Green only in colour: No action on abandoned ‘vertical garden’ despite €500,000 spend

The so-called Green Wall along the Marsa-Hamrun bypass, which Infrastructure Malta described in 2020 as a ‘new green lung’ in a polluted area, has been abandoned for months.

What was supposed to be a 350-metre ‘vertical garden’ is now green only in colour despite the government spending €500,000 on the project.

Despite a public announcement to the contrary, the government has not taken legal action against the contractor to recoup some or all of the wasted public funds on the failed project.

In a statement last October, former Labour MEP candidate Steve Ellul, now CEO of Infrastructure Malta, declared that the agency would initiate legal action against the project’s contractor.

Infrastructure Malta said “the contractor failed to meet his maintenance obligations under the five-year agreement, leading to the wall’s degradation.”

“This legal action aims to ensure that the necessary upkeep is carried out at the contractor’s expense, as per his obligation to address the issue,” the Authority added.

Six months later, no action has been taken in court. The CEO did not reply to questions asking for an explanation.

He also failed to reply to questions by The Shift asking why the ‘green wall’ had been abandoned and had not been replenished with new plants.

Transport Minister Chris Bonett, also failed to reply to questions.

Research by The Shift shows that the contractor responsible for the green wall’s derelict state is The Doric Studio, owned by architect Frank Muscat. He was awarded the tender in 2020 for €478,858.

Muscat did not reply to The Shift’s questions.