Carlo Stivala in bigger trouble as all Centric Hotel might be illegal

Developer Carlo Stivala has left illegalities at his Centric Hotel in Sliema in place at the same time as blatantly challenging the government’s Planning and Lands Authorities with the latest illegal extension of his restaurant onto public land.

Although the latest eviction notice issued by the Lands Authority concerns the outdoor area of Piccolo Padre, the restaurant beneath the hotel on The Strand, the dispute goes beyond tables, chairs and an illegal awning.

The building itself, a narrow former apartment block, mostly in a UCA, where hotels are illegal, was sanctioned by the PA.

However, the hotel’s future remains in the balance, as the PA’s tribunal, EPRT, has already asked Stivala to remove several illegal parts of the building, while a Court of Appeal judgement challenging the legality of the whole hotel is just a few weeks away.

Only last January, the Environment and Planning Review Tribunal partially upheld an appeal by Din l-Art Ħelwa and Moviment Graffitti concerning planning application PA/03229/23.

The application sought to sanction the conversion of the property into a hotel and restaurant, with 79 hotel rooms replacing approved shops and apartments.

The tribunal cancelled the permit decision notice and required revised plans incorporating alterations. These included removing a hotel room beside the staircase at level 13, reducing covered access, removing a store at level 14 and a bathroom at level 15, and modifying part of the upper staircase structure.

The changes addressed the relationship between the building’s height and the width of Triq il-Lunzjata, including concerns over light and ventilation.

The ruling did not order the demolition of three floors, nor did it reject the hotel use outright. It nevertheless required changes to parts of the building. Those alterations remain outstanding.

Against that background, Stivala’s decision to erect an unauthorised awning and expand restaurant activity onto public land represents another challenge to the authorities responsible for enforcing planning rules and protecting public property.

Following complaints, including representations from the Sliema council, the Planning Authority issued enforcement notice requiring the structure’s immediate removal.

The awning was dismantled as a result of enforcement, but it did not resolve the occupation of the site.

Tables, chairs and unauthorised paving remained, with the restaurant continuing to use the area despite the authority’s requirement that it be fully restored.

The Lands Authority has now served Stivala with an eviction notice, giving him 30 days to vacate the public land and remove the objects and structures placed there.

Stivala has neither title nor a permit to occupy the land.