“In principle, MEPA agrees with high rise buildings. The perennial questions are where (in terms of location) and how high?”, claimed the MEPA chairman.

Mr Calleja added that an in-house committee is currently in the process of formulating a “specific policy guideline” on the question of high rise.

At present, only two buildings can realistically claim the title of high-rise. These are the 28-storey Portomaso Tower in St Julians – which, when completed, took over from the 14-storey Preluna hotel as Malta’s tallest building – and the newly-built 17-storey Fortina Hotel tower block at Tigne.

However, this looks set to change as MEPA is currently processing a number of applications for development projects, several of which involve tower blocks. These include a proposed 36-storey block in Qawra, as well as a permit application for a tower to be built on the site of the Mira Buildings in Gzira. The proposed redevelopment of the Trade Fair Grounds in Naxxar is also expected to include high rise buildings in its design, as does the Tigne Project, currently under construction.

At present there are no indications of any time-frames within which the MEPA in-house commmittee’s policy guideline will be complete.