Cospicua residents vented their frustration over the redevelopment of the Dock Number 1 area yesterday, with proposals to significantly reduce the number of parking bays and the slow pace of works topping their list of concerns.
According to Edward Falzon, a local who was representing residents of Il-Genduz and Ir-Regatta streets, existing plans will slash parking spaces from around 80 to just 12 or 13.
Such a drastic reduction, Mr Falzon said, was simply unacceptable. Proposals to turn a nearby football pitch into a multi-storey parking lot were of little help, he said, since Cospicua residents could ill-afford to fork out money to park their car.
Cospicua mayor Joseph Scerri acknowledged that there was a lack of parking bays in Cospicua but said Mr Falzon’s claims were inaccurate. The council, Mr Scerri said, was negotiating for one storey of the car park to be exclusive to residents and be free of charge.
The council, Mr Scerri said, had also applied for Cospicua to benefit from a residential parking scheme but the proposal had been rejected by Transport Malta. No reason was given for the refusal and the council would be reapplying, Mr Scerri said.
The Dock Number 1 rehabilitation project, with a budget of €6.5 million, began last February. Works are scheduled to be completed by April of next year, although residents are sceptical.
“When works began there were plenty of construction workers but for over a month now, work seems to have come to a standstill,” an agitated resident said.
A stroll across the area appeared to confirm residents’ fears. Five workers in high-visibility jackets were propping up a sheet of steel, but beyond that, nothing. Mosquitoes hovered over pools of stagnant water and cars threw up clouds of dust as they parked in between ramshackle construction barriers.
Earlier this month, an elderly woman who fell in the area died after spending several days in a coma. Following criticism of the area’s safety, the Infrastructure Ministry said the contractor had been ordered “several times” to adhere to health and safety regulations and seal off construction works.
Describing the area as the “heart of Cottonera”, Mr Falzon said he had met a representative of consortium running the project, Grand Harbour Rehabilitation Corporation, to better understand the works and put across residents’ concerns.
“None of us residents knew anything about the proposed works,” he said. “The local council claims it had organised meetings with residents but nobody knew anything about the project.”
Mr Scerri rebuffed the claims. The council, he said, had published details about the project in its newsletter and distributed a copy to each household. It had also called on residents to come forward with queries or suggestions. Mr Falzon never turned up, the mayor said.
Residents proposed three amendments to current plans. First, they want to narrow the pedestrian area slightly and create perpendicular parking bays. Secondly, they suggest part of the pedestrian area be made accessible to traffic at night. Thirdly, they want pelican crossings set at either end of the dock area.
Although disillusioned, residents are still eager to see the project through. “We’ve been crying out for a rehabilitation of this area for 20 years,” Mr Falzon said.
“We want this project to happen. But it has to take locals and their concerns into account. This project has to be about progress, not regress.”