Din L-Art Ħelwa has filed a court application to force the Planning Authority to take action against developers behind the controversial demolition of part of Balluta’s Villa St Ignatius.
The NGO is claiming that the PA failed to respond or take action when notified that an entire wing of the historic building was being demolished in breach of permit conditions last November, a few days after it was proposed for scheduling.
Lawyer Franco Vassallo, representing Din L-Art Ħelwa, told the Times of Malta the PA had been obliged by law to take action after being made aware of the illegal demolition, and that its failure to do so was in breach of administrative law and an abuse of power.
The action the PA can take against the developers includes penalties or the enforced reconstruction of the demolished portion of the building, Dr Vassallo added.
Villa St Ignatius, in Scicluna Street, is part of a larger property which once housed the first Jesuit’s College in Malta, and which was mentioned as a landmark building as early as 1839.
The court has already ruled - following an earlier filing by Din L-Art Ħelwa - that the demolition last November violated a court order, and contempt of court proceedings have been initiated against the PA’s enforcement chief, developer Paul Gauci and his architect Stephen Vancell.
The PA took no action to halt the demolition and later issued a statement that the case had been investigated and found to be in line with the court order and permit conditions.
This court order provided only for the removal of dangerous structures and required all work to be carried out under the supervision of a court-nominated architect, who has said he was never notified.
READ: PA chairman has 'reservations' about contempt of court charges
The developers, who have faced no penalties from the PA, have since submitted a new application to create a “public square” cutting right through the remaining part of the villa.
The application, submitted on March 19, seeks a “change in alignment to include a pedestrian road within site” and would zone a large area of the site as public open space.
Objectors fear the application, which comes despite a conservation order issued by the Superintendence for Cultural Heritage (SCH), is a pretext for further development on site. The developer has so far declined to comment.