MEPA defers vote on Seven Up factory redevelopment
The MEPA board has deferred a vote on the development of a sizeable residential and commercial project on the site of the former Seven Up factory in Santa Venera after a number of concerns were raised in the public hearing.
The factory, owned by Portanier Brothers, was closed in 2002, with Farsons taking over the Seven Up franchise and the machinery.
The site has remained unused since then, but now Portanier Developments Ltd is seeking to construct 164 apartments, 232 garages and 960 square metres of commercial space in the site.
The site has frontage on 3 streets, namely St Joseph High Street, Qormi Road and Triq il-Parata. St Joseph High Street is an urban conservation area, and according to the proposal, the structures facing the street would not be demolished, although some slight alterations are to be made.
No vehicle access is allowed through the high street, although pedestrian access allowing vehicle access in emergencies is envisioned. Access for most vehicles would be through the relatively narrow Triq il-Parata, with the rest accessing the site through Qormi Road.
Board member Joe Farrugia expressed his concerns on the traffic the project would bring, noting that most vehicles would have to pass through a small street. A traffic impact statement drawn up for the outline development permit indicated no problems, the case officer replied, even though it estimated a higher number of parking spaces at the time.
However, Mr Farrugia raised another concern, on the visual impact of part of the development facing Qormi Road, just behind the water tower at the end of the Wignacourt Aqueduct, which then continues underground. At this point, the development towers more than 2 stories above adjacent, 1-floor structures, and Mr Farrugia said that this would lead to a “horrible” blank wall visible from the Urban Conservation Area.
He said that the project could afford sacrificing a small number of apartments to allow a suitable visual transition, although the developers are seeking other measures to lessen the impact.
MEPA chairman Austin Walker commented that the project appeared to constitute overdevelopment in a dense residential area, and said that pedestrian areas within the project were inadequate.
He later proposed that the board’s vote is deferred while the developers issue new proposals or visuals on Qormi Road, a proposal which the board unanimously backed.
John Paul Cordina - editorial@di-ve.com
24.06.10