Restaurants in Bugibba being served with eviction notices

I can't be bothered to read most of the comments which are politically biased. A big well done to the authorities for not allowing restaurant owners to do what they want. The Maltese need to have discipline reinforced yes. However, I would NOT remove tables for the sake of tourism AS LONG AS THEY ARE IN PEDESTRIANISED STREETS ONLY. I fully agree with having outdoor dining as long as the tables do not obstruct safety pedestrian walking. After all, cars do not pass from that street and pedestrians can walk in the middle of the street safely. What one can consider is a permit. The government should use this as a source of income rather than VAT on certain necessities.
The comment regarding junk food stalls near Numero Uno and Gianpula makes a lot of sense. Those are what should be removed and not tables from Bugibba. Junk food is not healthy and the mess left is unacceptable!

This subject should not be politicised!

I think that SOME are missing the point of the subject; no one is or should be against restaurants placing tables inside the designated areas, as this is part of their license and the culture of Bugibba.

It is the abuse that some are against whereby giving somebody the proverbial inch and some take a mile! There are areas where people cannot walk for the number of chairs and tables placed on narrow pavements and some establishments always want more.

If it is left to a "free for all" situation, we do not need to be university professors to know the outcome so some control is needed!

bla bla bla bla bla mill-gvern li ghandna. Qum minn hemm u naddaf Bugibba u l-Qawra u ghamel xi haga...ma' l-imwejjed qabad issa...bhal li kieku qed jaghmel xi opra ta' karita' mal-pubbliku...Jien ma nistax nifhem imma qisu dan il-gvern aktar ghandu f'mohhu li jkisser l-industrija tat-turizmu milli li jgibha l-quddiem...mela f'perjodu difficli ta' ricessjoni ghamel 50c taxxa fuq kul sodda, gholla l-licenzji tal-pools tal-hotels, gholla d-dawl u l-ilma u kul fejn tmur lanqas aircondition u issa qabdilhom ma' l-imwejjed...kieku jien turist ma jimpurtanix jekk l-imwejjed hux kontra l-ligi jew le...immur f'pajjiz fejn nista noqghod niehu kafe barra bil-veduta tal-bahar u biex noqghod gewwa nibqa pajjizi...insomma l-gvern mhux ghal Malta qieghed imma ghal erbgha tal-qalba...issa ghandu erba' snin ohra jfallina imbaghad naraw...

ghaddew l elezzjonijiet issa se naqbdu ma kul tibna hlief ovvja max xarks

it would make more sense to charge the owners 100€ per week for the summer period and full stop.
however the same should apply to those who go and sell junk food near to Discos etc (ex. Numero Uno). They charge excessive prices for junk food even dead hungry dogs reject (I am not kidding, seen that myself). Do these people also pay for using public land to sell junk food? and who pays for the cleaning afterwards? One needs to go to Numero 1 at Ta Qali on Saturday and Sunday morning to see personally what I am referring to.

Moveing tables and chairs OFF public right of way .. i say well done to the land dept. if restauanteers want to make use of such facilities they must follow my friends example below,pay the council for the use of, after all we have to pay road tax so why not these owners. Move them at once i say. this is not the 60's 80's or 90's those days are gone with the wind mu fellow country men.

Marsa XLokk is the only place in Malta where Tables and Chairs are allowed on the opposite side of the road from the restaurants. This is absolutely criminal use of public land by the restauranteers. How come they are allowed to use public land against a few euros (which they earn in one our on a good day) while we have to slalom around. To add insult to injury the goverment is using public money to embellish their open air restaurants with the project in hand there. I was meant to phone to Jason Azzopardi last Tuesday but I hope he can read this and do something about this gross injustice

This is quite simple. There is a financial benefit to the service provider in having the use of pavement space. If they want to use it they should pay a fair rate to the authorities.

I have two premises in the UK. One in a town high street. I have a licence that costs me approx £500.00 per annum to the local authority. I also have to enclose the area using cafe barriers etc. I do this as it both for my benefit and also that of my customers.

