Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/376810
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 7 SEPTEMBER 2014 6 News New WasteServ tender to guarantee jobs for serving employees Plans for Valletta ditch shelved JAMES DEBONO PLANS for a public garden in the Valletta ditch have been shelved un- til the completion of the new parlia- ment building, and the government has so far given no feedback on plans submitted by the Renzo Piano work- shop to turn the ditch into a public garden. "Focus is entirely on the comple- tion of the Parliament building at the moment. Once parliament is operat- ing from the new building, the focus will be turned to the ditch and other related projects," a spokesperson for Infrastructure Minister Joe Mizzi told MaltaToday. In December 2013 a spokesperson for the ministry had confirmed the government was reviewing plans for a public garden under city gate. This review was being made to- gether with the Renzo Piano Build- ing Workshop (RPBW) who were responsible for the master plan of City Gate. But Antonio Belvedere, from the workshop, told MaltaToday that no feedback was given by the govern- ment on these plans. "I haven't heard any news on this item… I hope one day we will be able to complete also this part of the scheme," Belvedere told MaltaToday when contacted this week. In a reply to a parliamentary ques- tion in July 2013, Joe Mizzi an- nounced that the government had scrapped plans for a public garden in the ditch under City Gate to save €1.9 million. But in December MaltaToday re- vealed that the government was consulting with acclaimed architect Renzo Piano's firm to come up with a less expensive design. On that occasion Belvedere – a partner in Piano's workshop – made it clear that one of the project's aims was still that of creating a public garden in that portion of the ditch falling in the city gate site boundary, between the St James and St John Cavalier branches of the fortifica- tions. In December a spokesperson for Mizzi confirmed that the ministry was reviewing plans for the Valletta ditch under City Gate. "This review is being made together with Renzo Piano Building Workshop who were responsible for the master plan of city gate." On his part, Belvedere insisted that there was "no plan to divert from our original scheme, which has been ap- proved by the Malta Environment and Planning Authority". The objective of the current discus- sions with the government is to re- view the construction cost "to make the scheme affordable". According to Belvedere, the por- tion of the ditch between the St James and St John Cavalier branches is the most important because the two branches are visible from the city gate bridge, and belong holisti- cally to the overall scheme. The construction of reservoirs to store rainwater, for use as second- class water in the new parliament, has not been affected by the change in plans. MaltaToday is informed that one of the options which was being con- sidered by the government was that of asphalting the ditch, to use it as a public car park, as had been done in the past. MATTHEW VELLA A controversial contract for con- tractor employees serving Waste- Serv, the national waste agency, expired in August, paving the way for the environment ministry to issue a fresh call for tenders. The "largesse" shown by the pre- vious government to contractor JF Services – as claimed by a govern- ment source – was said to have informed the need for a fresh call for tenders to "address the main deficiencies highlighted in previ- ous National Audit Office (NAO) reports on the company." MaltaToday understands that the director of contracts held con- sultations with the NAO to avoid prior pitfalls even before the ten- der proper was formulated. The successful bidder for the new contract will be bound to take over serving employees on a contract basis through trans- fer of business, but certain terms that were previously decidedly loaded in favour of JF Security to the detriment of WasteServ, have been amended to lessen the strain on public finances, which led to additional subsidies for the state- owned utility. Various stakeholders had their say during a consultation called by envi- ronment minister Leo Brincat on the future of WasteServ as 'an operator of last resort', in accordance with the waste plan of the present and former administrations. "Waste sector experts feel that as a result of these new contractual pa- rameters there will be less strain on public finances due to what is being described as a 'win-win' result thanks to revised, more equitable tender terms," the government source said. A ministry official contacted by MaltaToday said the successful bid- der will need to steer clear of any possibilities of precarious work con- ditions as this would subject the com- pany to disqualification. The Union Haddiema Maghqudin is known to have been briefed about these developments, which include a finance ministry-authorised exten- sion for a limited period of time of the expired contract until the new call for tenders is finalised and adjudicated, and the new contract comes into ef- fect. Leo Brincat