Viewpoints

Times of Malta, 19th April 2008 Nothing is Sacred Anymore It is now an open secret that our island home is up for sale. The outrageous statements by the chairman of the Malta Tourism Authority, a parastatal body, in favour of the Mistra development has sent shock waves through the environmental lobby. “Breathes there a man with soul so dead” to the...

Times of Malta, 30th March 2008 Limestone is one of Malta’s few natural resources. From our magnificent Stone Age temples, to the building of the impressive fortifications of Valletta and Mdina, it has always been a vital element in the architectural heritage of our nation. The colour, texture and patina of the local stone are integral features of our...

Times of Malta, 5th March 2008 The exchange of opinions in The Times of February 5, 8 and 21 between Martin Scicluna and George Pullicino are of great interest to the Chamber of Architects and its members, also because they inevitably expose the wide vacuum that exists between public perception and the realities of our planning process. In his last contribution, Mr...

Times of Malta, 14th March 2008 – Much has been said lately about the Dwejra boathouses. There were those who wrote out of genuine environmental interest and those whose aim seemed to be only to damage the environmental NGOs and the unity they have lately achieved, which has led them to prevail in issues such as Xagħra l-Ħamra, Ramla and...

June 2006   The government has opened a veritable can of worms. To say that one is correcting anomalies and injustices are fine words. But is this the whole story? Whenever limits to development are set, people will feel aggrieved. These were being addressed in the local plans which were slowly being drafted for each locality. Instead, the government has opted for a...

In the last three years, the government has most commendably tackled the country’s economic deficit. While there is still a worrying gap between revenue and public expenditure, the annual deficit has been considerably reduced . Entry into the eurozone will force us to control it better. On the...

When Peter the Great developed his vision for Russia he turned to the Western model of a modern state as a source of inspiration, opening a window to the West, and took his country out of isolation and into a new era. Malta’s entry into Europe is a similar experience, yet integration is work in progress, relying not only on...

It is inevitable in a small country like Malta, where everybody knows or is acquainted with everybody else, that the pressure from politicians, developers or other clients, as well as environmental NGOs, on those making planning or environmental judgements is intense. In some cases, individual members of boards or commissions are able to withstand such pressure, in others they are...

The best way to protect an interesting or important old building is to include it in the list of scheduled properties. Just over 1,700 sites and monuments have been scheduled so far since the list was established in 1992, of which around 1,300 are architectural sites, and the rest are of archaeological or ecological interest. The recent National Strategy for Cultural...