Floriana pinetum to be fenced and fortifications restored

The Planning Authority has approved the rehabilitation of the Pinetum site in Floriana through a fast-tracked planning procedure on Friday.

The works to be carried out by Project Green include the restoration of historical fortifications and the Nissen huts, a general cleanup of the Pinetum, tree pruning, general lighting, the installation of a children’s play area and the erection of a 1.5m fence along its perimeter.

A Project Development Statement presented in 2024 argued the primary goal was to turn the urban green area into a “family-friendly destination while ensuring the safety and well-being of visitors”.

According to the report the fencing is meant to improve the safety of children who will be using the new facilities in an area surrounded by high-traffic roads. Designated entrance and exit gates will allow the park to be closed during non-operational hours.

The proposed works also foresee the restoration of the Pieta Lunette, a small obtuse-angle structure built on the glacis facing Pieta Creek  which was hit by aerial bombs in WWII and still retains the scars in the form of a large breach in the middle of its left face.  The bombed areas will be retained as they are today part of “the historic value and added meaning acquired by the site over time”. British period graffiti will also be retained.

The works also contemplate the re-erection of two Nissen huts using salvaged ribs from the original structures and the reconstruction of three other huts using new materials.

Originally six Nissen huts were built by the British services but in 2013, one of the huts, used as store by a telecommunication company, caught fire twice in the span of a few weeks resulting in its destruction.

The permit was issued through the fast tracked notification procedure which is applicable for greening projects within the development zones indicated in local plans, the installation of playing equipment within greening projects and planting of trees, including the related irrigation systems.

But the works were given the clearance by the Superintendence for Cultural Heritage following the presentation of a restoration method statement.