There are many things I feel quite strongly about but two in particular rate quite high on my list. I feel strongly about the environment and, in fact, I have written over 50 articles in Times of Malta, a lot of which refer to the importance of safeguarding our environment and keeping it clean.
I also personally produced more than 10,000 CDs, sponsored by HSBC and Rotary Club Malta, which were distributed to all schools in Malta and Gozo, showing the importance of maintaining the environment for future generations.
My company made monetary awards to the Gaia Foundation and the Environmental Landscape Consortium in appreciation of the work they were doing for the environment. It also organises free lectures on the beauty, history and culture of Valletta.
I also feel strongly about quality and excellence. I believe that any new venture in Malta and Gozo must be of a certain quality to compete with those many countries that seek to be successful. This is why the Corinthia Group will demolish three very good hotels to replace them with a much better one. Our airport is always striving to improve and move from better to best. This is the future.
What have these statements got to do with the future of Gozo? Let me explain.
Gozo has to decide which way will it go to secure a successful future for both its present and future generations.
Does Gozo wish to be a Buġibba-style destination? I hope not.
Does it want to be a completely laid back and rustic backwater? This would be fine but it does not generate wealth and employment for the Gozitans.
Can Gozo be rustic and unspoiled and still ensure a good standard of living to the Gozitan people? Yes it can, however, it needs detailed planning.
Allow me to list my ideas as to how I believe Gozo can be prosperous and still retain its charm, which makes it so attractive to people today.
The first point is communications.
Gozo needs to have the finest internet network communications to put it on par with Malta, thus encouraging companies, especially those dealing through the internet, to establish themselves in Gozo. This will create jobs for the Gozitans and necessitate many people from abroad living in Gozo and spending lots of money on the island, generating income for the Gozitans.
Gozo Channel is a fine organisation that renders a very good service in terms of transport between the islands, although the service could also keep running later in the evening. However, there should be a faster passenger boat, or hydrofoil, from Gozo to Malta (Sliema ) and vice versa, that would ease travel for students in the morning and in the afternoon and, at the same time, offering tourists a very pleasant trip along the coastline, including in the evening.
Gozo needs an airstrip. This is a definite requirement if Gozo is to have some control over its tourist industry.
Gozo can be prosperous and still retain its charm
I have seen an airstrip near Ragusa, in Sicily, next to a rustic hotel. The runway was surrounded by grass that was evidently well cared for and the whole thing blended perfectly with the countryside.
The runway in Gozo need not be long but should be able to accommodate planes that carry 20 to 30 passengers, flying in from Sicily, southern Italy and from Malta International Airport.
There should also be an area for helicopters to offer a better selection selection. Such an airport is vital to any future planning in Gozo.
There is, in my opinion, no need for a tunnel or bridge to connect the islands but more money should be spent to boost employment opportunities for the Gozitans and to make travel between the two islands much more convenient for those who have to commute on a regular basis.
Cruise ships have to be encouraged to stay in Gozo, perhaps even overnight. The new projected cruise liner terminal in Qala would be a tremendous benefit in this regard, as will the other touristic services being offered on site. At the moment, the rather large hardstone quarry there is running out of material and an enormous eyesore will remain unless someone has the initiative to do something about it.
Gozo should think of getting companies to make small quaint means of transport to be rented out to tourists, something like the tuk-tuks found in Bangkok. These are also found running about on the island of Ischia just off the Amalfi coast in Italy. They are also used by a restaurant in Buġibba, so they are already here. Decorate these like our old buses and you will soon have a very recognisable form of character transport that will become a talking point.
In Gozo there are certain areas that are more attractive and popular than others. These should be classified as tourism priority areas and maintained in pristine condition by the authorities.
Properties should be painted properly and in mellow colours and these areas need to be embellished with benches and flowers and roads and pavements kept in excellent condition.
They need not be large areas but the following could be considered: Mġarr harbour, Xgħajra village square, Xlendi bay area, parts of Marsalforn, the Cittadella, It-Toqq Square in Victoria and Xewkija village square. EU funds could be obtained to maintain these tourism priority areas.
The accommodation sector in Gozo must be organised properly and kept in line with the island’s rustic atmosphere.
I was truly delighted to read the other day about boutique hotels that are being opened in Gozo. These type of properties, as well as rustic hotels, like the Cornucopia in Xgħajra and Ta’ Ċenċ, are ideal for Gozo, together with the already established farmhouses that have been proved to be very popular over the years.
In conclusion, some controversy. This is only my idea but an idea that could become a world class opportunity. Here we go.
Cittadella is at present being renovated and done up beautifully. You cannot, however, dig a hole there without finding something of historical interest.
On the main highest level there are many open areas that contain old foundations. These were probably houses that were constructed on older structures and have not yet been excavated.
What I would suggest is to excavate and find out what is there and then cover them with thick transparent glass and light them up so that what people walking over them can see them.
One can then build structures as they would have stood in the past (the Gozitans can do this so well) and also have a beautiful boutique hotel.
To remove the problems of access and parking, I suggest a lift and a tunnel allowing access to the bottom of the hill.
That would be one of the best boutique hotels in the world and it would be in Gozo.
Frank Salt is a former chairman of the Malta Tourism Authority’s Planning.