Dear Decision Maker

Dear Decision Maker,

I write in my capacity as a concerned citizen, with the intention of pursuing better public spaces. I do not wish to condemn the work of others, but rather to reframe how we assess it.

The recent redesign of Buġibba Square was much needed, and clearly well intentioned. During the final weekends of June, I spent a number of mornings sitting outside, overlooking the square and observing how people used it. The square does allow social life to unfold. A group of elderly people gathered on the far right of the space. They sat on mobility scooters, on plastic chairs brought over from a nearby restaurant, and even on the small, low-level light bollards. Nearby, a group of tourists sat between the slanted timber slats. A small girl attempted to do press-ups between them, squeezing a teddy bear with one hand.

People passed through the piazza. Some stopped briefly. A few sat down. Yet, no one lingered.

By 11am, the overhead sun had become too strong. The exposed square emptied. The following morning, the same elderly group returned. The same spot, the same plastic chairs brought into the space. Other tourists sat informally on small ledges and between the slats. Hungry, I walked into a nearby restaurant for a soft-cone ice cream. Outside the restaurant, the benches were crowded, yet the tables were empty. People were not ordering; they were sitting outside, watching.

A few metres away, a circular concrete bench remained unused. This raised a simple question:

Why were people not using the square itself?

Beyond the fact that the spacing between the timber slats appears too wide to provide effective shade against the Mediterranean sun, there is a clear science to getting people outdoors, and encouraging them to stay there. People enjoy watching other people. They sit in the shade in summer and seek warmer spots in winter. They gather at edges, near crossings, entrances, and wait at points of movement. They prefer places where they feel protected, comfortable, and connected to the life around them. These design considerations are simple and uncomplicated, but they are fundamental. I write this prudently, without ill intent or negativity.

My training as an urban designer, and my relatively new role as an Architect in the local public sector, lead me not towards concern alone, but towards potential. “A city is like a good party,” a public-space advocate once said, “people stay longer than really necessary, because they are enjoying themselves.” Buġibba Square has given the area a clearer public centre, and that should be acknowledged. But its use also reveals a familiar weakness in how we often design public space.

Too much attention is given to the finished image, and not enough to the human behaviours that make a place work: shade, comfort, edges, informal sitting, visibility, and the simple pleasure of watching others. The elderly group who returned with their own plastic chairs understood the square better than any drawing could.

They found the edge, the shade, the view, and the social life. The design should have met them there. This is not a call to dismiss the project, but to learn from it. Public spaces should not be judged only when they are newly paved, photographed, and inaugurated. They should be judged at 11am in June, when the sun is high, when people are tired, when children play, when elderly residents search for somewhere to sit. If we are serious about better public space, we must start designing not only behind screens, but for people.