'Severe impact' if Comino bungalows are used as homes, impact assessment finds
A proposed change in use of the Comino Hotel bungalows from tourism to residential could have a “severe impact” on the island’s ecology, according to the project’s environmental impact assessment. This is due to the potential increase in its permanent population, which now numbers just three people. Though the likelihood of bungalow owners transferring to live permanently on the island is unknown, this would be of major significance. It would affect the local ecology through increased trampling over sensitive areas and additional noise and light pollution, the EIA states. Without a coordinated effort to mitigate these, the integrity of important habitats and species could be affected, it adds. Application PA/04777/20, by HV Hospitality Limited, proposes the redevelopment of the existing 100-guestroom Comino Hotel in San Niklaw Bay and the bungalows complex in Santa Marija Bay, which date back to the 1960s. The proposed hotel would have 71 guest-rooms, with various amenities, while the Santa Marija Village, with its 21 “serviced” bungalows, would have a restaurant and a small general store. The EIA says these bungalows will be for sale and prospective owners can opt to put their...