An “elegant” house in Gozo by the architect who designed the Xewkija and Paola parish churches is at risk of being demolished, and experts believe it should instead be turned into a boutique hotel.
The townhouse, designed by renowned architect and civil engineer Ġużè Damato, sits on Triq il-Kastell, just outside the Ċittadella.
It had been built in the early 1950s by Manwel Magro and was sold to the Cathedral Chapter in 2003.
More than 10 years on, the Gozo Ministry filed an application with the planning authority to demolish the building and construct a three-storey car-park and a pedestrian walkway to the Citadel.
Photographer Daniel Cilia was “shocked” to stumble upon the Mepa notice saying the house was being demolished to make space for a car park.
Surely there can be more imaginative solutions which will spare the fate of this house
He had “discovered” the house when working on a book about the architecture of Victoria a few years back.
“I must have driven up the road in front of it hundreds of times yet I never really noticed it. Eventually I got into the house and managed to see and photograph its grand interior which has one of the most beautiful staircases I have ever seen in a Maltese house.”
There is little good contemporary architecture in Gozo, and Mr Cilia cannot believe this elegant house will be destroyed.
“The house should be retained for posterity and it can easily be converted into a boutique hotel or, as originally intended, a chapter house for the Gozo Cathedral.” Quoting architect Jean Novel, who said: “With the same space, you can make a masterpiece or cause a disaster”, Mr Cilia said in this case, a masterpiece was being destroyed to make a disaster.
He called for a compromise to save the house and have a smaller car park in the fields at the back.
Architect Conrad Thake also believes that its spacious interiors, characterised by a beautifully-crafted staircase and internal doorways, flanked by decorative columns and architraves, are worthy of conservation.
“The proposal to demolish the interiors, merely retain the facade and build a new three-storey car-park behind it is a classic case of hollow architectural ‘facadism’, which runs counter to the true spirit of architectural conservation and rehabilitation in such a prime urban conservation area.
“The existing building with its extensive grounds at the back is ideally suited to be converted and rehabilitated into a boutique hotel or studio-type tourist accommodation.
This would complement the excellent project currently being undertaken by the Gozo Ministry to revamp the pedestrian approach to the citadel and the visitor’s centre,” he noted.
While recognising there was a parking issue, he noted that providing a three-storey car park in lieu of this townhouse was “certainly” not the solution, as it generated more vehicular traffic to the area.
The parking issue should be resolved by identifying a suitably located park-and-ride and operating small electrical taxi-cabs to the Citadel, Mr Thake added.
He expressed hope that the authorities would seriously reconsider the preservation of this townhouse in its entirety and find alternative parking solutions.
When contacted, Din l-Art Ħelwa executive president Maria Grazia Cassar noted that, in principle, the NGO was against all demolition of urban fabric characterising architectural landscape – whether a humble vernacular building, a palace, or a traditional townhouse.
“In this case the house seems to be the work of a well-known 20th century architect, and should already have the credentials to be protected. Moreover, its interior is also very beautiful,” she said, noting that demolition should be the last resort.
“We can understand the need for a multi-storey car park to service the Ċittadella, but surely there can be more imaginative solutions which will spare the fate of this house?
“It is a pity, and a great waste not to use the potential that this particular house has, as an architectural gem. A car park can be built, or excavated elsewhere.”
Other architectural works by Ġużè Damato
Renowned architect and civil engineer Ġużè Damato drew plans for Paola’s Christ the King Parish church in 1922, with work starting a year later. This was one of the first major projects on the island to use reinforced concrete technology.
Other major church buildings designed by Damato are the St John’s parish church in Xewkija, which was modelled after the church of Santa Maria della Salute in Venice, and the equally monumental Carmelite church in Valletta.
According to the late architectural historian Leonard Mahoney, “the scale of these three churches reveals Damato’s love of grandeur and his ability to deal with the structural problems this created”.
The list of his architectural works includes the De La Salle College complex, Cottonera, St Monica school, Birkirkara, the Immaculate Conception school, Tarxien, St Francis and Immaculate Conception churches in Ħamrun, St Catherine of Siena hospital, Attard, the Carmelite church, Fleur-de-Lys, the MUSEUM headquarters at Blata l-Bajda and the Capuchin church at Xemxija (demolished).