Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1324024
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 3 JANUARY 2021 10 NEWS THIS CHRISTMAS, THE PREFECT GIFT IS LOVE. WITH YOUR DONATION, WE CAN HELP THOSE IN NEED. www.richmond.org.mt/the-gift-of-therapy/ JAMES DEBONO AN eight-storey commercial and retail centre at the Marsa racecourse will bring in an ad- ditional 2,829 car trips every day during weekdays. The Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT) study assessed traffic on the Ceppuna access road and Triq l-ljun, between the Marsa Park & Ride and the Landmark business centre. Presently the racecourse gen- erates minimal trips, with some 60 horse-racing events attract- ing between 800 to 1,200 spec- tators, while traffic on Triq l-Iljun peaks at 1,308 daily trips on weekdays. The new facilities are expect- ed to increase the number of spectators by 20%. The development will be a mix of retail, office, and food and beverage outlets, with a three-story arcade for a bet- ting shop, restaurants and VIP boxes connecting a 972-seat grandstand to the commercial complex. A lawned terrace to the east of the grandstand will include a food pavilion. Also proposed is a childcare centre with four floors of overlying office. The project will include a five-storey car park with a ca- pacity for 1,228 parking spaces, and a footbridge linking the car park to the commercial build- ing. The two-storey grandstand will accommodate corporate sponsors and club members, hospitality and lounge areas, a members' restaurant and pri- vate dining areas. The Environment and Re- sources Authority says the project needs an environmen- tal impact assessment with air quality studies on the increase in traffic, and also the visual impact of the project. The project is proposed by Marsa Race Track Ltd, a com- pany owned by F. Schembri Holdings and Ireland-based True to Type Limited. It in- cludes individual shareholders, namely Irish national Alfred Kenneth Alexander Hill, Hugh Morsehead (also a director in Henley and Partners) from Jersey, British 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 commercial complex is to be built, with €50,000 due in rent for a proposed 1,200-car parking facility. Racecourse complex will increase daily traffic by 2,330 trips The eight-storey business complexwill be connecting to a two-storey grandstand for the horse races, and have a five-storey undergound car park