The Point against Bisazza Str reserved for pedestrians only

The pedestrianisation of Bisazza Street in Sliema goes against the wishes of The Point, the Tigné shopping mall reiterated on the eve of the opening of the embellished road and after the government decided on its fate.

If Bisazza Street were not pedestrianised, it would avoid traffic passing through and congesting the area around The Point, its management explained.

“In fact, we would prefer that the only traffic towards The Point is that whose sole destination is The Point and the immediate surrounding areas,” Tigné Mall Ltd general manager Edwin Borg said.

The Sliema Business Committee had voted in favour of total pedestrianisation during a meeting to assess the feelings of its members. Taking that vote into account, so did the Sliema local council, but other businesses in the area had signed a petition to allow public transport through.

The government – which officially inaugurated the project last night – had based its decision to pedestrianise one of Sliema’s main shopping roads on the vote, discrediting the petition of the 57 businesses.

The concerns of those who wanted only partial pedestrianisation were that the area they had invested in could witness a substantial decrease in business by being cut off from the main artery, without providing alternative parking.

Although The Point has not been a threat to them, they fear that if all traffic is rerouted there, things could change and the situation would be “grossly unfair”.

Tigné Mall Ltd, Midi plc and their representatives have denied ever putting pressure on any authority to pedestrianise Bisazza Street, or to reduce parking at The Ferries to bring business to The Point, saying the impression given was “pure conjecture” and based on a “false supposition”.

With regard to any preferential treatment for The Point, Mr Borg maintained the reality showed the exact opposite: “Significant public funds have been invested in the upgrading of the area close to Bisazza Street, such as St Anne Square, whereas no similar upgrading has taken place in the immediate vicinity of Tigne Point.”

In fact, Midi was obliged, as part of its infrastructural obligation, to construct a new access underground tunnel from Qui-si-Sana to Tigné, which was transferred to the government in 2008 and is about to be opened for traffic, Mr Borg continued.

As stated at its official inauguration in March 2010, “the project seeks to complement The Ferries, making the whole of Sliema more attractive when compared to other retail centres in Malta,” the general manager insisted.

The fact that The Point had minimal impact on sales in the heart of Sliema proved that its aims were being achieved and that more shoppers were frequenting the area, he said.

“Midi believes the investment in its large underground car park should be welcomed by Bisazza Street retailers as it provides much-needed respite to the entire area,” he continued, pointing out that The Ferries was desperately short of parking spaces, having only one other car park.

The Point had invested heavily in providing further parking availability so they could not understand why it was being criticised and accused of trying to put off the shopping public from The Ferries and Bisazza Street, Mr Borg said.

A recent proposal to extend a residents’ parking scheme across the whole town has been described as “creating more confusion” in the area, according to the Sliema Business Committee.