A decision to halt demolition works at the Jerma Palace Hotel site in Marsascala has been met with disapproval by the town's local council, which on Monday said the site should be razed as soon as possible.
"Residents have been waiting for years to remove this dangerous building," the council said in a statement in which it urged the Plannng Authority to urgently act to protect Marsascala locals.
An order to halt demolition works was sent out last week after the Environment and Planning Review Tribunal upheld an appeal by the owners and annulled an enforcement order the Planning Authority had slapped on owners Jeffrey and Peter Montebello in August 2016.
The ruling means that the structure can remain in place until the owners, who have long sought to redevelop the site, decide what they wish to do with the site - without facing any fines or other measures.
Council concerned about state of Magħluq
In a separate statement also issued on Monday, Marsascala's local council urged Environment Minister Jose' Herrera to finally sort out the state of affairs at marshland il-Magħluq, following pledges to clean up the site dating back almost nine months.
READ: Dead fish dumped in smelly Magħluq
The Natura 2000 protected site is currently "in a state of abandonment", the council said, with residents and business owners regularly complaining about dirty and litter in the area.
Despite media reports that a clean-up would begin at the end of last year's summer, nothing had been done and the site remained in disarray.
"The local council hopes that the minister and Environment and Resources Authority will give the site the attention it deserves," they said in a statement.