Controversial Bahrija ODZ villa project withdrawn following objections

A controversial project to turn untouched ODZ land in Bahrija into two massive villas with pools has been withdrawn after hundreds of objections flooded the Planning Authority.

The project’s architect, Albert Spiteri, a full-time employee of Infrastructure Malta who is also working privately for clients of the same government agency, has informed the Planning Authority that his client was abandoning the project and no longer has the intention to turn the ODZ land into dwellings.

Under the name of Infinite Fusion Properties, the application was filed last year to turn rural land into villas.

While hundreds of residents, NGOs and other interested parties called on the PA to reject the development application, both the Superintendence for Cultural Heritage and the Environment and Resources Authority dubbed the application a “non-starter”.

ERA insisted that the project would encroach on a protected Natura 2000 site, resulting in the degradation and direct loss of protected habitat if it went ahead.

Infinite Fusion Properties is owned by Liam Ferriggi who is also in business with Labour pollster Vince Marmara through another company.

Ferriggi’s company was part of Bifra JV, a consortium tasked with upgrading Malta’s road network tunnels a few years ago. The project, initially estimated to cost some €12.5 million, ended up costing taxpayers some €17 million through delays and variations, approved by Infrastructure Malta architects.

The result today, just a few months after completion, is that the tunnels are already in almost the same sorry state that they were in before the project.

The Infrastructure Malta architect tasked with overseeing the project, including the approval of variations and added costs, was Albert Spiteri, now also working privately for Liam Ferriggi.

Infrastructure Malta CEO, Ivan Falzon, did not reply to questions on whether the agency permitted Spiteri to offer personal services to government clients.