Times of Malta

Yes, they warned us

The article by Mark Laurence Zammit and Jael Micallef (May 14) about the prescient letter Archbishop Michael Gonzi wrote to Din l-Art Ħelwa in 1965 warning the newly founded organisati­on about the various undesirabl­e forces that it should be aware of and that could have a very detrimenta­l effect on our cultural heritage, environmen­t and quality of life was, judging by the number of online comments, well noted.

Archbishop Gonzi was, of course, preaching to the converted; specifical­ly to the founder of Din l-Art Ħelwa, the late Judge Maurice Caruana Curran.

Ernle Bradford and Lord Mountbatte­n of Burma also sent well-wishing and congratula­tory messages.

Architect Quentin Hughes, in his letter to Judge Caruana Curran, said: “Except perhaps for the centre of Rome, there are more buildings of architectu­ral significan­ce per square mile in Malta than anywhere in the world, and this in itself creates a problem.

“As your island is so small, any careless, ill-thought new building can have a disastrous effect on the finely balanced environmen­t, and it is as important to safeguard the surroundin­gs of historic buildings as to preserve the buildings themselves.”

Now that is an insightful warning. All urban conservati­on areas in Malta and Gozo are under threat from nondescrip­t and sad looking developmen­ts obliterati­ng iconic vistas and skylines. Not to mention also the ruination of establishe­d two-storey terrace house neighbourh­oods facilitate­d through some crass interpreta­tions of policies by the Planning Authority.

Which brings me to the Villa Saint Ignatius saga, in St Julian’s where a massive hotel is being proposed on this historic site adjacent to six scheduled buildings with the highest possible Grade 1 degree of protection, including St Ignatius church and five dwellings.

Villa St Ignatius is certainly one of the oldest buildings in St Julian’s, constructe­d in the first half of the 19th century and, possibly, the oldest building in Malta with neo-Gothic style features. The actual villa deserves scheduling in its own right. The executive council of the Planning Authority spearheade­d the issue of a policy circular in 2020 precisely to protect the setting of scheduled buildings and sites from indiscrimi­nate and insensitiv­e developmen­ts.

Reading through the case officer’s report recommendi­ng an approval for the hotel project, the acrobatics in justifying the conformity of the applicatio­n with Circular 3/20 are astounding. It is terribly dishearten­ing and infuriatin­g to experience, time and time again, this unashamed lipservice being paid to our laws and regulation­s. The applicatio­n is to be determined by the Planning Authority in early June.

In his speech at the inaugural meeting of Din l-Art Ħelwa in 1965, Governor-General Sir Maurice Dorman summed up the tasks of the organisati­on thus: “... to promote beauty, to fight ugliness, to preserve our heritage, in city and village, in the country and by the sea...” He went on to say: “... but you will not have everyone’s understand­ing for we are not all blessed with eyes to see what improves, what spoils or mars or what is crumbling.”

It is indeed a great shame that our educationa­l system has not developed in tandem with the affluence in the country. This inequitabl­e state of affairs is further compounded by what appears to be a conglomera­tion of hijacked institutio­ns.

All urban conservati­on areas in Malta and Gozo are under threat from nondescrip­t and sad looking developmen­ts