Prime Minister Robert Abela took an active part in another step of the public consultation process on the transformation of Fort Campbell into a national park.

Together with the Minister for the Environment, Miriam Dalli, Dr Abela listened to ideas from prospective architects and engineers who spent the past three days at the site between Mellieħa and Selmun, working on a design concept for how they envision the future of Fort Campbell as an open space for families.

This activity – organised by SACES (the Society for Architecture and Civil Engineering Students) in collaboration with Project Green – served as a hands-on workshop where students discussed their ideas for the site and translated them into a structure made from different materials, including some they found within the fort itself.

Students had the opportunity to explain to the Prime Minister and Dr Dalli the potential they see in the Government’s commitment to create a national park around Fort Campbell, based on people’s ideas.

Prime Minister Robert Abela said that today the country can afford, instead of allocating such land in Mellieħa to projects that generate higher profit, to choose investment in open spaces for families. He said the same will be done at White Rocks, where the first phase of clean-up has already begun, and at Manoel Island, where discussions are at an advanced stage for the Government to regain control of the site. “We gave our word that these lands will be returned to families for their enjoyment, and that is what will happen. With us, people not only know where we are, but they know where we are heading as a country.”

Minister Miriam Dalli stressed the importance of public participation in the consultation process regarding these three National Parks. “Today we are seeing a different kind of consultation from the usual. We are meeting SACES students—the architects of tomorrow—where, with the support of Project Green, these workshops are being held. In this way, we are not only listening to their views, but also giving them the opportunity to contribute in a tangible way to the vision of how these open spaces can be safeguarded, developed, and passed on to future generations.”

Fort Campbell was built in 1938 and was used by the British as a fortress a few years before the Second World War. This fortification is among the largest and last defensive structures built by the British in Malta.

Over time, however, the fort was left neglected and abandoned. The Government has now decided to restore this historic structure and return it to the public as one of the three National Parks.

As part of the Shape Your Space campaign, people can submit their ideas about Fort Campbell at parksinmalta.com