€10 million project to rehabilitate the Gżira pumping station

A Grade 1 Neo-Gothic building is to be restored and, for the first time in its history, opened to the public, complemented by a new garden designed with respect for its historical heritage, the government said. Minister Miriam Dalli and Minister Byron Camilleri on Wednesday presented the plans for the rehabilitation of the pumping station in Gżira, with an investment of €10 million. The pumping station is a scheduled monument and an important pillar of Malta’s water infrastructure, dating back to the late nineteenth century. The project will reopen the site’s doors, which have been closed for more than a century, and transform the surrounding land into a public garden. “This will be a garden for everyday life, a place where children can play, where elderly residents can enjoy the shade, where the community can organise activities without having to leave its own locality. And it is being carried out, deliberately, with attention to the pumping station itself. This is certainly not an isolated project; the Corporation alone has a number of operational buildings, many of them historically important, spread across Malta. For decades, there has been the impression that historical heritage and modern infrastructure are in conflict. What you are seeing today is proof that this way of thinking is wrong. This is the model we want to continue implementing in our projects,” said Minister Miriam Dalli. “It is very encouraging to see projects of this kind being carried out across the country, and I am very proud that today we are here together, as a team, to ensure that this project, being led by the Water Services Corporation in the heart of the island, becomes a reality in the near future. This is an area with its own particular needs. Even in my role as Minister for Home Affairs, we have always looked at ways to help address these needs. However, my role as Minister also responsible for Community Malta also involves me in discussions on implementing beneficial projects with a range of objectives, social, cultural and environmental, among others. I can confidently say that this project fulfills these various aims,” Minister Byron Camilleri said. The new garden will be the most visible element and will be open to the public. Extensive landscaping will be carried out around the station, including shaded seating areas and smaller spaces for gathering. The works will be carried out to better showcase the main façades. Local drought-resistant plants will be used, together with low-impact paving and a lighting system, as well as a sustainable rainwater system, new entrances, one from Luqa Briffa Street and another from D’Argens Street, will reconnect this land with the rest of the locality, removing a wall that has cut the site off from the community for more than a century. The garden will serve both everyday recreation and community activities, as well as educational visits. Beyond this work, the building will also be given a new civic role. Once the works are completed, the pumping station will host the Gżira Local Council.