Dilapidated Vittoriosa site turned into a playground

A dilapidated area in Vittoriosa has been transformed into a playground through a €115,000 investment.

The playground, inaugurated on Friday morning on St Edward Street, is nestled between two sections of the city's recently restored bastions.

"What was once a desert is now an oasis," the locality's mayor John Boxall said during a press conference at the playground, which has already welcomed Skola Sajf students. 

Addressing the same event, Planning Minister Stefan Zrinzo Azzopardi said it was the government's policy to "hand back" to the community as many public spaces as possible. 

"The government must be a shoulder to rely on for local councils and communities," he added.

The grant for the playground comes from a €30million planning authority fund that councils can tap into for projects that address shortcomings in their localities, former PA board chair Vince Cassar said.