Abelas converting Xewkija farmhouse into seven double bedroom residence

The Prime Minister and his wife have filed a planning development application to convert a farmhouse they own in Xewkija, Gozo into a large residence with seven double bedrooms with en suite bathrooms, an internal underground indoor pool, spa and gym facilities.

According to the application filed by Lydia Abela last January, the development is “of a residential nature” and is intended for use by the Prime Minister, his wife and their child.

A look at the detailed plans by interior designers speaking to The Shift, however, shows how the development being proposed for the Prime Minister’s family, “looks more like the commercial development of a boutique hotel rather than a family holiday home in Gozo”.

According to the plans being proposed by veteran architect Joseph Cassar, who currently serves on the board of a government agency to which he was nominated by the Prime Minister, the Abelas are seeking permission to excavate a large garden at the back of the property to build an underground floor that would include a large pool and jacuzzi, gym, spa, and a wine cellar.

This will also allow for the property’s large garden to be landscaped and embellished.

The Abelas are also proposing a large extension to the old farmhouse’s first floor to fit in three more double bedrooms, all with en suite bathrooms.

According to the plans presented to the PA by Lydia Abela, the new Gozo ‘residence’ will have a total of seven double bedrooms and a study including an en suite shower, which could also be turned into another bedroom.

The Abelas have owned the Xewkija farmhouse for a number of years but never refurbished it despite having had various planning development plans approved. But this is the first time they have filed for a significant redevelopment of their Gozitan ‘residence’, which will cost hundreds of thousands to complete.

The residence is surrounded by agricultural fields at the back and The Shift is reliably informed that the Prime Minister and his wife have been discussing the possibility of acquiring more land to enlarge their garden.

The Prime Minister’s latest development proposal comes only a few weeks after the PA approved the two-tumolo Outside Development Zone farmhouse in Zejtun – acquired under dubious circumstances shortly before Robert Abela become Prime Minister – to be flattened and re-developed into a luxurious rural residence.

Purchased in 2017 just a few weeks after the PA sanctioned all the previous owners’ illegalities, the Abelas paid just a bargain €600,000 of the property’s estimated €2 million estimated market price.

While Abela declared he paid all the taxes on the property, which experts insist was grossly undervalued, the Commissioner of Revenue failed to send his officials for an inspection and an independent valuation.

In the meantime, it transpired the PM had rented out the uninhabited villa to two Russians as a prerequisite for their Maltese citizenship applications.

The couple’s declared income has taken a significant nosedive since Abela was elected Prime Minister and the two simultaneous large property development projects could be a means of compensating for the shortfall.

Before Robert’s election, the Abelas were declaring taxable income of €252,000 a year, mostly from government direct orders, in particular from the Planning Authority, the Prime Minster has seen his annual income drop to just €66,000 a year later.

In his latest declaration of assets, the Prime Minster failed to state whether his wife, also a lawyer by profession, had brought in any income in 2021.

Although between 2020 and 2021 the Prime Minister did not declare any new investments or properties, his savings took a downturn. While the Abelas declared having €534,411 in savings in various bank accounts in 2020, their savings had shrunk to €376,444 just 12 months later.