On two occasions in this column I had commented about planning application PA1822/14 proposing the construction of a dwelling with a swimming pool on a ridge along Marsalforn Road, Xagħra.
The application is objectionable for various reasons, some of which were highlighted at screening stage, including the fact that it runs counter to policy GZ-EDGE-2 of the Gozo and Comino local plan, which prohibits the development of swimming pools in ODZs and on ridges, unless the proposed development is within an existing, permitted garden and complements the sensitive characteristics of the ridge edge.
The application was thrown out by Mepa last January but surprise, surprise… the applicant appealed the decision, and the case is due for a decision in January next year.
What raises eyebrows about this case and makes me pessimistic about the outcome of the appeal hearing are the following two issues:
Firstly, the case officer has since changed his original recommendation for refusal to one recommending approval, following consultations he had with the applicant’s architect such that the proposed development has now been “changed to comply with policy”.
This might sound like a compromise by the applicant but in reality it is mere tokenism: the swimming pool has been repositioned so that it is closer to the dwelling, and a band of landscaping has been introduced to minimise its visual impact.
Despite this, as the case officer himself admits in his revised report, if approved, the swimming pool will lie on the ridge in clear breach of GZ-EDGE-2. The mind boggles as to how the case officer could have changed his mind about this application and, even worse, decided to strike through the reference to this policy in his report just under the recommendation given.
Objectors are also contesting the application not solely on grounds pertaining to the building of the pool but also with regard to the building per se, since the site is located in a Category B valley.
Their contestation is based on several arguments that include the non-observance of various policies, including:
• Policy GZ-RLCN-2; GZ-Edge-1; GZ-Edge-2; GZ-AGRI-1 of the Gozo and Comino Local Plan;
• Policy RCO 29 of the Structure Plan;
• Policy RCO 22, and
• Policy 1.2 G, 1.2 H u 1.2 I of the rural policy and design guidance 2014.
They are also stating that building site is situated in an Area of High Landscape Sensitivity and within the Aquifer Protection Zone.
Against this background, one gets the impression that the ground is being paved for an approval of the application at appeals stage. If this is indeed the case, then the members of the relevant board will have only themselves to blame for endorsing the development of yet another pristine corner of Gozo.