The Chamber of Architects this afternoon reiterated its opposition to the location of the open market stalls in Valletta, in the vicinity of the new Parliament building.

It also reiterated its appeal to the government that the open market stalls not be placed anywhere which detracted from the quality of the entrance to Valletta, which, after so much bad-mouthing, had now regained the dignity and architectural beauty it deserved.

“A proposal to relocate the open market to any part of the urban spaces forming part of the City Gate, Parliament and Opera House ruins is completely unacceptable, irrespective of the quality of the design of the stalls themselves, since such a relocation:

• Undermines the objective of promoting an ethos within society that values quality, especially in public buildings and public urban spaces;

• Simply serves the unjustified requests of a specific interest group, to the detriment of the over-arching importance of the quality of urban space for all to enjoy, as the visitors to Valletta are now beginning to discover;

• Fails to acknowledge that the new Parliament/City Gate project are an important statement of our national built and social heritage, and therefore makes a mockery of the significance of this Project to our national identity,” the chamber said.

It urged the government to design urban spaces both in Valletta and elsewhere only after it sought the best available talents, preferably through an open and intelligent design competitions, and after ample time for effective discussion on the proposals.

“The time of a fait accompli, as happened in the case of Castille Place, is surely past in our democracy,” it said.