Mepa this afternoon criticised Labour Party spokesman Roderick Galdes, a member of its own board, over comments he made that an application for a Qormi development was being fast-tracked for political reasons. http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20121219/local/pl-says-qormi-development-plans-are-being-fast-tracked-for-political-reasons.450194
"Mepa considers the comments made by the Hon. Galdes, himself a member of the Mepa board, on the eve of the Board meeting during which the application he referred to is going to be decided upon, as inopportune and ill-timed," the Authority said.
"Applications should be decided solely on their own merits, on the basis of planning grounds and policies. Mepa’s decision taking process should not be subjected to any form of interference, political or otherwise."
Mepa pointed out, however, that the said application was evaluated within the stipulated legal time-frames that apply to all applications submitted after January 1, 2011.
"It would have been inappropriate if this was not the case. The whole application process can be viewed online. Any further comments on this application will be given, if opportune, after the application is decided."
The application, by construction magnate Zaren Vassallo, seeks to turn what was previously the Lowenbrau brewery in Qormi into a multi-purpose retail space, including a supermarket, reception hall, garden centre and office space.
Mepa documents now available online
Comments about the proposed Qormi development came at the end of a lengthy press conference in which Dr Stafrace announced that citizens could now access practically all documents related to an application online using their e-ID, free of charge.
Any document relevant to the application, from site plans to objectors’ submissions, case officers’ reports and board decisions for applications filed after June 1, 2012 would now be automatically uploaded to Mepa’s online servers, Dr Stafrace explained.
Mepa board secretary David Cassar said the system had been ready for launch last December, but had been put on hold while architects’ concerns about potential intellectual property theft – such as viewers stealing ideas from site plans – were addressed.
Changes to class use to be opened for public consultation
Mepa will also be soliciting the public’s opinion on a series of proposed medications to the existing class use system.
The proposals suggest doing away with application processes if applicants want to convert a site from one use to another, less onerous one.
In essence, this would mean that someone wanting to turn a shop into a house or office would not need to apply for permission to do so. But anyone wishing to do the opposite would still need to get the planning authority’s approval.
Dr Stafrace explained that the proposed reforms would also create greater distinctions within class categories. Showrooms and supermarkets, for instance, which until now are both classified as class 4 developments, would now be placed in separate sub-categories, since they had different impacts on their surroundings.
The public consultation process will be opened over the next few days and is expected to go on for 4 weeks.
Mepa “undoubtedly better” now than 2008 – de Marco
Environment minister Mario de Marco emphasised that reform of the planning authority had led to a more efficient, accountable, consistent process.
Before the reform, only 36 per cent of applications were processed within established timeframes. That figure now stood at 99.5 per cent, with Mepa having shortened timeframes over the past months.
Having full-time boards solely dedicated to processing applications had also helped decisions be more consistent, while the authority’s drive to make more information available online fostered greater transparency and accountability, Dr de Marco said.
“Of course criticism still exists, and as in the law courts, the losing party will always feel they have been wronged. But while reform must be ongoing and there is still room for improvement, the planning authority is better off than it was before,” he said.
Dr de Marco singled out two things he wanted to see greater emphasis on in the future: updating of existing policies to better reflect modern-day realities, and the simplification of some of the language used in Mepa reports to make them more intelligible to the average citizen.