Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1532058
2 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 2 FEBRUARY 2025 NEWS JAMES DEBONO jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt KURT SANSONE ksansone@mediatoday.com.mt Estranged voters: Birkirkara and MARSASKALA, Birkirka- ra and Pieta will be split up between different elector- al districts if changes to the boundaries proposed by the Electoral Commission are ac- cepted. The three localities will join Naxxar, which will see more residents being hived off from the core community after the locality lost more streets to the 10th District in the last boundary changes before the 2022 general election. Until the last general elec- tion, the Birkirkara elec- torate, which now numbers 17,621, voted in the 8th Dis- trict. The proposed changes would see 4,113 voters hived off from the rest of the local- ity and shifted to the 1st Dis- trict. The estranged voters include residents in the Fleur de Lys hamlet and 3,000 other voters in Birkirkara proper. Similarly, 733 voters from Marsaskala will be hived off from their locality and shift- ed to the 2nd District. Mar- saskala currently has 10,436 voters, who until the last election voted together in the 3rd District. The same fate awaits voters in Pieta. The changes will see 1,673 voters from Pieta re- moved from the 1st District and shifted to the 9th Dis- trict. The rest of Pieta's voters in the Gwardamanġa hamlet, numbering 1,034, will remain in the 1st District. Naxxar will continue to see its community butchered in the proposed plans. Naxx- ar voters hived off in 2021, numbering 3,056 voters, will still vote in the 10th District but they will be joined by an additional 1,875 voters from more streets in the locality. The Baħar iċ-Ċagħaq ham- let, part of Naxxar, will also remain in the 10th District. The remaining core voters in Naxxar, now reduced to 6,000, will be expected to vote in the 8th District instead of the 12th District. These plans, seen by Mal- taToday, were put forward by the electoral commission- ers nominated by the Labour Party. The proposal also reu- nites the hamlet of Ħal Farruġ with Luqa in the 6th District and the hamlet of Burmarrad with St Paul's Bay in the 12th District. Additionally, several streets in Ħaż-Żebbuġ that were hived off in the 2021 THE Lands Authority has sub- mitted a planning application for a masterplan that sets out the extent and design guidelines for outdoor catering areas at Pjazza San Ġorġ in Rabat, Gozo. The development comes fol- lowing protests by residents and NGOs last summer over the growing presence of com- mercial establishments in the public square. The square has become an obligatory stop for day-trip- pers visiting the island for pas- tizzi, cakes, coffee and lunch. The masterplan designates three areas for chairs and tables on three sides of the square. The proposal foresees the erection of "stainless steel flat bars" to define the "limits for tables and chairs." It also ensures an eight-metre-wide unencumbered area between the two main seating areas. A spokesperson for the Lands Ministry explained that the application was submitted to establish a "coherent approach to providing adequate space for tables and chairs while re- specting the historic urban space of Pjazza San Ġorġ, Ra- bat, Gozo". The spokesperson added the masterplan will en- sure "a clear distinction be- tween the area allocated for ta- bles and chairs and the public space". According to the ministry, the application is still in its early stages and will be subject to further discussions with rel- evant entities and stakehold- ers. In June 2024, several Gozitan organisations, including the Archpriest of the Basilica, the Soċjetà Filarmonika La Stella, and the Fondazzjoni Belt Vic- toria, joined forces with Movi- ment Graffitti in a demonstra- tion against the encroachment of public space in the square. Canon Joseph Curmi, Arch- priest of St George's Basili- ca, also complained that St George's Square had been completely taken over by ta- bles, chairs, tents, and other structures belonging to com- mercial outlets, making it im- possible for religious functions to take place. The Archpriest had said at- tempts at dialogue with the re- sponsible authorities – includ- ing the Lands Authority, the Malta Tourism Authority, and the Planning Authority – led nowhere, as the authorities re- fused to shoulder their respon- sibility, and enforcement was practically non-existent. After the protest, several entities de- scended on the square to en- force existing conditions with the Gozo Ministry promising a masterplan would be drawn up for the area. Lands Authority lays out tables and chairs masterplan for Victoria's Pjazza San Gorg The Lands Authority has filed a planning application to regulate outdoor catering areas at Pjazza San Gorg in Rabat, Gozo Dozens of Rabat residents protested the overcrowding of the St George pjazza last summer due to excessive tables and chairs set out by local establishments