The Chamber of Architects has urged Mosta Council to make the partial pedestrianisation of the town's square a success rather than succumbing to commercial pressures by reversing it.

Mosta Square is currently closed for traffic on Saturday evenings and on Sundays, but the locality's new mayor on Wednesday presented a motion to stop the arrangement from the first weekend of September. 

The Chamber said in a statement that rather than reversing the decision, the council should work for its success.

"It is inevitable that such a major change to the urban fabric of Mosta will bring about a transition period through which local businesses will need to adjust, as the type and behaviours of their patrons inevitably change. This should not, however, deter the Mosta community from seeing through this transitory phase, in part by also supporting their local businesses with their custom," the chamber said. 

It said it was incumbent on local and national political leaders to intervene by incentivising greater social and commercial activity in the square.  

The motion presented on Wednesday says the decision to close the square on Saturday evenings and on Sunday should be reversed because of complaints by residents and the business community and because it was not authorised by the competent authorities.