A new vision for Manoel Island | Josef Florian Micallef

This week, the Manoel Island: Post Għalina parliamentary petition was launched, calling for the island to be returned to the public and turned into a heritage park.

Proposals to leave Manoel Island free from new construction and instead turn the entire 300,000sq.m site into a park have been floated for many years. The appeal is obvious. Some 150,000 people live in the North Harbour area, with Gżira, Sliema, St Julian’s, Msida and nearby areas effectively constituting a large city, with all the benefits and disadvantages this brings. Traffic is one such disadvantage, as is pollution, with people living in these areas having precious little by way of open space to relax and breathe clean air. Manoel Island, in the heart of the harbour, with excellent views towards Valletta and an already-existing wooded area, would seem like an obvious solution.

MIDI, the consortium holding the 99-year lease to develop some 400 luxury apartments and various commercial establishments on the site, would be forgiven for thinking that such an idea is little more than a pipe dream, and one that stands in direct contrast to its own interests. However, I firmly believe that need not be the case.

Let us look at the facts. MIDI was given the right to develop Manoel Island and Tigné Point back in 2000 after long negotiations that took the better part of the 1990s. The concession was granted by parliament’s unanimous vote and negotiations continued throughout the changes in government of that decade, leading then-environment minister Francis Zammit Dimech to quip that the contract was drawn up under three reigns (taħt tliet saltniet). This deal was made under both Labour and Nationalist administrations.

The contract stipulates that “the entire development shall be substantially (85%) completed by the 31st day of March of the year 2023,” with up to three years of delays allowed against hefty daily fines. In any case, delays are only permissible for up to three years, with the grantor – that is, the Maltese government – thereafter having the right to rescind the concession in its entirety.

In plain English: MIDI has until the 31 March 2026 to complete 85% of the entire Tigné Point and Manoel Island project. After that, it stands to lose the entire concession.

MIDI is therefore currently in talks with the government to obtain an extension to this deadline. In these negotiations, it may rest its case on provisions for force majeur that waive liability for delays resulting from events or circumstances beyond its control – arguments that may be found to carry some weight in Castille.

What is certain is that the entire concession is currently in a state of limbo. While business craves certainty, there is none to be found on Manoel Island, also thanks to UNESCO’s interest in the project, which it views as a potential threat to the historic Valletta skyline.

In the face of such uncertainty, those MIDI shareholders with a long memory may remember a news report carried by this newspaper back in 2010. The government of the time had offered MIDI compensation to downsize the Manoel Island project. Although the negotiations seem to have led nowhere, it is worth recalling MIDI’s own reasoning for accepting to even sit down at the table: “…on the basis that a solution can be identified that is not detrimental to the interests of either party.”

That remarkable readiness to reconsider its own project was not a one-off, either. In 2012, in a wide-ranging interview, then-chairman Albert Mizzi threw down the gauntlet to government and NGOs: “If you believe that Manoel Island should be ‘saved’ from a development you wanted all those years ago, we are willing to discuss it. We have already invested millions in Fort Manoel and elsewhere as part of our infrastructural obligations, but if you, on behalf of the taxpayer, are willing to compensate us for these and for other unrecoverable costs incurred, we are willing to talk.”

Over 10 years have passed since that interview, and Manoel Island is in much the same state as it was then. Meanwhile, the clock is ticking. From the publication of this article, there is one year and one day left until the concession may be rescinded in its entirety. This puts the future of Manoel Island at a historic juncture, giving us, the public, an agency to act that we have not seen in 25 years and will never see again.

That is why we – the Manoel Island: Post Għalina campaign – have launched the parliamentary petition to give government a strong mandate to negotiate for the public good in its talks with MIDI.

Let us be clear; this is not about us versus them. We do not believe that negotiations of such national importance, the results of which will resonate for generations to come, should be a zero-sum game. We do not want bluster without action, or aggressive posturing that gives cause for legal action. What we want is a fair negotiation that recognises that the Malta of 2025 is not the Malta of 2000, and even less that of 1991, when the first project brief was issued.

What we want is a large public park that can be a landmark, a statement of intent for Malta’s future. A place where heritage and nature can exist in harmony with visitors to the island, where the values we hold dear, like legacy, family and health are put at the forefront of the experience instead of the commercial interests that dominate all around.

We must realise that this may be our only chance to turn this dream into a reality. There is no second try. Sign the petition to let our politicians know what you want from Manoel Island. Share it widely, and volunteer with our campaign if you can. Let your MPs know what you think, and make it clear that it’s now or never.

We are either going to win Manoel Island back, or lose it forever.

To participate in this campaign, visit www.manoelislandcampaign.com. When signing the parliamentary petition, it is essential to validate your signature by checking your inbox.