Design
Design
“ we are encouraging councils to consider pooling their funds to get ambitious projects going , rather than delaying them until they can afford them on their own ”
Local Councils the opportunity to realize and implement their ideas in ways which would benefit their own localities . Over the past years a total of € 12.8 million has already been allocated to councils through the UIF . The money has been spent on a variety of community projects , from energy-saving street lighting to the creation of playgrounds .
“ After a number of years have passed since the inception of these funding intiatives , the time was ripe for us to redesign and improve our funding system and structure . From the feedback we have been getting from Local Councils and other interseted stakeholders , our new funding scheme encourages long lasting physical interventions which are intended to upgrade the amenity and appreciation of a locality ” Perit Cassar added .
Our vision has been to see more collaboration between councils as it would enable them to tackle larger projects , which often benefit residents from beyond a council ’ s boundaries .
“ They are never short of ideas . There is so much that they can do ! However , there are instances when there is a big project which would benefit residents from several localities – say a playground or a garden or accessible pavements – which might require a bigger budget than an individual council would have . This is envisaged under the new framework and we are encouraging councils to consider pooling their funds to get ambitious projects going , rather than delaying them until they can afford them on their own ,” he said .
Looking ahead , the new committee is excited to see what new projects will be proposed by Local Councils . These funds may also be utilised by government agencies , NGO ’ s or private individuals but the proposals would need to be submitted through the respective Local Councils where the initiatives are intended to be implemented .
“ With so many more developments planned , it is important to ensure that the lack of parking is actively turned into a benefit for the community ,” Perit Cassar concluded .
10 Q2 , 2017 DESIGN & BUILD