Government files master plan for district park around Fgura; includes dirt race track
The government has filed a planning application with a master plan to create a regional park in the Fgura, Żabbar and Cospicua area.
The park, according to the master plan that has been submitted, will include a walking and jogging track; a dirt car track (close to the dockyard); a zip-line; ‘adventure activities’; a multi-purpose area, including a fitness centre, a multipurpose sports ground, a skate park and playing field, a dog park, a children’s play area, picnic areas and a beach volleyball area.
The application was filed by Chris Bonnet, a consultant, on behalf of the government. The project will span the St James and St Aloysius bastions as well as the Polverista and Żabbar gates.
A couple of objection letters have, however, been submitted. One Fgura resident told the Planning Authority that the area identified for the skate park was frequented by youths past midnight, causing a nuisance, and that the creation of an “unsecured and unmonitored skate park” would further encourage the problem.
Highlighting the dirt track issue, the resident argued that the plan submitted was too vague, and asked whether this would be a real track or for remote controlled cars, mentioning the noise creation if it was to be the former. The resident also highlighted the use of hard-landscaping which would scar the current natural walking paths and the felling of trees.
The resident noted that the South Malta Local Plan details the intended scope of the district park to consist of informal recreational activities which would include children’s play areas, picnic areas, jogging trails, cycling tracks and similar low-key sports facilities. The resident asks: “How does a ‘dirt car track’, ‘adventure climbing rig’, and ‘skate park’ fit within that description?”
Another objector highlighted the incompatibility of certain proposed activities, like the car track, with nature.
A separate application for part of the site has already been filed, for an area which will include the skate park, dog park, part of the walking track, a multi-purpose pitch, gym, outdoor gym, playing field and picnic area. The site area for this section of the project stands at approximately 1,000 square metres.
Back in 2016, another section of the park had already been approved. That development application involved the demolition and development of existing unused land into a recreational park, including the formation of walkways, picnic areas, play areas and a one-storey building. The onestorey building was to replace another building and include a kiosk, a park attendant room and sanitary facilities. All existing trees in this part were to be retained.