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4 NEWS 05.11.2020 THE development permit for the final phase of the Tigne Point project, re- cently approved by the Planning Au- thority, includes the landscaping of the restored Garden Battery at Tigne Point. e landscaping will sensitively trans- form this 7,000sqm area into a signif- icant landscaped plaza at the heart of Tigne Point for the enjoyment of the general public. e Garden Battery plaza will provide fully accessible public walkways and create an attractive garden setting, with stone terraces, stepped seating, green spaces planted with native species and a water feature. e new plaza adjoining the exist- ing Tigne Piazza on the southern edge of the Garden Battery will form a new public meeting place with space for market stalls and community activities. e Garden Battery plaza will house a panoramic glazed lift and staircase to connect it to Pjazza Tigne and e Point Shopping Mall. Tigné Point has been transformed over the last 20 years with residential, leisure, retail and office accommodation focused around Pjazza Tigne. e land- scape realm will unlock new pedestrian links connecting Censu Xerri Street, PjazzaTigne and the Point Shopping Mall to the promenade. Designed by LOM architecture and design, the pub- lic realm project completes MIDI's €275 million development of Tigné Point. Last year MIDI's restoration of the Gar- den Battery was recognized for its out- standing restoration works during the 14th edition of the Architectural Herit- age Awards, organized by local culture and heritage NGO, Din l-Art Helwa. Built by the British administration between 1889 and 1894, the Garden Battery was part of a line of defence for Marsamxett Harbour and Grand Harbour. It remained in use up to the early years of the 20th century, but af- ter World War II, the defensive unit became obsolete with the battery being built over to accommodate the Brit- ish Services buildings known as Tigne' Barracks. e Garden Battery was re- discovered by MIDI in the early 2000s, when excavation works at Tigne Point commenced. Although it was envis- aged that the Garden Battery would be demolished as part of the Tigne Point development, a decision was taken to retain and preserve the battery and to incorporate the entire area into the Tigne Point development. is decision was not without its challenges as it ne- cessitated a redesign of the already ap- proved plans and significant additional costs. It proved to be the right decision however and today this fortification has been integrated seamlessly with the de- velopment and will now form part of a heritage trail which will link Fort Cam- bridge to Fort Tigne connecting to an uninterrupted pedestrian promenade around the Tigne Point peninsula, from Qui-Si-Sana to Tigne Seafront. MIDI to transform Garden Battery into 7,000sq.m public landscaped plaza Investment through EU's Cohesion Policy delivers growth and prosperity AMONG the success stories of the European Union throughout its history was the improvement in prosperity across the continent but also the reduction of disparities between its Member States and Regions. e EU's Economic and Social Cohesion Policy is the principal tool through which the Union seeks to improve our quality of lives through hundreds of thou- sands of projects all over Europe that receive funding from the Euro- pean Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the European Social Fund (ESF) and the Cohesion Fund. rough these funds, in 16 years of membership, Malta has used more than €1.5 billion on a variety of initiatives which have improved our educational and health facili- ties, enhanced our historical assets, trained thousands of individuals and supported numerous business- es in their road towards innovation, growth and job creation. Malta has been widely recognised in European quarters for its suc- cessful take up of the EU Cohesion funds, with former Commissioner for Regional Policy Corina Creţu saying that "throughout the years, Malta has demonstrated how cohe- sion policy is a strategic investment which makes a real difference." For the next seven years, Malta has secured a total of €842 million in funds under the core Cohesion Policy. An additional €92 million were allocated to Malta as part of the Recovery Instrument – Reac- tEU. Over the next months, benefi- ciaries from all walks of life will get together through the OurEU plat- form to share their stories of how EU cohesion policy has tangibly improved their lives. is platform includes the web- site OurEU.mt and dedicated so- cial media pages on Facebook (@ oureumt) and Instagram (oureu. mt).

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