The council inspect what I do and make sure that I comply fully with the terms of my licence.

I have another shop in a private shopping centre. The management of the shopping centre would charge £100.00 per week for tables outside and therefore I choose not to put out tables.

I am a very regular visitor to Malta (our best friends are Maltese) and without a doubt many business owners in Malta take huge advantage of lax regulation. Many encroach onto pavements in a quite ridiculous manner and they deserve everything that they get.

@ Matthew Borg--well maybe you should tell your friends at the PN that Bugibba happens to exist and that up to a few years ago 35% of all incoming tourists stayed at this resort but unfortunately it has been completely abondoned and the results are there for all to see!! I did not say that the works in 1997 were shoddy (OK the work in Sliema is of a better quality) I said that wear and tear and the yellow colour have made the promenade look cheap but now it is pretty much useless looking way back and trying to put the blame on others. Today and for these 11 years (since 1998) the PN has been in power and fact is that it has done next to nothing in this very important locality and when it had unveiled a project at Fra Ben this got all stuck in bureacracy and inefficiency!! Do you think that it was just a coincidence that people in Bugibba stayed away from the polling booths nearly 'en masse' in the last EP election when only a miserable 60% voted Mr.Borg???

Maybe you should tell you friends from the PL to fix it up because they were responsible for the shoddy job they performed in 1997!

reply to Mr. Alan Cox, I agree with most that you say but it needs a compromise so that the businesses can make the most of the tourist season and that pedestrians are not hindered. It can be done in a CIVILISED fashion without threat of eviction from the Malta Gov. They need to address the issue for sure but middle ground needs to be found.

@ Charlescardona
If the tourism situation is so dire, then why would restaurants need to take up space on the pavement to seat their patrons?
@ Ivan Attard. One finds delightful roadside cafes in places like Nice and St. Tropez, and cutomers pay through their noses to get a seat in the sunshine. Thats because the restaurant probably pays a hefty fee to the city council. How much do you think restaurants pay to the Local council for pavement space on Triq Gulju ic-Centurjun, Bugibba?

Good job! Hopefully it will be the beaches next!

OK. This is a wake-up call, let's take heed. Tables and chairs on a parrticular pavement in -St. Anthony Street c/w Triq Ġiulju ċ-Ċenturjun have been surounded by flower pots thus blocking access by pedestrians in this particular corner, and a bus route.

reply to Mr. Ivan Attard and Mr.Neil Payne .For your information all other countries inclöuding Nordic do have outdoor coffee and restaurants tables for serving clients. There´s nothing wrong with. The differnce is that other countries issue permits AFTER APPLICATIONS are considered.They have confine to the law regarding taking into consideration such hinderance for the disabled(including people with dimished eye sight etc). I do not think theMaltese gov is trying to stop these permits only asking rightfully the establishments to abide by the rules like any CIVILISED country.These owners have had ample time to put in their say. It´s all about law and order not POLITICS as you both imply. We should start trying to behave as a civilised nation.Enough damage is being made to the tourist industry by the crime wave and bus drivers.

Illegal is illegal and therefore never excused. But before we all go on an esctatic ride of euphoria for the good job this and that department are doing we should all have a good look at the shambles bugibba has been left to deteriorate to. Rubbish strewn all over the pavements thanks to the cats who seem to be above neutering here, pavements completely broken, streets which have never seen a drop of tarmac, closed hotels left to rot witness of the apthy and mismanagement (Santa marija/San Anton, International Club....), closed restaurants and bars, a promenade which is 11 years old and which has started to look so kitch and cheap now with all the rust everywhere, lack of investment and most of all a huge lack of tourists for these past three years!!

Bugibba should be what Sousse and Costa Brava is for Tunisia and Spain and yet our only consolation is that the Department has come down on these illegalities like a tonne of bricks. While repeating that this is to be commended the fact that Bugibba has been left to rot is a huge disappointment for us and the whole tourism industry!! But who cares???

