Government land in the area known as Tal-Bebbux has been excluded from plans for roads and tall buildings, the government announced.
Back in April 2024, the government had given the go-ahead for a road and the building of three-storey blocks in the arable Tal-Bebbux area in Zurrieq earning the anger of local farmers and NGOs alike.
The Ministry for Lands pointed out that the public land at Tal-Bebbux may only be used for scopes that benefit the community with a portion remaining as open space.
It said that in the last few weeks, the application presented to the Planning Authority, for roads and high buildings, was amended with the government land now being excluded completely from the development proposal. It said that instead, it has been declared a Category B site for social use with a declaration of 750 metres squared of the land to be kept as open space.
The Ministry for Lands said that an agreement between the Lands Authority and the Zurrieq Local Council, signed on Friday, meant that 1,180 metres squared of land was passed to the Local Council to be used by the local community.
Lands Minister Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi said that these agreements are a clear sign of the government's faith in local counsils to improve their operations for the benefit of residents. He said that the Lands Authority is carrying out a good exercise to identify more government land and propety that can be used by local councils and non-governmental organizations.
"I am sure that this initiative is giving a great contribution to the local councils and I look forward to more projects so that, as a government, we continue to facilitate services to the citizens through more high quality and sustainable public buildings," Zrinzo Azzopardi said.