

While a significant portion of the exposed piles lies on the site being developed by Attard Brothers, the structure they support extends into adjacent sites also under development, raising further questions about what measures are being taken to secure the site.

President of the Malta Chamber of Geologists Peter Gatt flagged the site two weeks ago, describing the practice of excavating clay and exposing piles as “unsafe”.

“There is nothing wrong with the piles themselves. They were engineered solely to support the weight of the buildings above, not to act as a retaining wall for the clay,” Gatt said on social media.

“Because the excavation exposed these piles, which were never designed to hold back the earth behind them, the current situation has become unstable and unsafe within the context of the surrounding clay. Many forget that geology, in this case the blue clay, is part of the foundation, which has been partly stripped away,” he added.

Despite Gatt’s warning two weeks ago and The Shift’s questions, Attard Brothers have yet to comment on the matter, with the exact nature of the project being carried out on the site remaining unclear at the time of writing.

An approved application for the site envisages the construction of 12 residential units and two penthouses, with a “domestic store” at the basement level and a parking area.

Attard Brothers also filed a new application this year to increase the site’s area, add four more floors, and increase the residential unit count to 22 apartments and nine garages at the basement level.

Though this more recent application was abruptly withdrawn by the applicant without explanation, the permit remained affixed to the site’s perimeter wall as recently as 12 June.

Besides forming a part of Attard Brothers’ site, the exposed concrete piles were put in place partly to service an approved realignment of Triq is-Simar, which, when fully concluded, will border a major project owned by Polidano Group on its north side and a number of other developments – one owned by E&T M Ltd,  another also owned by Polidano Group.

On the opposite side of Triq is-Simar lies yet another construction site owned and operated by Trivium Developments, where a partial collapse of the other end of the same road set the project’s timeline back by two months.

A spokesperson for Trivium Developments confirmed that remedial works for that site were ongoing. noting that “although work took slightly longer than anticipated, it was necessary not to start work on various sections at once”.

“At this stage, around 80% of the piles and the retaining walls are done. The remaining 20% will be finished in the coming weeks,” the spokesperson added.

When reached for comment, St Paul Bay’s Mayor Ċensu Galea confirmed that the council was aware of the issue. While he declined to comment on the technical aspect of the site in question, “without access to the design process” and “actual information obtained from the site”, he did highlight the area’s known, fragile geological characteristics.

“Xemxija is known to be formed of clay, and for this reason, any architect who undertakes jobs in the area has to make sure that the necessary precautions are taken when designing the foundations for any building that is proposed,” Galea told The Shift.

“Naturally, it is much easier to design foundations where hard rock is available. Every architect would need to make sure that designs are based on the geological information for the area, and that, before carrying out works, any factors that may influence the design are taken into account,” the Mayor added.

Galea also said his council’s primary duty in such cases was to ensure that any work undertaken within the locality did not cause damage or expose residents to dangerous situations. He stressed that any council was dependent on various other entities, such as the Planning Authority, to take action against potential abusers.

Multiple residents who spoke to The Shift about the intensity of construction projects in the tiny locality of Xemxija will likely not find any relief from the government’s annual construction ban, either.

St Paul Bay local councillor and ADPD Chairperson Sandra Gauci has already publicly spoken out against the lack of enforcement after the Malta Tourism Authority (MTA) published its annual list of areas where construction is to be forbidden during the summer due to a high concentration of tourism activity.

“As a local council, we’ve already been asked to approve excavation works in our locality, which we did not accept. But I am 100% sure that our refusal will not be respected. People in Xemxija will suffer. Do not write laws for the sake of having them on paper. It seems like we’ve become desensitised,” Gauci said.