Sliema fears parking loss in embellished Annunciation Square

It is one of the greatest dilemmas in urban planning: the eternal conflict between on-street parking spaces, and improving public access.

And this has been exposed by bold plans by the Transport Ministry to embellish Annunciation Square in Sliema and turn it into a more aesthetically pleasing area.

The project will go a long way in embellishing the public space through paving, turning what is effectively a two-way road into a paved, one-way street with an interesting design through the use of red, grey and white porfido paving, and an LED street-lighting system.

The plans fall short of pedestianising the area to create a real square. But the change in traffic direction will mean the square will no longer be accessed directly from the Sliema Ferries through St Vincent Street, improving air quality and reducing traffic congestion in the area.

But while most residents welcome the embellishment of the “square”, they regret the loss of 12 parking spaces in parking-starved Sliema, which is one of the localities which still does not have an operational residents parking scheme.

A short-lived residents parking scheme implemented by the Sliema local council was immediately overruled by the new elected Labour administration in 2013. The scheme had allocated half of Sliema’s parking slots to residents. Parking in these reserved areas was only allowed for up to two hours on pain of a €23 fine. Seven years later, the Sliema council is still waiting the go-ahead to roll out a parking scheme that enjoys the residents’ overwhelming backing.

But the plan by the Transport Ministry for Annunciation Square will result in a substantial reduction of parking bays, with a new slanting design for the bays making them more appealing but taking up more space.

A resident living near the square described parking as one of the “biggest struggles” in life, insisting that the project would only make sense if a residents’ parking scheme is also introduced. “We are set to lose 12 parking spaces, which we can ill afford giving that it’s already extremely difficult to find parking… As a resident living within 20 metres of the square our biggest struggle is parking, in an area that should have residents parking but does not.”

The immediate area contains predominantly townhouses, as well as a busy band club and several shops, of which almost none have private parking.

“It is already very difficult for us residents to find parking since in addition to this being a very densely populated residential area, there is a large hotel up the street from the square, a band club and a shopping centre down at the Ferries, as well as a large hospital close by,” another resident complained.

Residents also want guarantees that no restaurant or bar currently operating in the square be given permits for outdoor chairs and tables, as this would further reduce parking and serve as a nuisance to residents.

Some residents are concerned that the traffic redirection is being implemented in a piecemeal fashion, and that it should have been integrated into a wider plan for Sliema based on traffic studies.

Other residents have called for the inclusion of trees in the project.