Concrete not flowerbeds in chaotic garden

Hastings Gardens in Valletta have been undergoing rehabilitation for far too long - for over four years according to one resident - and, yet, not only are the gardens unfinished but they are also in utter chaos.

There is rubbish everywhere. It is not just recent construction debris, which is understandable when there is a job in hand, but there is all kind of rubbish that has obviously been lying there for months.

A stroll through the gardens revealed that the entrance from Windmill Street might now be rid of the skip that was permanently parked there, but there is still piles of rubbish and the monument has weeds growing out at the top.

It is unclear whether it is intended to let cars in to the garden because the pathways are nearly wide enough for a carnival float to go through.

The impression is more of a place which is going to generate noisy activity rather than peace and quiet.

Certainly the flowerbeds have shrunk and the pathways have quadrupled in size. Rather than being visually restful with greenery and flora, the eyes are strained by expanses of concrete.

At the moment weeds and rubbish are the only things sprouting. It would be wonderful if at least the vast areas of concrete will eventually house sculpture exhibitions. But according to a resident they have some naff garden equipment planned.

A tree that has obviously been struck by large equipment lies on its side, left to die.

On the way up to the upper part, rubbish is strewn all along the bastion wall.

When you get to the top it is more of the same, except here three conifers are halfway buried in sand and other building materials, and two seem to just have been chopped down. There were no workmen in sight.

One resident insisted some workmen do appear. They come in different "gangs". On one day one can see some arrive at 7 a.m. and are gone by 8.45 a.m. (on the same day) and on other days others appear do a bit more and disappear again.

One resident said she had not seen any workmen for three months. Coincidentally, she said, she did see some workmen dumping some materials and then leaving yesterday, the day the photos were taken.

Signs outside the gardens offer apologies for work in progress, but there is not one single bench to sit on at the moment. Rather than finishing the top or the bottom part completely and then finishing the other, the work seems to have no plan at all. There are pockets of finished work and large areas of chaos.

Like a West End successful play it seems the work in progress will run and run, except that this is a thoroughly bad show.