Mark Micallef, Kuwait City
Kuwaiti developer speaks of 'Mepa disease'
The project at Mistra Heights has been stalled. Photo: Chris Sant Fournier
Kuwait City is not as littered with skyscrapers and grandiose edifices as its counterparts in the rest of the Emirates because the country has caught the "Mepa disease", according to the chairman of the giant real estate multinational Al Massaleh Real Estate.
He was joking but only in part because the comment reflected a very real frustration with the fact that the Mistra Heights project - an 868-apartment high-rise complex in Xemxija in which the Kuwaiti company has a stake - remained without a development permit, four years after it was announced.
The €250 million Mistra Heights complex, a joint venture between Maltese developers JPM Brothers and Al Massaleh, represents a fraction of the latter's portfolio but is the first such investment from the region and its fate determines that of other similar projects.
Speaking during a meeting in Kuwait with a Maltese trade delegation this week, the group's chairman, Najeeb Al-Saleh, said that despite a weakening of the Maltese property market in the past two years, the project would still be economically viable.
"The price of property has gone down but the cost of construction has also decreased, so the project remains viable," he said.
The project, meant to replace the former Mistra village, had attracted strong criticism from environmental groups when the Malta Environment and Planning Authority approved a preliminary permit for 11 storeys in 2008.
It was toned down from the original plans, doing away with a proposed 19-storey tower and cutting the units by 100 but environmentalists remained opposed because of the huge impact a high-rise building of the kind would have on the Xemxija ridge.
Then, in March 2009, the project's marketing team was laid off amid rumours the venture had run into financial difficulties and that the local partners were trying to sell off their share to Al Massaleh.
JPM Brothers director Jeffrey Montebello denied the rumours and complained that the project had been stalled by planning bureaucracy.
But Mepa had washed its hands of any responsibility for the delay, pointing out that the developers had only paid the fees for the planning application in the same month the marketing team was laid off.
Mr Al-Saleh acknowledged there were some problems with the local partners but complained about planning bureaucracy and an element of mixed messages.
However, he politely pointed out that even his country suffered from similar problems: "You will notice that here is not as developed as other cities... you see, we got the Mepa disease too but I'm sure we can cure it."
The city has its fair share of high-rise buildings but there is fierce competition in this area among Emirati states.
Vince Farrugia, director general of the Chamber of Small and Medium Enterprise - GRTU, who was present for the meeting, said the government had to address these problems because they had the potential to kill important investments and give Malta a bad name in the region.
He praised the initiative to have a planning strategy unit within the Office of the Prime Minister, stressing it had to come up with a plan investors could refer to as an easy guide to gauge whether developments they were proposing were in line with the Malta's vision.
"Big business cannot afford such sort of hiccups," he said, adding that if Malta wanted to tap into the investment opportunities offered by these countries, the government had to decide what it wanted and be able to communicate it to businessmen clearly.
Asked to react to Mr Al-Saleh's comments, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi said the strategic unit would go beyond Mepa, even though planning matters would be an integral part of the formulation of strategy.
"Yes, we need to formulate one strategy that takes into account our economic aims, environmental and planning consideration, among others, and come up with a formula that makes sense without being rigid because the economy does not develop in a straight jacket," he said.
"Mepa is a fundamental partner in all this. Beyond this, however, I hope the reform Bill for the authority, which is before the parliamentary committee responsible for such matters, would be passed through, so we can start implementing those changes that require the House's approval."
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John Azzopardi
Apr 16th 2010, 00:02
@ Mr Martinelli below - "The day will come, hopefully sooner rather than later, that the government steps in and oblige the owners either to sell or redevelop the land these abandoned properties were built on" - IS THAT WHAT YOU CALL A DEMOCRACY.
Are you in Malta or outside Mr. Martinelli....where I live in Gozo and my vacation home in Malta, I see, in my block of flats, there are more than half of them empty. Many flats are today empty and that is a fact. If you don't know what a housing bubble it, let me explain. It's a large quantify of houses that are empty and going unsold. Yes, maybe we should place a tax on all properties and not just vacant and then we can see how many will remain on the market. What you advocate on the other hand is anti democratic. The government should not dictate what some should or shouldn't do with his or her property.
J Azzopardi
Apr 15th 2010, 22:38
Why does Mr Al-Saleh not go and built his monstrous project in Kuwait City then.
As to Vince Farrugia’s comment have a planning strategy unit within the Office of the Prime Minister does not mean selling off our soul. This project was a non starter from the beginning. I sincerely hope it never materialises.
the Office of the Prime is still in time to stop it.
R Sultana
Apr 15th 2010, 16:17
This project should not be given a permit at all costs. This is probably the most destructive project ever proposed in Malta, a veritable monstrosity. Nowhere in the world would people build 11-storey boomerangs on the top of ridges. Apart from the irregularities asscociated with this project (only 8 storeys are permitted, but when issuing the outinle permit Mepa considered 11 storeys to be 'a slight variation'), this monstrosity would be visible from huge distances, from Naxxar all the way to Mellieha.
J Martinelli
Apr 15th 2010, 14:53
@ John Azzopardi
How many of the 60,000 vacant properties would you like to live in, Mr. Azzopardi?
Most are substandard, unlivable by today's standards and quite a few outright dangerous and in a state of collapse.
The day will come, hopefully sooner rather than later, that the government steps in and oblige the owners either to sell or redevelop the land these abandoned properties were built on.
New or newer suburban properties continue to sell better because they are equipped with modern fittings as opposed to those built in pre-war or early post-war days.
lgalea
Apr 15th 2010, 13:30
This project together with other environment destruction property speculation projects should be scrapped. We do not need any more buildings when we have so many thousands of unsold properties. Such projects are only destroying our environment and making our country more crowded than ever before.
Phil Humphries
Apr 15th 2010, 13:26
Hopefully, the 'Planning beaurocracy' and the 'Mixed messages' these particular developers are complaining about are a strong indication that this unthinkable monstosity will never get off the ground. And if those concerned have lost money in the process, then I hope it teaches them a lesson.
Malta doesn't need Kuwaiti developers assisting in the ruination of the landscape; sadly, it already has enough 'NIMBYs' of its own.
John Azzopardi
Apr 15th 2010, 12:01
Why does malta need an 855 appartment project when it has 60,000 vacant properties on such a small and overpopulated island like Malta. Do maltese think that this is what pleases tourist. A jungle of buildings all over Malta. What we need are more parks and recreational areas. Yes I know, we do have Ta Qali, playing fields and football grounds. Who are we planning to come and live among us. We are a small island and we do not need this massive overdevelopment as if we are going to start Malta as a sunny island in the mediterranean year round.
Joseph Cauchi
Apr 15th 2010, 11:07
. "Yes, we need to formulate one strategy that takes into account our economic aims, environmental and planning consideration, among others, and come up with a formula that makes sense without being rigid because the economy does not develop in a straight jacket," he said.
The above quote could not have been better said, especially when the PM said that “without being 'RIGID' because the economy does not develop in a 'STRAIGHT JACKET'”!
So, MEPA take heed!
JC.