Sliema residents should be listened to - AD

The voice of Sliema residents needed to be heard but the council did not seem to be doing anything about their concerns, AD chairman Michael Briguglio said this afternoon.
Addressing a news conference close to where the Townsquare Development is taking place, Mr Briguglio said that Townsquare was originally proposed to be 15 storeys, however, it was then increased to 32 and later reduced to 23.
Townsquare is a large open-air urban project which includes retail, leisure, office and residential spaces, set in the existing heart of Sliema. The whole area is planned to be traffic-free with underground parking and large open spaces equivalent to over 50 per cent of the site.
Studies conducted by developer showed that the building's shadows would not fall just on the promenade and the bay, but also on the sea.
AD, he said, was concerned about the traffic impact and air quality for Sliema residents. The opening of The Point had created traffic congestion and getting to Sliema was already a nightmare, let alone what it would be with the completion of the full Midi project, Fort Cambridge and Townsquare.
Spokesman Carmel Cacopardo pointed out that when such developments were approved by Mepa, the accumulative impact needed to be looked into.
At the moment, when an environment impact assessement was held, the authority did not look at the accumulative impact but just at the project. Moreover, a strategic impact assessement was never held.