One of the oldest surviving buildings in Fgura could face the axe following a decision to remove a basic degree of protection that could have saved it from destruction, a move fiercely resisted by the local council.

Located in Triq Hompesch, the dilapidated, privately-owned farmhouse had been granted basic protection (Grade 3) in 1995 on the insistence of the Fgura council.

Though this does not prevent such buildings from being demolished, if this were to happen the replacement would have to be “in harmony” with the surroundings.

The council had asked for the farm to be scheduled because parts of it date back some 200 years and the building boasts vernacular features such as stone slabs and kileb (corbels). The council had expressed its wish to restore the building, reconstruct a niche and transform the farm into a public cultural centre and open space.

However, the building was recently de-scheduled on the orders of the Environment and Planning Review Tribunal, a decision, which took the council by complete surprise.

In a Facebook post, Nationalist councillor Mark Lombardo denounced this “shameful” move, which, he claimed, was taken behind the council’s back.

Shameful move taken behind the council’s back

The matter was debated at a council meeting last Thursday in which all those present agreed to challenge the decision in an attempt to prevent the old building from being lost forever.

It transpires that the request to de-schedule had been made by Landscape Properties Limited and Trevor Borg in a case they instituted against the Planning Authority. They had been seeking to remove the Grade 3 protection since 2009, however, the minister responsible for planning at the time had disagreed with them.

A fresh request in 2015 was again rejected by the planning authority’s executive council. But, in its recent decision, the environment tribunal noted it had found no evidence of a niche at the farm, nor any concrete proof that the farm had special relevance to the identity of Fgura.

The tribunal also pointed out that, following changes to the law, the minister responsible for planning was no longer obliged to endorse a decision to de-schedule a property. Consequently, the request to de-schedule was upheld.

Times of Malta asked architect Robert Musumeci, who appeared for Landscape Properties, whether there was any intention to develop the site. However, no reply was received by the time of writing.

In 1998, a permit had been issued on behalf of Francis Buttigieg for the construction of a commercial centre.

For some reason, the development did not materialise.