Proof that the Government has lost ALL the plot. The electricity and water tariffs have been skyblown when the international price of oil is relatively low and at a time of austerity - and now GonziPn is doing its utmost to kill off the remnants of tourists still visiting us by pushing outdoor al fresco dining in summer INSIDE!!!
ALL mediterranean (and even northern) countries excel in luring tourists by roadside cafes and restaurants and here we persist in buckling the trend!!
What a pitiful situation which will eventually kill off our tourism.

This is the sort of thing that is going to kill tourism, the more difficult we make it for small business to thrive on the tourist industry the less money is going to come into Malta. Yes i can't disagree that it could be an annoyance to pedestrians, especially if in a wheel chair or pushing a pram but i am sure that a comprimise can be reached so that access is easy for the less able and so that small business can cater for as many customers as possible. I often go down the square in bugibba in the summer evenings and the atmosphere is very relaxed and friendly and the whole area, compared to the rest of buguibba and qawra, is very pleasing to the eye and i'm sure is a major attraction for locals and tourists alike. To surmise - don't cripple, an already tough, essential part of Malta's growth.

I don't understand how some people seem to think that if you always took what is not theirs, than, that somehow makes it ok or gives them right to do so. What a bloody cheek. Please don't blame the government for doing the right thing. Just remember the restaurant owners are the REAL culprits. Don't let them fool you into thinking that they are the victims. There would not have been any reasons to sack employees if they did not need to employ them by taking liberties in the first place. The square opposite Caffe Cordina is in a much better state now that it is better controlled. Just a thought; piracy employs a good number of people. Maybe we should not do anything about it so as not to cause job losses. Give me a break.

M Saliba
You should have put your own deckchair and sent the owner of the other deck chairs to hell. That is the only way that they and the politicians learn.

I suggest the premises are transformed into lodging for illegal immigrant. Bugibba is full ! It is OK for the latter to be ILLEGAL but a local has to be legal without fail!

Harsu wahda lejn Marsaskala. Ma tistax taddi fuq il bankinna.Jekk tadi hdejn limwejed iharsu lejk blikrah. Meta sen waqfu dan labuzzzzzz forsi dawn hbieb tal qalb......

Raguni ohra: haw wisq nies opportunisti u bla principji ta' xejn. Lesti jibdlu l-principji taghhom anki ma' bozza fuq il-bieb!

Over eighteen months ago, before Malta joined the Euro, the price of a plain omelette, (3 egg max) at the now vanished magic kiosk in Sliema, was 2.25 maltese lira. 3 eggs that cost a few cents. It's criminal.

The customer looks for value for money, and good service, preferably with a smile.

The greedy Maltese restauranteurs need to blame themselves for the mess they're in. The pizza is the most popular, because it is the cheapest on the menu, and because that's what most Maltese can afford.

Well now that tables and chairs are cleared OFF the street and damn right too , they did say that 2009/2010 is going to be a bad year for the restauranteurs.

yesterday I went to Kemuna. There was no empty comfortable space to lie down at blue lagoon. All was occupied by sunbeds given against payment. Is this not public land? Why did my girlfriend and I had to lay down on uneven rocks and not on the sand? Can we people know how much these people who are the bosses of our beaches paying to the government in taxes because this is not happening only on comino. Is regulation non existent?

Mr Giov. Demartino is finally seeing the light. He is gathering information to answer his question: Why has gonzipn been routed, or suffered a Caporetto?! He could not believe what had happened.

the only time of year when we can employ another 3 employees to take care patrons who wish to stay outside dining and smoking, can we make some profit please, or is it so hard to ask

What is the Bugibba square without people dinning outside? After all it is pedestrian! With tables outside, still a bus can pass easy. Restaurants in Marsaxlokk blocked large spaces with tables/chairs and good luck to them! They are employing an amount of persons.

