The embellishment of Sliema’s Annunciation Square has created a rift between residents who want it pedestrianised and those who do not want to lose precious parking spots.

The new square, finally nearing completion after five long months of works, delayed because of an underlying war shelter, has sparked many residents into calling for its pedestrianisation, especially in a busy town which has hardly any public squares.

The one thing which appears to unite the residents is the need for a residents’ parking scheme.

The project, led by the Infrastructure Ministry, involved the paving of the square using a herringbone pattern and reduced the 30 or so available parking spots by 12, with planters placed in the corners.

This led to a petition with 350 signatures opposing the loss of parking. But, as pictures of the new square emerged in the last week, the tide appears to have turned, with a poll on the Sliema Residents Facebook group showing the vast majority of respondents are now in favour of pedestrianising the old square.

Sliema mayor Anthony Chircop said removing parking from the square was never part of the brief, with a herringbone pattern created to guide parking in the square.

“But now that works are almost complete, and residents are seeing the beautiful outcome, they want to preserve the space as pedestrian. The council is all in favour of this but this can only work with a residential parking scheme we have been fighting for years.”

Sliema councillor Pierre Portelli agreed: “Now that the project is nearing completion, many residents, including myself, started questioning whether it made sense to have one of the only open spaces in Sliema to be filled with parked cars and open to traffic again.

“I believe it is about time we start seeing the bigger picture. With the backing of the majority of Sliema residents and the goodwill of Transport Malta, we can work towards initiating a pilot project that can see residential parking in the area surrounding Annunciation Square.”

Works at the square are under way. Photo: Jonathan Borg

Meanwhile, as a number of residents in the area dug their heels against pedestrianisation, other Sliema residents have accused them of egoism and ‘NIMBYism’ to enable them to park their car outside their home to the detriment of an open, car-free space for all.

But one resident, who lives in the area, said the accusations are unfair.

“When this project was proposed a year ago, we were taken by surprise,” the resident said.

“It is not fair that the plans are changed at the last minute. We never objected to the project. We objected to the loss of parking. The parking is lost by us and everyone else since parking in the square is not reserved for us. 

“If we have a legal guarantee that no tables and chairs will be allowed in the square and, with the introduction of a resident parking scheme, we will be happy with pedestrianisation.”

A number of residents in the area fear pedestrianisation would open the door to bar tables and chairs in the square.

To allay such fears, the Stella Maris Band Club, located in the area, was even forced to issue a statement saying it “never had, or has, plans to apply to place tables and chairs in the square”.

Residential parking scheme – a saga

In April 2013, a year after a new council had been installed, a residents’ parking scheme, similar to other localities, was rolled out, with half of Sliema’s parking slots reserved for residents.

Parking in reserved areas was meant to be only allowed for up to two hours and any breach of regulations would result in a €23 fine.

The scheme was short-lived because, a few weeks later, the cabinet suspended it. The decision came in the wake of a protest by teachers in five Sliema schools.

Eight years down the line,  it is still in limbo although similar schemes in other localities remain.