A request to sanction about 1,800 square metres of illegally built space on an Qormi petrol station has been refused by a planning tribunal.
Sanctioning would only create an undesirable precedent
J. Gaff Petrol Station had filed a request to sanction the first floor and a basement but a Development Commission refused it in 2011, saying it went against a Local Plan policy.
It added there was “no justified reason on sound planning grounds as to why the development is essential and genuinely needed in that particular location”.
The applicants’ lawyers and architects argued that the planning authority failed to apply the correct policies to sanction the area. Instead, it “allowed its decision to be prejudiced by the illegality”.
The policies were applied “unreasonably and improperly” and in a “discriminatory and unfair manner” towards their client as other similar sites had been granted a permit. However, their client was refused a permit in violation of his fundamental human rights.
They argued there was also a violation of the fair hearing rule within a reasonable time and the reasons for refusal did not reflect the situation on the ground; they were “basically unreasonable”.
The planning authority told the tribunal that a set of offices on the first floor of the petrol station were not essential to the daily running of the facility. The rooms could be located at ground floor level.
“The creation or sanctioning of such a large office space cannot be considered as appropriate in such an outside development zone or strategic open space area,” the planning regulator said.
There were therefore no planning reasons to justify sanctioning around 892 square metres of office space.
Even though the applicant was slapped with an enforcement notice for building an extra floor, he still kept on operating by selling fuel and cars, the tribunal added, refusing the request.