Ah, so now I've found the street. This is the pedestrianised street? So the government wants the pavements to be clear of tables and chairs when everyone walks on the street anyway? Can anyone clear this up?

Well done i say to the Land dept. the roads are for the public and not sitting down at a table having a quite evening meal with one eye looking to see if any cars headlights are pointing towards our table. very scarey especially in some villages south of Gozo.

Raguni OHRA ghala l-gvern qala' t-tkaxkira li qala'. Ihalli l-imwejjed jaqlaghha. Inehhihom? Jaqlaghha wkoll.

take notice tourist authority for what anthea doughty has written, tourists come over to relax and have a drink and even a smoke outside, no more tables and chairs outside is going to send them somewhere else!

As a tourist who comes to your beautiful island twice a year, I feel I wish to comment. Earlier this month I was truly disappointed to see the changes in Marsalforn & Valletta, two places I love. Outside Cordina's used to be fabulous, full of life, the tables and chairs did not encroach on to the walkways on all four sides, the atmosphere is just not the same now that they have been made to reduce their area and take down lights and fans etc. And YES they have had to let 7 waiting staff go (fact). Same at Marsalforn, the restaurants/cafes have had to take down (or apparently have them chain sawed down by the authorities) their awnings and screens. This now leaves one open to the elements, sure you can put up parasols but it is not the same. When you have windy weather which you did earlier this month it is too cold to sit out and eat, no wonder the front at Marsalforn was dead! It is going to affect your tourism. I understand that these premises have to pay several permits for the privilige of using pavement/pulic spae.

I wholeheartily agree as long everyone is treated equally and without any political favours for the usual clique please!

What about Marsaxlokk??? One can not even walk on the pavement with a pushchair, especially on Sundays. What if an accident occurs? Who will be responsible?!!!

Having a few tables and chairs out is a normal thing with restaurants in all over Europe. Some owners over do it and that is wrong. If one have a look at Valletta Waterfront one soon realise that some restaurants surely have extended their limits leaving no more then a ten feet passage for people to walk through!!!

Is this the best solution for the ongoing problems restaurants in this locality have to face every single day, let alone they have to struggle to survive cause this locality is completaly abbandoned by the Government. If it wasn't for 18 months of Dr Sant, by now Bugibba would have turned into slums. The Goverment is investing millions from our taxes around the Harbour and now on a Gate and has left the Northern part of Malta completaly shabby. This is SHAMEFULL. I suggest to use some enforcement in Valletta, oops I forgot that this locality is on the favorite list of some government officails.

Charlescardona
Restaurant owners should limit their are to their property INSIDE their restaurant and not outside which is public property.
When are the authorities going to stop issuing permits for restaurants and other shops to put tables and their wares on pavements which are supposed to be there for PEDESTRIANS?
Is the Government so bust up that a few thousand euros lead it to disregard the PUBLIC who is the owner of public places?

Well done to the lands department, keep the good work going in all other areas too.

The pavement next to Nazzarenu church in Sliema is fully occupied with chairs and tables that one cannot walk on the pavement and have to walk on the busy street. Take action please.

I wonder who is authorising all these permits in Malta. Look at your beach lido's and other building permits. You should all be ashamed of your politicians. Is there a smell of a dead fish in the pot !!!!!! Third countries are labelled with institutionalised corruption when such matters prevail for many years in a row with no action taken. How about with all the illegal boat houses at Armier ??? Do you have a Government ?

Come on, I hear there is a new movement in Malta...a progressive one...what is it doing about all this. Wake Maltese people before the Africans start building their own huts on illegal lands.

Re St.Thomas Bay/M'Skala
Suggest M'Skala Council/Malta Govmt Lands Dept have a close look at the limited space that the kiosk owner is placing his outdoor furniture....its a shame that one is unable to push a childs pram between the space left by the kiosk owner. Its not fair and should be taken note of by the local council or the Lands Dept.

