The Planning Authority has given the go-ahead for Caritas to build a new home for a therapeutic community of young drug users in place of an ODZ farmhouse at Ta' Kandja, Siġġiewi.
Caritas director Leonid McKay said the home would address a growing need for treatment of drug users under the age of 18, for whom the only treatment options currently available involved being mixed with adults.
Mr McKay explained that the nature of the project required it to be located in a quiet and natural environment to ensure adequate therapy and rehabilitation. He pointed to case studies showing the benefits of residents temporarily detaching themselves from the wider community as part of their treatment, particularly as many came from troubled or dangerous backgrounds.
The development, approved unanimously by the PA board today, will involve the demolition of the farmhouse on Triq L-Imqabba, Ta’ Kandja, and the construction of a two-storey therapeutic centre including an administration area, 10 bedrooms, common rooms and crafts room.
A sports pitch, animal enclosures and agriculture area will be built adjacent to the main building in what is currently vacant land, all of which will play a role in patients’ treatment alongside traditional therapy.
During the PA hearing, Environment and Resources Authority (ERA) chairman Victor Axiak said that after a detailed assessment, the authority concluded that although the project was located outside development zones, given the nature of the project, the environmental impacts could be suitably concerned.
This view was echoed by the mayor of Siggiewi.
Board members, however, insisted on a condition requiring the building to be demolished if its use as a therapeutic centre is discontinued.
Din L-Art Helwa had objected to the creation of new residences within ODZ, arguing that the development would see the demolition of a traditional building and the construction of a building with a much larger footprint, with the land take up totalling 4,600m².
The existing building is a rural farmhouse which has typical vernacular architectural features, such as kileb, arches and external staircases, although the parts that will be demolished are currently dilapidated, and parts of the building will be reconstructed to retain its original layout.