Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/779073
13 JAMES DEBONO MARSASKALA councillors have been in- formed by the government's public-private partnership arm, Projects Malta, that Gnien Sant Anna was the only viable option for the development of a car park for the town. But mayor Mario Calleja, who in 2011 had proposed a similar project in the same gar- den, insisted with MaltaToday this week that the council is unanimously against the pro- posed development, as it would impact nega- tively on residents. "We can't be in favour of something to which residents are opposed," Calleja told MaltaToday, adding that the locality badly needs a car park but so far no ideal place has been found for it. The mayor was absent from the meeting convoked by Transport Malta, due to work reasons. The meeting was attended by Ron- ald Mizzi, Permanent Secretary for Energy and Projects within the Office of the Prime Minister. Councillors were informed that all sites identified by the council had been unsuitable and that Projects Malta was of the opinion that Gnien Sant Anna was the most feasible option. The reason given was that the land is pub- licly-owned, and strategically located to serve the parking needs of the business communi- ty. The proposed Public-Private Partnership would see a commercial car park coupled with commercial amenities. A few months ago, the Marsaskala council was asked to submit ideas on sites that can be developed into a car park. Nationalist coun- cillor Charlot Cassar told MaltaToday that he finds it "very disturbing" that Projects Malta was even considering to develop this old pub- lic garden at the heart of Marsaskala. He noted that according to the South Local Plan, the site is listed as a public urban open space. "I will not speak about the potential impact of such a senseless project because to me this is simply a non-starter and the idea should be discarded without further discus- sion." A proposed car park in St Anne's garden had been discarded under the previous adminis- tration. Replying to a parliamentary question by Labour MP Owen Bonnici in 2011, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi had replied that the council had abandoned its plans for a car park on the same site "because the project was not well received by residents." But when contacted in 2011 by MaltaTo- day, mayor Mario Calleja gave other reasons why the project was stopped. "We decided to put the project on hold because for the mo- ment we have too much on our plate as our energies are absorbed in a number of other ongoing major projects." Calleja insisted that it was always the coun- cil's intention to consult residents. "In fact, that was the whole point of issuing a call for expressions of interest which was to be fol- lowed by public consultation." Council min- utes showed that during a meeting on 7 S e p t e m b e r , 2011 the mayor acknowledged that the project was "not so well received by nearby resi- dents." He said an "orchestrated email campaign", opposition to his "genuine" proposal to de- velop a car park on the same site, and lack of understanding of a public-private project were to blame. The mayor added that the ex- pressions of interest call was withdrawn be- cause the council was there to accommodate and not to antagonise residents. Plans to develop the garden were also shot down in parliament by former Labour deputy leader George Vella, in a hard-hitting speech he delivered in parliament in April 2011. De- scribing the garden as "the only green space along the coast under the church," Vella de- nounced the absence of tenders or any public information. "Some people are already saying what is going to take place there. I hope that we will not see another concrete jungle there by wit- nessing four or five storeys rise up, with the excuse of enlarging the church parvis, and ac- commodating a few shops." Calleja had insisted that Vella was "mis- informed" and later announced a call for expressions of interest for the proposed de- velopment. On that occasion, the mayor promised that none of the public areas of the garden was to be touched by the develop- ment, but confirmed the council was consid- ering an underground car park, and a "small elevation for four shops". The council had originally asked the gov- ernment to devolve part of the land for a new administrative office. But following the local council reforms allowing councils to enter into public-private partnerships, the council asked for the devolution of the entire garden, to which the government acceded. jdebono@mediatoday.com.mt News maltatoday, SUNDAY, 29 JANUARY 2017 Marsaskala council all out against Projects Malta plan for St Anne garden car park Marsaskala mayor Mario Calleja (left) has performed a volte-face on developing the garden as a car park. Nationalist councillor Charlot Cassar (top) said it was "very disturbing" that Projects Malta was even considering to develop the garden at the heart of Marsaskala The St Anne Garden in Marsaskala PHOTO RAY ATTARD