Floriana could soon be a town of offices and hotels, local council warns

Floriana is facing a demographic crisis and if nothing is done, it will soon become a town of offices and hotels and very few residents, its local council has warned.

Floriana Mayor Nigel Holland and Deputy Mayor James Aaron Ellul highlighted the concern at a press conference held on Thursday to mark Housing Day.  

Holland said that residential buildings in Floriana are being converted into commercial premises on a regular basis, warning that this trend is accelerating the loss of residents from the locality. He said the Local Council consistently objects to such developments, but its objections are frequently overturned by the authorities responsible for planning decisions.

According to 2024 census data, Floriana’s population totals just 1,985, down from around 2,700 in 1995.

Holland said the Port Region and Local Councils’ Association was receptive to the problem. But the Planning Authority continued to approve projects in contradiction to the town’s local plan and council position, he said, despite the local plan’s stated aim of protecting residential buildings from being converted to commercial use.

If current trends continue, Holland said, Floriana risks becoming a locality dominated by offices and hotels, with very few residents remaining.

“The Floriana Local Council will remain persistent. We have also brought together other Local Councils that are facing the same challenges. This issue of population decline now needs to be addressed collectively,” Holland said.

He praised plans to regenerate the Grand Harbour but warned that communities around the area could effectively disappear within the next 20 years.

The mayor also used the occasion to recall the January 2000 death of Riccardo Cesare, who died when a rented property in Floriana collapsed.

Deputy Mayor Ellul noted that the council has long been highlighting Floriana’s demographic challenges and had unanimously approved a policy document on the issue just last year.

Other localities around the Grand Harbour, including Valletta and the Cottonera region, are also experiencing similar problems, he noted.

“We are facing a demographic crisis that is the result of poor policy choices made over recent years. This crisis is not irreversible; the situation can improve if better decisions are taken and the proposals we are putting forward begin to be implemented,” Ellul said.

Floriana’s local council now intends to organise a national conference to focus on the issue.

Councillor Justine Vella Palmier was also present at the press conference.