FAA Appeals MEPA decision on Valletta Regeneration Project…. 22.9.10

 

 

Flimkien għal Ambjent Aħjar has lodged an appeal against the decision of the MEPA Board to grant Planning Application 03521/09 for “the construction of a new city gate for Valletta, Parliament building, new theatre at the Royal Opera House and ditch landscaping”.  Whilst reiterating that it favours the regeneration of the City Gate area, FAA maintains that the decision to build a new parliament house runs counter to the Structure Plan Policy Com 1 which states: ‘A new Government administration centre will be developed outside Valletta to house most Government Departments, while Parliament itself and the Ministries will concentrate in the palaces and auberges of Valletta’.

FAA also holds that the roofless performance space will not meet theatrical requirements. Its use will be limited to a few weeks a year due to inclement weather during the winter months, while noise from festas, concerts and other outdoor activities in and around the Valletta peninsula will limit its use during the summer months.
The planned development will sever the main artery allowing circulation around Valletta. While much of Valletta will become a pedestrian area (a positive measure) the new traffic management plan proposes that all traffic on the Marsamxett side will enter the city by narrow St Mark’s Street, creating a bottleneck characterised by long tailbacks. The streets flanking the Opera House site are also to be re-opened to traffic. FAA maintains that the increased air and noise pollution to be generated by the closure of the Valletta ring-road will have a negative effect on Valletta’s residents and visitors, the business community and old buildings, many of which have been recently cleaned.
Moreover no public consultation was carried out regarding the project which was presented as a fait accompli. This contravenes the Aarhus Convention to which Malta is a signatory which states that citizens must be given access to information and the opportunity participate in decision-making when all options are open and effective public participation can take place.  The Maltese Government also bound itself to ensure that in its decisions due account is taken of the outcome of the public participation.

MEPA’s failure to respect the provisions of the Structure Plan and the Aarhus Convention have left FAA with no option but to appeal this decision, which appeal MEPA referred to Cabinet.