Foundation encourages public to air views on St John's

Astrid Vella

Jan 11th 2009, 15:15

PART 2:
The alternatives proposed would use up only a fraction of the 16 million Euros to be spent on this project and leave enough over to restore both St. Elmo and St. Angelo, (estimated at roughly 2.5m Euros each). Restoring the forts would create new tourist attractions to draw tourists to Malta at a time when Malta needs to pull all the stops to attract tourists to our shores, would regenerate depressed areas and create jobs.

In this time of financial crisis, when workers are facing a bleak future it is the height of insensitivity of Government and Church to press on with this project. The Environment Impact Assessment alone will cost up to 40,000 euros, which added to the roughly 14,000 euros that have already been spent on publicising the project, should go to a project with a more tangible heritage or social benefit.

Astrid Vella

Jan 11th 2009, 15:10

Mgr Calleja keeps on repeating that the Foundation puts the interests of St. John's Co-Cathedral first, but what about the interests of all of Valletta; a Foundation that is made up of Church and State should be putting those first.

Are Valletta's residents, businesses and tourists best served by a development that will create a whole the size of a quarry, ripping up the newly-laid paving, damaging the underground passages and inflicting years of noise,dust,and heavy vehicles shaking Valletta's foundations for years?

Or is it better served by opening a branch of the Foundation at the Mediterranean Conference Centre where the tapestries can be viewed all together as the Foundation wants, but in knights' setting of world renown,rather than a sterile underground bunker.If the Foundation then still needs more exhibition space it should act with the corporate social responsibility that one has every right to expect from a Church/State establishment and convert one of the nearby old palaces into a museum for its other collections.

Other than the developers, exactly in who's interest is it to embark on such a massive and costly excavation project rather than set up a branch of the Foundation across the road?

s.bugeja

Jan 11th 2009, 14:23

If the Mons had taken the trouble to read the comments posted here these last few weeks he would have gotten a clear idea how the general public feels about this mad scheme. This goes to show how much the people's opinion is worth.

lgalea

Jan 11th 2009, 11:56

Mons, haven't you read the massive NO on The Times and elsewhere?
St John's co-Cathedral is not yours to destroy.
It belongs to the people of Malta and they are saying NO to your proposal.
Continued insistence = unbridled arrogance.

Franco Farrugia

Jan 11th 2009, 10:28

I don't need any Impact Assessment to realise, as I have had the opportunity to state many times in the past, that this project is a disgusting one and should not be considered. There is yet another reason why I believe so: as a country, we do not afford it!