Mellieha to get 'model' home for the elderly

The full development application of a home for the elderly in Mellieha, the extension of the Kempinski San Lawrenz Resort and Spa in Gozo and the demolition of warehouses to construct flats on the Ta' Xbiex seafront were yesterday approved during public meetings at the Malta Environment and Planning Authority.

The new application for the government-owned home for the elderly proposed the construction of a four-storey building, as opposed to three floors, in Mellieha. The development will consist of 96 single and 12 double bedrooms, providing a bed complement of 120 and meaning that 80 per cent of the beds would be located in single rooms.

The previous application, which had already been approved by the Mepa board in February 2003, had not catered for any single bedrooms even though it provided for the same number of beds.

The proposal caters for a chapel, a day centre and a health centre, a physiotherapy and fitness centre, specifically designed for the elderly and those with special needs, space for a high-dependency ward, landscaped areas, as well as the upgrading of the adjacent public garden.

The site for the home is located between Triq Qasam il-Barrani and Triq il-Wied, just outside Mellieha's development zone in front of the Mellieha government primary school.

The Mellieha home for the elderly had been mentioned in two of the PN's electoral programmes. The government was preparing the plans for the project, which would then be built and operated by the private sector, while the land would continue to belong to the government.

The next step is to issue a tender document for any interested parties, which could also include foreigners.

"This is a great achievement and improvement on any existing government-owned home for the elderly and, when implemented, would serve as a model for future retirement centres," sources at the Office of the Prime Minister said.

"It is 100-per-cent wheelchair-friendly and has been designed using the latest international guidelines for centres of the sort."

Also approved during the public meeting yesterday was the partial re-development and extension of the Kempinski San Lawrenz Resort and Spa, which includes the construction of a casino, apart from the demolition of the north wing and construction of extra floors.

The developers said they already had a letter of intent from the gaming board to operate a casino, which was valid for two years.