Proposed hotel, marina in Qala to cost Lm41m

The proposed development of a five-star hotel and marina by Gozo Prestige Holidays on the site of a disused quarry in Qala would cost some $90 million (Lm41m) and take around four years to complete.

Architect Edward Bencini, of Bencini and Associates, told a news conference yesterday that the project, to be known as Qala Creek, would include a five-star hotel, destination port, village and yacht marina.

The site is owned by Victor Bajada in partnership with Joseph Cassar.

Mr Bencini said the proposed 'village project' was inspired by the 'hanging garden' effect of the villages of the Italian Amalfitano coast, particularly Positano and Capri.

Qala mayor Paul Buttigieg said the council would take a position on the project following a public hearing next month and on the basis of feedback from the village's 1,700 residents.

Eleven different studies on the archaeology, geology and flora and fauna of the area have already been carried out and presented to the Malta Environment and Planning Authority.

MEPA is currently preparing the terms of reference for an environment impact assessment, which is expected to start in the next three weeks.

The Qala quarry has been abandoned since the 1980s, and is used for the illegal dumping of household waste and building debris.

Some 500,000 cubic metres of first quality lower coralline limestone is still available and planning permission is being sought for the extraction of this stone over an accelerated period of six to nine months.

The lowering of the quarry to sea level would allow scope for the creation of a yacht marina, destination port and berths for local fishermen and daytrippers

Marine engineer Joseph Sciortino said British marine modeling specialists HR Wallingform were studying the waves and currents generated in the different seasons and would be scientifically testing the protective measures that would need to be taken if the marina is built.

The developers maintained that the marina, with some 150 berths, would not impinge on the public beach at Hondoq ir-Rummien.

The buildings in the proposed village concept development would be irregular in form and tint, with meandering alleyways, lanes, stairways and incidental squares and courtyards with abundant planting all over the quarry terracing.

This development, Mr Bencini said, would take up 25 to 30 per cent of the site. It would include the 200-bed hotel, 60 first-class self-catering units, residences, a scattering of boutique-like shops and discreet food and drink outlets, distributed throughout the lanes and squares, on the waterfront and at the marina.

Access through the village would be by means of winding lanes, stone stairways and lifts. No vehicles would be allowed to enter.

Mr Bencini said the garigue would be cleaned of all foreign materials, as part of an approved management plan, and an instructive eco-tourist trail would be laid out with discreet signage describing the ecological highlights of the zone.

It would be left untouched, as would the terraced fields and traces of quarrying activity in antiquity

All areas would be open to the public, who would have unrestricted access to the village within the quarry, the marina, the eco-trails, and the present inaccessible coves. Access for diving would also be improved.

Discussions, Mr Bencini said, were under way with the world's leading yacht charter company for the Caribbean and the Mediterranean, with a view to starting flotilla charters from Gozo.

There were also plans to make Qala Creek a Mediterranean yachting hub for private international yachtsmen.

The company, Mr Bencini said, was also committing itself to the restoration of the chapel of Il-Madonna Tal-Blat in consultation with heritage specialists if permission was forthcoming from the Church authorities.

The project was also expected to create at least 400 new jobs.

The public are invited to view an exhibition about the project at the Qala primary school and to submit their views at a public hearing to be held on September 10.

Concern at proposed development

Alternattiva Demokratika said it was seriously concerned at the way proposals to turn Hondoq ir-Rummien in Gozo into a marina were being hurriedly pushed through.

"The yacht marina project which the MTA and the Tourism Ministry are in such a hurry to approve runs contrary to recommendations made in the Gozo Local Plan. This sets a number of binding criteria where berthing facilities for yachts are concerned," AD environment spokesman Mark Causon said.

He added that the Gozo Local Plan (Policy GZ-TRAN-12) limits any future proposals for the upgrading of facilities at Hondoq ir-Rummien to repairing existing jetties with the possible addition of berthing buoys. The local plan says the Malta Environment and Planning Authority would only consider a berthing proposal if a detailed justification on the need for additional berthing space for essential operations could be produced.

Any development at an area as sensitive as Hondoq ir-Rummien should be put on hold until such time as a plan for Gozo's protection was firmly in place, he said.