The Ghar id-Dud car park

As the Qui-si-Sana car park debacle goes on, a strange lull has fallen on the future of the car park projected underneath the Ghar id-Dud promenade. Our company, as one of the bidders for the tender issued in April, 1999, is very anxious to know what progress, if any, has been achieved. The official brief did stipulate that "works are to be completed within 12 months from contract publication" and that it should accommodate from 150-180 vehicles along a stretch of 240 metres of the promenade.

The Ghar id-Dud car park project was promoted by our company through an application made to the Malta Environment and Planning Authority in 1998 which, in turn, had, after several discussions and studies, given the green light to our plans.

As a matter of procedure, our company was then asked to withdraw its application to make way for the issue of a public tender by the Lands Department. Another company was awarded the tender and till this day we have no news of any progress.

Following the recent debate regarding the Qui-si-Sana car park, a question does beckon: As with Qui-si-Sana, does the successful tender follow the brief given for the Ghar id-Dud project and if not why has it been accepted in the first place?

Our company is concerned that the Ghar id-Dud car park has also been radically altered to increase substantially the number of vehicles spaces and include other amenities which might be making the development commercially profitable (or more profitable) for the developer but at the same time creating a project that is incompatible with the surroundings, resulting in a status quo stalemate between Mepa and the developer.

Why is the Qui-si-Sana project being pushed ahead notwithstanding the resistance by the residents and ignoring the Ghar id-Dud project? Can someone please explain? How about Mepa or maybe the Lands Department or the minister responsible for the environment who after all is the parliamentary representative of the Sliema constituents?

In this situation our company cannot but feel having been taken for a ride by the authorities at a financial cost while inflicting great frustration on residents (and indeed the public as well) at witnessing the deplorable state of what can potentially be the most beautiful part of the Sliema promenade.