A recently revoked permit for a kiosk in the heart of Paceville has been re-issued despite the objections of the St Julian’s local council and the recommendation of the Planning Authority case officer.
The kiosk in Ross Street, corner with St George’s Street will serve as a tourist information point as well as selling ice-cream and soft drinks.
The case officer had recommended the proposal for refusal as it was not deemed to be in line with the list of acceptable uses for fixed kiosks in the relevant planning policy.
The PA board nevertheless approved the application with eight votes in favour and three votes against, including chairman Vince Cassar.
Applicant John Bonello had already been issued a permit for the kiosk last January but this was revoked in July due to procedural errors.
Mr Bonello had faced stiff competition in a call for tenders for the leasing of the site in Ross Street, which is government land, as both Joseph Tanti and Mark Gaffarena were bidding for the kiosk.
Mr Tanti’s name is synonymous with kiosk operations and Mr Gaffarena has been the subject of controversy over an illegal petrol station in Qormi and the expropriation scandal in Old Mint Street, Valletta.
Mr Tanti and Mr Gaffarena had submitted their own applications for a kiosk on the site, which were both recommended for refusal.
During yesterday’s hearing, St Julian’s deputy mayor Albert Buttigieg called on the board to reject the application, which he said would be another blow to residents in the area’s surrounding the entertainment hotspot.
Dr Buttigieg said the local council had submitted a proposal to narrow the pavement where the kiosk would be located, which is adjacent to a bus stop and taxi rank, in order to ease traffic flows.
Approving the kiosk, which he insisted was not an information point but a commercial venture, would nullify the council’s proposal, he argued.
Dr Buttigieg added that a number of illegal touts had already occupied the pavement and a kiosk would only add to the inconvenience caused to pedestrians, particularly the elderly, who were already facing a squeeze on the stretch of pavement.
“Do not expect people to have respect for this board if you do not show any respect to them,” he cautioned the PA board members. “This would be another blow to citizens and to the credibility of this board.”