FULL DOCUMENT with images: https://gofile.io/d/VFykjx

Promenade (verb) - to walk slowly along a street or path, usually where you can be seen by many people, for relaxation and pleasure

(Definition of promenade from the Cambridge Academic Content Dictionary © Cambridge University Press)

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To whom it may concern,

The Sliema promenade has been constantly raped by the addition of kiosks, street promoters and labelled advertisement. A once pleasant walk has turned into an obstacle, an exceedingly difficult one too.

My grandparents used to take me to Ghar id-Dud every Sunday afternoon, concurrently, eagerly waiting for the following weekend to arrive. Today, as a grown adult and a caring grandson, given the few years that my grandparents have left on this Earth, I would most certainly not reciprocate the same events and make them go through the distraught feeling of nostalgia and commotion that our promenades currently offer.

For this reason, I cannot suffer and watch our promenade being stripped from its main purpose of relaxation and pleasure and being eaten up by these companies.

The PA application PA/07319/18, labelled as;

‘Changes to design of kiosk from that approved in PA 01175/13 - incl. Change to design of roof, minor changes to facade and size of demountable umbrellas/canopy - and to fix windbreakers.’

has taken advantage of the breath-taking views of Manoel Island and Valletta and stole another portion of our promenade. This should have been rejected in the first place as expressed in the OCA policy document, ‘P5 Allowable Outdoor Catering Areas in public open spaces’:

“In all areas, Outdoor Catering Areas which are contiguous and related to Kiosks shall be expressly prohibited.”

These points include:

1. The ‘windbreakers’ that are approved as 1.2m high screens, have been changed into a bulky structure that moreover exceeds this maximum threshold, reaching the height of the kiosk itself. There are several disadvantages to this, namely, it has; created a permanent structure look, affected short- and long-range views on the promenade, and created narrow pathways.

2. The area demarking the kiosk boundaries has been made quite apparent with the laying of ‘stylish’ tiles.

3. No indication of toilet for guests.

4. Location of Kiosk is in the middle of the pavement, when previously it was located to a side, not effecting the whole promenade. The Block Plan shows the location of the Kiosk to one end, leaving 3m clearance on the other end. The new windbreakers have further minimised this passageway and created a narrower pathway.