@Mr Cardona
The deliberate infringement of public spaces doesn’t only clatter the aesthetics of our Tourist areas, but also hinders the accessibility to the very same restaurants themselves! First come first served mentality contributes to unfair competition between catering operators, leaving the honest businessman fairing disproportionately with the others.
So well done to the Lands Dpt, as enforcement is another way of safeguarding their own business!

I think they should not only be evicted, but also be made to pay at commercial rates for rent for the time they have been occupying that public property.

The eviction notice, ( a joke) is it just for the restaurants in the square and the surroundings only!!??. I think the authority should take a walk to Qawra near the Police Sation !!!

And what about empty sunbeds occupying the beach at Paradis Bay? Apart from the fact that the lido seems to expand year after year. Go have look there too!!

@Charlescardona
please do not try to blackmail using employment.

what about Marsaxlokk ?

@Paul Micallef
Well said mate.

The Lands Department is really doing a great job! Keep up the good work Hon Azzopardi!

Can anyone from the Tourism Authority, the Marsascala police or the Local Council have a look at St Tomas Bay. This guy year after year has been occupying metre by metre the area near the small bay. Now this year even the passage between his kiosk and the benches have been occupied by umbrellas chairs and tables leaving only about have a metre as a passage.

Why does the Local Council or who ever is in charge, give permits for most bars and restaurants to extend the pavement, for bar owners to have more space. Do the authorities now that this is causing loss of parking, and more problems to park. Or they only see the income generated from the applications etc!

To make matters even worse, most bars, restaurants are closing down, and the extended pavement is remained there, and can't be utilized for parking. I think authorities should take note of this.

Also what about the noisy karaokes? Who issues such permits? and till what time are these allowed? I'd like some feedback especially on the karaoke issue

Mark Vella

We do seem to have a problem in Malta in that some restaurants are treated aggressively in this manner but other places do not qualify to have these measures imposed. Just look around and see places where these things are permanently allowed to happen and they are even considered as assets to the nation. Perhaps you might also have the opportunity to speak to some of the owners - you might be surprised to find that they facing great financial difficulties mostly because they are operating in a scenario that there is no level playing field where all restaurants are equal but some are treated as being more equal than others.

Well done. The 'furbi' amongst us should be taught a lesson and they should abide by the laws as the great majority of people do. And, please, no excuses about 'the current tourism situation' . People who break the law have no special rights simply because they are providing a service to tourists. If they cannot provide this service within the parameters of the law, others will.

J. Cassar

Anyone abusing public land should regularize with the lands department since it is an abuse.
However why this timing ? Putting the restaurant owners aside, the fewer tourists who are coming to Malta and Gozo do not need to be faced with the choas this will bring about while they are holidaying here. Why not plan and time these orders during more appropriate quiter seasons.

Hats off to the Lands Department. Crisis or no crisis, no one no permust must steal from the people's coffers. If the land is not theirs, they have to abide by the law, like I do. Like all the people do. No excuses and no laments. It is criminal to take people's property biex thaxxen bwietek. Imma kif dejjem issib min johodha kontra d-dipartiment ghax jaghmel dmirhu.

If these places have been warned then they should not only loose the stuff they illegally occupy the place with, but should be charged for their removal and storage, and also fined.

This sort of action needs to taken along the Sliema seafront where for hundreds of yards, it is impossible to walk freely due to table and chairs encroaching the pavement - you have to weave through dining tables and waiters - especially in the area near the 'black gold'. It is not just 'a few tables slightly in the way' it is a complete disaster area, especially for mums with prams or wheelchairs. Why are there not substantial fines for repeat offenders and perhaps empower traffic wardens to report abuses to the proper department.

great news. give Malta back to ALL Maltese, for ALL to enjoy, and not just some restaurant/hotel owners! let's hope this will be applicable to all such entities encroaching the local roads/pavements

With the present tourist situation and statistcs and the rising costs ,does not the department of lands think that this might be a big blow to the restaurants owners?I wonder what is next to make the restaurants close down and send all their workers home.