Land department enabled commercial ODZ permit
A controversial development permit issued for the construction of a three-storey commercial building in an Outside Development Zone in Burmarrad was only possible after the involvement of the Land Department, The Sunday Times of Malta has learnt.
This newspaper revealed last week that a permit for a commercial development was approved by the planning authority on a site that could only be used for agricultural activities until 2063.
The public land was given to Farmer’s Wine Co-operative in 1965 on emphytheusis (a long-term lease) for 99 years to be used for wine production. Yet the development permit recently approved is for a retail outlet, storage and offices on three floors.
The company behind the development is BCBT Properties, in which Burmarrad Commercials is a main shareholder. Farmer’s Wine sold the lease to BCBT for over €815,000 in 2008. At that point, the condition of use for agricultural activities still stood. In October 2013, the government transferred the public land to a third party as compensation for the expropriation of a large tract of land in Mosta.
The law states that redemption of such a lease should not have meant it loses its agricultural function,...