The cultural value of Valletta is not just derived from its architecture and its history.  Culture is also about the people that have made Valletta their home, about their beliefs, their aspirations and their way of life. 

The social and cultural life of residents add vitality to the city and, therefore, makes the place more attractive to tourists. The eventual loss of Valletta as a residential place will also be a loss for tourism. 

In the last 10 to 15 years there has been a deterioration of Valletta’s liveability in that the inconveniences that Valletta residents have to put up with are constantly increasing. This has created a trend for long-term residents to move out and people with roots in the city seeking to take up residence elsewhere. A decline in population comes about because of reduced liveability and a reduced quality of life.  

More and more catering establishments are putting out tables and chairs. These noise sources are a nuisance to residents, more so in the summer when residents tend to keep their windows open. Far too much public space has been taken up by tables and chairs.

At times, these leave little or no space for pedestrians to walk through. Locals and tourists are less able to appreciate the marvellous aesthetics of Valletta’s streetscapes because of the visual intrusiveness of the various umbrellas and canopies over tables and chairs.

Earlier this month, the minister for the economy endorsed amendments to trading licences regulations which allow establishments in several Valletta streets to play music outdoors until 1am. This may seem to be an innocuous change but, in the context of an already declining population, such a change has significant implications.

Excessive noise from outdoor night-time entertainment reduces liveability and, therefore, accelerates the downward trend in population. In the medium to long term there will not be enough Valletta residents to sustain the social and cultural life of the city.

This is also relevant to tourism. What do the Blue Lagoon and Valletta have in common? They are both essential components of Malta’s tourism product. The first is important for sun and sea tourism, the second for cultural tourism. Recently, the tourism minister made a commitment to sort out the sunbeds takeover of beach space in Comino. May he succeed. By the same token, he should take action to ensure Valletta’s role in tourism is not compromised in any way.

Putting Valletta on par with Paceville is an insult- John Ebejer

The extension of entertainment hours makes Valletta less attractive to live in, not only for long-term residents but also for potential new residents. The idea of living in a pleasant historic context loses its attraction if the city is to be subject to constant noise and cacophony in the evening and till late at night.

A significant portion of tourists to Malta are aged over 60. It is reasonable to assume that most tourists staying in hotels and rented accommodation in Valletta are of a more mature age. They will surely not appreciate being woken up in the middle of the night with loud music from the entertainment establishments.

Another concern is the impact on the urban heritage with building alterations and additions compromising the value and integrity of historic buildings. A few years back,  Din l-Art Ħelwa and other environmental NGOs sent an open letter to the government appealing for urgent action to safeguard the city.

They expressed concern that Valletta was being subjected to “an unprecedented barrage of new developments, many of which are not sensitive to the values and fragile nature of the historic setting”. They argued that “the intensification in activity is giving rise to new threats to the liveability of the city and to the safeguarding of its outstanding universal value, which is the basis of its World Heritage status”.

Any way you look at it, the extension of entertainment hours in Valletta is a very bad decision.  It is harmful to Valletta as a residential city and, therefore,  also harmful to culture and to tourism.

From a tourism perspective, Malta does not need another Paceville. What Malta needs is to safeguard its cultural resources so that they will contribute to Malta’s efforts to further develop cultural tourism.

For historic and cultural reasons, Valletta is an essential part of Malta’s identity as a nation.  Putting Valletta on par with Paceville is an insult, not only to Valletta and its residents  but also to all those who cherish our national identity.

This is a heartfelt appeal to the government, an appeal from Valletta residents and from all those who cherish Valletta: reverse the changes to the trading licences regulations.

John Ebejer is an urban planner and a University of Malta academic. He authored the book Tourism in European Cities: Architecture, Urban Spaces and City Attractions.