MDA wants reduction to minimum floor-to-ceiling height to be permanent

The Malta Developers Association (MDA) said today that it welcomes the decision of the General Services Board to approve the issue of a legal notice that will empower the Malta Environment and Planning Authority to sanction residential units that are not in accordance with sanitary law when these breaches are not extensive and concern the size of internal and back yards, floor to ceiling height and rooms built in the back yard.

"Through its presence in the Building Industry Consultative Council (BICC), the MDA has long been insisting that the authorities should strive to find a solution for properties with small breaches of the sanitary regulations that were hindering their sale – more so when potential purchasers would need a bank loan to be able to buy them. The announced Legal Notice goes a long way to solving these problems," the MDA said.

While noting that this concession applies only to existing residential buildings, the MDA said it feels that the reduction of the minimum floor to ceiling height, which has long been arbitrarily established at 2.75 metres should be a permanent amendment to the law, now that the height of courses has since been reduced and modern day buildings frequently have suspended soffits for various reasons, including the provision of air-conditioning.