Wied iż-Żurrieq is no shambles

Eugenio Cutajar (Wied iż-Żurrieq Shambles, June 29) is right when he says that Wied iż-Żurrieq is the responsibility of the Qrendi local council. But he is not right when he writes that the place is in a mess.

Tourists and locals who frequent Wied iż-Żurrieq are already getting a good service from the council that cares and invests a lot of funds each and every year (not only in summer) for the area to be maintained.

Among the services provided by Qrendi council at Wied iż-Żurrieq are the opening and manning of public conveniences, which is an excellent service, road cleaning and sweeping seven days a week including Sundays and public holidays, as well as beach cleaning. The council, with the help of its contractor, the Environment Landscape Consortium, also keeps the soft area at the belvedere in good shape and that includes watering and tree pruning. We also carry out frequent and regular painting of walls and pavements, benches, road markings etc. as well as re-installation and upkeep of bins throughout the area up to the main part of the panoramic road. These bins together with their cages were vandalised many times. Our council also maintains street lighting in the area.

A number of ladders, by which bathers and divers can leave the water, are installed and maintained by the council on a regular basis throughout the year. It is most unfortunate that some of the ladders "vanish" during the night or are dumped at the bottom of the seabed! This is a frequently occurring "mystery", particularly with regard to the two ladders on the inner side of the creek better known as Id-Dikkiena.

Of particular interest is what happened to the two ladders installed on June 2, both of which vanished within a matter of days. When we investigated we found that the one on the inner side of the creek had been cut to pieces and dumped on the seabed. The other was removed and dumped outside the creek.

These mysteries, which happen frequently, are probably carried out by the same person/s who do not accept the fact that bathers have every right to make use of the only place in our area where they can have a quiet, decent swim. We appeal to the police for their help in this matter and for the public to pass on any information they may have to the relevant authorities.

I would also like to point out that Qrendi council has been working on an infrastructural project earmarked for Wied iż-Żurrieq that is to be funded jointly by the council and the Malta Tourism Authority. This had been delayed for a number of years in its planning phase by Mepa and it was only a few months ago that permission for such works to be carried out was granted. However, one must keep in mind that projects at this locality are very difficult to implement. This is due to the pressures and interests of different stakeholders. Among these are the shop and catering establishment owners, divers and tourist boat operators, who will surely not be pleased with works being carried out during the summer. Another factor is the heavy weather conditions and rough seas which prevail in the winter months. It is also a well known fact that most contractors find it difficult to embark on long-term projects without interfering with the normal day-to-day operations which are expected by the various stake holders at Wied iż-Żurrieq.

We think that although the Qrendi council has financial limitations, it is tackling the upkeep and maintenance of Wied iż-Żurrieq in an efficient and timely manner contrary to what was stated in the letter. We have added a number of amenities particularly those connected with safety such as handrails, lifesaving rings and safety ropes etc., some of which were irresponsibly vandalised on more than one occasion.