Sliema residents accuse Mepa over Qui-Si-Sana ‘transformation’

The planning authority was doing its “utmost” to bypass its policies to transform Qui-Si-Sana into a commercial area, concerned Sliema residents said.

Describing the recently launched garden as “positive”, the Qui-Si-Sana and Tigné Residents Association and the Sliema Residents Association said the project ended years of “official neglect”. But they argued the garden, which cost €2 million, would step up the flow of traffic and pedestrians in the area and, as a result, increase the pressure on restaurants. This was not allowed by a particular planning policy designed to protect residential areas from entertainment facilities, with the exception of Paceville.

They pointed out that Tigné had been isolated from the rest of Sliema because the planning authority allowed “rampant over-development”. “Having been foiled in its attempt to push through the infamous Qui-Si-Sana development brief, the planning authority is doing its utmost to circumvent the planning laws to achieve its aim in turning it into a commercial area.”

A permit allowing a change of use from a souvenir shop to a retail outlet was a “benevolent interpretation” allowing the transposition of a Paceville-specific policy to Qui-Si-Sana, the residents said.

This “loophole” made a mockery of the zoning laws and flouted a promise made by Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi in June 2009 that the planning authority would not allow any “exploitation of any loopholes which violate the spirit of planning policies”, they said.

“The car might be expensive, however, the driving remains as bad as ever,” the residents added, referring to a comment made by planning authority chairman Austin Walker who justified his €93,000 salary by saying one had to pay for “an expensive car”.