A mysterious private investor plans to build a 25-metre indoor pool and catering space on an Għarb site originally intended as a recreational playground under the guise of a private public partnership, Partit Demokratiku has warned.

In a statement, PD warned that the planning application was setting the scene for the transfer of a considerable portion of public land to unknown private entities.

The PD noted that an application had been filed to sanction differences in the leisure park's layout and design from an application that had been approved in 2007 to develop the site as a two-level adventure and recreation playground.

No information has been given as to who the private partner is, what the terms and conditions set in the private public agreement were, and how this would benefit the public.

“A public authority must in no way facilitate the transfer and transformation of public land into a private enterprise, thereby denying the general public the enjoyment without restriction of this land, so that a select few can make a hefty profit,” it said.

It noted that most of the area earmarked for this development was designated as an open air formal recreational area in the local plan.

“By no stretch of the imagination can a class 3C subterranean pool and 4C facility fall within the definition of an open air formal recreational area,” it said.

The Gozo and Comino local plan delineated that non-residential swimming baths or pools were permissible only if they were of a small scale, did not create an adverse impact on the residential amenity of the area, and were located on land already occupied by buildings.

Since this was virgin land with both protected olive and pine trees, it should never be used for profit.