Fort Manoel to start being restored next year

The developers of the Manoel Island project have stepped up security and restricted access to significant parts of the island due to a rise in vandalism at the historical buildings of Lazzaretto Hospital and Fort Manoel.

Midi chief executive Ben Muscat said that over the past few months the developers had beefed up security to such an extent that they were now controlling access to Fort Manoel and Lazzaretto.

"Obviously, bona fide users are complaining but we were forced to take this decision because otherwise things would have got out of control."

Access to Manoel Island now stops just short of the yacht repair 'yard. "There is still a certain degree of vandalism going on but we have managed to regain control of the situation. As recently as some weeks ago, some people managed to get into the ditch of Fort Manoel. They damaged all the gates in the tunnels of the fort. The gates are made up of thick horizontal strips of steel but they still managed to damage them significantly."

Mr Muscat said that Midi had other bad experiences since it took over the island. "Our workers had tools go missing and sometimes our machinery was damaged. This was partly due to a situation where certain squatters had become upset because we were insisting that they had to leave. Getting rid of squatters was a long and difficult process. It took us a great deal of time to convince them that this had become private property and that it was time to move out.

"With some cases it was also a process of cat and mouse where sometimes we managed to get somebody out of a place one day only to realise that he would have moved to another place the following day. Finally, we managed to vacate all the squatters. There were two particular individuals who found it incredibly hard to leave. Let's face it, they were paying no rent and their home was Fort Manoel. They had also somehow managed to get a supply of water and electricity.

"Some people were living on Manoel Island and others had established an illegal workshop and were operating from there."

From day one, Mr Muscat recalled, Midi had realised that practically everywhere on Manoel Island had been vandalised at some point. "We were fixing apertures, steps, doors and gates only to find them ruined once again. We were cleaning walls only to find that they were full of graffiti some days later. We were also clearing illegal dumps but people were creating new ones. This string of vandalism prompted us to tighten security. We were spending serious money on restoration and cleaning of Manoel island for nothing.

"If there is a lesson to be learned, it is that when the government is about to transfer property to the private sector the handover should be instantaneous. If the handover takes time there will be a vague, in-between area where anarchy will prevail. In this case, years had passed from the time the authorities abandoned the place till it was passed on to Midi. "When we took over we found all places vandalised.

"For instance, most of the remains of the chapel at Fort Manoel had disappeared. There is also a particular corner at Lazzaretto Hospital where it is evident that someone had started to slowly dismantle part of the historic building possibly for reuse of the stone blocks somewhere else. This is not vandalism for the sake of it but someone appreciating the value of the old masonry and trying to steal it."

After significant progress was made at Tigne Point, intensive work is now expected to kick off at Manoel Island very shortly.

In October, Midi will issue a call for tenders for the restoration of Fort Manoel, for work to start probably very early next year when Midi will also start work on the new breakwater which could be completed in 2005.

"The first work we expect to do at Manoel Island is expected to be infrastructural, which by its very nature means a lot of heavy investment in utilities, including the development of the waterfront and the construction of a breakwater. The development of the waterfront will also include the restoration of Lazzaretto, which will cost several million liri."

The large historical Lazzaretto Hospital is made up of three large buildings which, once restored, will be turned into a casino, hotel, restaurants, exhibition spaces and other facilities. Midi has also leased the marina to a professional manager for a number of years until permanent work on the marina kicks off. The marina lacked security, was not well maintained and rat-infested, Mr Muscat said. However, the situation has improved significantly with installation of pontoons, landscaping, security at the gate, patrols and better marina facilities.

Mr Muscat said the Midi project would cost significantly more than the estimated Lm140 million, partly because of the long term over which the investment will be made and partly as Midi reacts to shifts in market expectations with respect to specifications and the nature of the product itself. However, he would not be drawn into mentioning any new figures but said that Midi looked at the overall project as a series of interlinking major projects broken down in phases to be developed along an evolving master programme.

Since the developers signed the agreement with the government in June, 2000, the consortium has already paid Lm5 million to the government in terms of rent and premium.

Turning to Tigne' Point, Mr Muscat said most people were still not aware of the heavy activity taking place on the peninsula.

"Some people have the impression that we have created a big hole and that it has remained like that. Reality is very different. Work is moving at a very fast pace. Under the lease agreement with the government, Midi could choose whether it would start with Manoel Island or with Tigne' Point. Basically, Midi could choose which of the two phases it would start."

Both phases have a strong element of restoration and infrastructural work complemented by a commercial element. "Midi chose to start with Tigne Point. This phase was split in different parts, including the development of apartments in the Tigne South and the Tigne Sports side which involved significant infrastructural work and development on buildings which will eventually be passed on to the government."

The Tigne Sports side will be made up of an extensive underground car park, shopping complex and department stores, supermarket, cinema complex, on top of which a football pitch will be built which will go back to the government, to be passed on to Sliema Wanderers.

Part of the premises which will go back to the government includes the Clock Tower Block which will be used to house a series of sports and hobbies facilities. There are also 12 apartments which will be transferred by the government to ex-Tigne' Point residents who had insisted on living there.

"This means that there is heavy investment going on at Tigne' Point which is part of the obligation of Midi under its lease agreement with the government. Work on this phase is moving at a good pace, including the first phase of the underground relief road, and we believe we are respecting the terms of the lease agreement in respect of our obligations vis-à-vis infrastructural restoration.

Mr Muscat said that work was also gaining momentum on Tigne South. "This is made up of 200 luxurious apartments which make up what is probably the most prestigious part of the Tigne Point peninsula which overlooks Valletta. The first batch of 140 apartments were put on the market in November and there was an overwhelming reaction from the public. Practically all the apartments were sold within a few weeks. In May, we had put on the market a further 60 apartments and once again the feedback had been remarkable." Mr Muscat said that 20 per cent of the buyers were foreigners, the remainder were sold to Maltese.

"The reason why foreigners bought only 20 per cent of the apartments is that the Maltese snapped most of them in a very short period of time, which is a very encouraging start to this high profile project ."

An important element of the Tigne Point area is Fort Tigne. "This is within our restoration obligations and it is our intention to finish most of its restoration work soon after the apartments are ready, that is by the end of mid-2006. We are still waiting for the permit for the full restoration of Tigne Point. Realistically, work will start around May of next year. We will also be conducting a study to determine how we should make use of Tigne Fort. Whatever we shall be doing will have to be in tune with the historical value of Forte Tigne. For instance, there could be a good combination of dining facilities, cultural attractions, studios, small seminar/conference facilities, exhibition spaces and an upmarket language school."

In terms of the Tigne Point phases which have been commissioned, there is also the development of Pjazza Tigne which will consist of four levels of underground parking, boutiques and retail outlets on ground level and duplex apartments on top. "Our intention is to create a substantial pjazza environment which is expected to be one third larger than Pjazza Regina in Valletta. Ultimately, this pjazza will be the heart and soul of Tigne Point. All this development will be commissioned by mid-2006 by which time substantial parts of the North development will also be in progress.

"That can be the subject of another interview," concluded Mr Muscat.