Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/546399
Tim Diacono Two proposed tower blocks that could become Malta's tallest two buildings will suffocate Sliema's residents, green party Alternat- tiva Demokratika warned. "These two projects will lead to a traffic increase of 4,000 cars in what is already a heavily congest- ed area," AD chairperson Arnold Cassola told a press conference outside the former Union Club, on which a 38-storey tower for the Townsquare project, proposed by the Gasan Group, is set to be built. "It is plainly insulting for the project developers to have said that this increased traffic gridlock twill not be of any detriment to the residents," he said referring to an interview with MaltaToday. A second 40-storey tower hotel has also been proposed on the site of the Fort Cambridge former mil- itary barracks, just a stone's throw away from Townsquare. If the plans are approved, the two towers will dwarf the St Julian's Portomaso tower which stands at 23 floors. Cassola added that the projects will lead to air pollution, more health hazards, parking problems, and an uglification of the Sliema seafront and Valletta skyline. AD's councillor for Sliema, Michael Briguglio, said the lo- cal council had already objected to the development to the Malta Environment and Planning Au- thority on grounds established by a MEPA environmental impact as- sessment. Briguglio, who as part of Front Harsien oDZ recently spearhead- ed a 4,000-person strong protest against the development of a pri- vate university at Zonqor Point, accused MEPA of behaving like "the government's poodle". "In an insult to the Sliema lo- cal council, we only got to know about this proposed development through the newspapers, rather than through MEPA," he said. "The local council had to chase MEPA to submit our feedback, whereas a proper regulator would have done the contrary. The talk around town is that Sliema is no longer 'taghna lkoll' but rather be- longs to two developers," he said, referring to Gap Developments and Mark Gasan, proposers of the Fort Cambridge and Townsquare developments respectively. AD deputy chairperson Car- mel Cacopardo insisted that the green party was against high-rise all over Malta, on the principle that projects of such magnitude degraded the quality of life of resi- dents and that there were already 72,000 unused dwellings pep- pered across the islands. "People who live near Town- square and who have invested in solar water heating and solar en- ergy panels might as well throw their investment away," Cacop- ardo said of the tower's shadowing effect. In a statement, Flimkien Ghal- Ambjent Ahjar demanded a more holistic approach to development and called for investigations into whether the infrastructure of the area could support talls building, residents' needs and traffic pres- sures. "The Tigné peninsula already suffers gridlock, while the re- peated power cuts in this very area recently show that the elec- tricity network cannot cope with the present pressure, let alone the increased consumption of two high-rise buildings," coordinator Astrid Vella said. Tall buildings tend to need more energy to heat and cool the build- ing than traditional structures, and reportedly create 'heat can- yons' in the neighbourhood, caus- ing increased heat, lack of sun and air to the homes in the area. FAA said it was extremely con- cerned that recent MEPA propos- als were omitting social impact studies for major projects, and that traffic impact survey conclu- sions were patently biased in fa- vour of development. "Disregarding social impact studies shows that the residents' needs are being ignored by this government. Townsquare will de- stroy much of the garden of Villa Drago, one of Sliema's few surviv- ing heritage buildings, which gar- den is supposed to be protected." maltatoday, Sunday, 26 July 2015 News 'Sliema skyscrapers will choke residents' From left: Ralph Cassar, Michael Briguglio, Arnold Cassola and Carmel Cacopardo at a press conference yesterday