Manoel Island developers Midi have applied to install extensive temporary fencing around most of the island, six months after protests forced the company to open up limited access to the island’s foreshore.
The development application, published by the Planning Authority this month, will enclose most of the island behind 2.2-metre-high mesh, leaving one accessible route open to the foreshore.
The move has drawn objections from the Gżira local council and NGOs, but the company said yesterday it would allow for full public access to the foreshore, currently limited to weekends.
In its objection to the Planning Authority, however, NGO Friends of Manoel Island argued that Midi had no legal authority to put up the fencing.
This is because, according to the terms of the 99-year concession granted to Midi to develop Manoel Island, it is the government, not the consortium, that can prohibit public access – and then only to allow the development of the site.
Works on a planned ‘Mediterranean village’ by Midi – including residences, commercial outlets, a hotel and casino – have so far been limited to restoration efforts at Fort Manoel and other historic buildings.
It would enclose most of the island behind 2.2m mesh
The company was granted a concession on parts of Manoel Island 17 years ago, and large parts of the island were fenced off shortly afterwards, preventing public access to the foreshore, which is public domain and does not form part of the concession.
The issue came to a head last September, when activists cut through gates to restore access to the public foreshore, following which the Gżira council and the government filed judicial protests against Midi, calling on the consortium to adhere to its contract and provide access.
Midi reached an agreement after weeks of protests to allow limited access, under surveillance, between 8am and 8pm on weekends, which remains the case today.
“I’m very unhappy with the current situation,” Gżira mayor Conrad Borg Manché told the Times of Malta yesterday.
“It’s still against the law. I want things to be done, and in a timely manner.”
Mr Borg Manché said he would be meeting Midi on March 22, alongside other stakeholders, when the company will present its master plan for the site. He confirmed that the council would oppose the installation of new fencing on the basis of the concession terms. The mayor added that there had been no progress on a request for the government to pass jurisdiction of Manoel Island to the local council and said he had now contacted the Prime Minister directly.
When contacted by this newspaper, a Midi spokesman said the fences would “facilitate access” and open the foreshore to the public on all days of the week.
“This is not a prohibition to public access,” the spokesman said. “On the contrary, these fences are necessary to set a pre-determined route to ensure the safety and security of the public while at the same time safeguarding the existing heritage structures on Manoel Island.”
The company has previously maintained that it has “no obligation whatsoever to provide access to the foreshore over its private property”.
However, the outline development permit issued before the concession was granted included a condition requiring the foreshore to be made accessible “throughout the construction and operational phases” of the development.
The one route to the foreshore which would be left accessible by the proposed fencing passes through the concession area but is designated as a “public circulation route” in the outline permit.