Two vernacular properties in Triq Wied is-Simar, Qala have been served with an Emergency Conservation Order (ECO) for their immediate protection, the Planning Authority said Friday.

The Planning Authority said it believes that these 2-storey properties, that are of evident antiquity and cultural heritage value are at risk, especially given that a planning application has been submitted proposing the demolition of one of the properties.

The ECO which has a one-year validity period will enable the Authority, in collaboration with the Superintendent of Cultural Heritage, to carry out a full and thorough assessment of the properties so as to determine the long-term level of protection these properties merit. Under this order, the properties carry a Grade 2 Protection status.

Both properties carry typical traditional rural vernacular architecture characteristic including a minimal number of apertures on the façade with small proportions. The buildings are roofed over with a plain cornice and devoid of a ‘parapet’ wall. The ECO also obliges the owner of the property to ensure that the building does not incur any further damage and that its upkeep and maintenance shall be exclusively their responsibility by means of a continuous maintenance programme.

Last week, the Planning Authority issued a similar Emergency Conservation Order (ECO) on one of Malta’s best modernist examples of architecture - Palazzina Vincenti in St Julians. The Palazzina was built by Gustavo Romeo Vincenti, one of Malta’s most prominent architects of the first half of the 20th century and served as his residence up until he died in 1974.