Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1204548
11 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 26 JANUARY 2020 NEWS Marsa racecourse: nine-storey development plans submitted JAMES DEBONO PLANS for the upgrading of the Marsa racecourse envisage the erection of a massive nine-sto- rey high, commercial and office block in a fluid modern style of architecture. A five-storey high car park is also being proposed over the Marsa Park and Ride. While the ground floor will host a bus ter- minus, the overlying four floors will include parking spaces for a staggering 1,248 cars. A bridge will connect the car park and the racetrack. The building will also include an "open roof VIP area on top". The corner office building, which also includes three floors of commercial and retail devel- opment, is being proposed in the vicinity of the Lidl and Pavi su- permarkets. The plans, designed by archi- tect Edwin Mintoff, also envis- age upgrading the racetrack and the polo pitch, the development of two clubhouses, stables and paddocks, a childcare centre and an equestrian arena with a grandstand. In its initial reaction to the submitted plans, the Superin- tendence for Cultural Heritage described the area where the project is being proposed as one having a "significant cultural landscape" and called on the de- velopers to "take cognisance of the cultural heritage assets with- in the site, be they built struc- tures, civil engineering works and archaeological remains", and to ensure that these are safe- guarded. The Superintendence also asked for more details with re- gards to the Marsa Sports Club and the polo club, asking for clarification whether the build- ing will be "demolished or re- stored". Studies are still required to as- sess the "cultural significance" of these buildings. The area in question was the subject of civil engineering works during the British Period. This included an elaborate sys- tem of floodwater channels and sports infrastructure. The polo pitch was specifically engineered with an underlying system of rainwater drainage, including graded fills and terracotta pipes. The Planning Authority's de- sign advisory committee ex- pressed concerns on the massing of the corner offices and the car park, adding that widening the road and the space in between these blocks should be consid- ered. It also suggested a reduc- tion of the bulk of the building especially on the side of Race- course street and the narrow road leading to the Marsa Sports Club. Marsa Race Track Ltd present- ed the plans. The company is owned by F. Schembri Holdings and the Ireland-based True to Type Limited. It also includes individual shareholders, namely Irish national Alfred Kenneth Alexander Hill, Hugh Morse- head (also a director in Henley and Partners) from Jersey, Brit- ish national Kusam Sharma and Maltese lawyer Pio M. Valletta. According to the deed signed with the government, the an- nual ground rent to be paid by the operator for the land hous- ing the racetrack will amount to €100,000. A further €650,000 in ground rent will be due on the land on which a commer- cial complex is to be built, with €50,000 due in rent for a pro- posed 1,200-car parking facility. The obligation to pay rent on the car park will come into force af- ter three years. Superintendence wants more studies and 'respect' for area's archaeological and historical importance Race-course and new development Marsa sports club and golf course Pavi supermarket Proposed car park at park-and-ride land Architectural renditions of the proposed project wrapping itself around one side of the race-track