Fort Cambridge restoration in full swing

GAP Holdings have kept their word – in May they promised that works on the restoration of the Fort Cambridge were to start in two months, which is three years after the Malta Environment and Planning Authority approved the restoration project.

It turns out that works on the restoration of the historical fort are in full swing.

Contacted by MaltaToday, GAP director Paul Attard gave a detailed overview of the works conducted so far.

He explained that the first phase of the restoration has involved the demolition of accretions, which were structures added to the fort over time.

In the 1970’s the right hand side of the fort, when one looks at it from Qui Si Sana, was completely demolished and an indoor pool constructed. The middle part of the fort was also demolished in order to make space for an outdoor pool and related pool decks. Both pools were part of the amenities which served the then Holiday Inn Hotel. 

These parts of the fort have had to be re-built properly according to an approved method statement. At present their demolition is under way, and the erection of part of the fort has commenced.

The second phase, which has now been taken in hand, involves the reconstruction of damaged parts of the fort and the formation of the original historical glacis.  A retaining wall has been built around the fort area and clean fill material is being deposited to re-construct the presently missing glacis. As soon as these works are completed, landscaping will be carried out as approved.

The MEPA board had approved the permit for the restoration of Fort Cambridge on 15 July 2010, as a condition in the permit to GAP Holdings for the Fort Cambridge development.

Subsequently GAP Holdings issued a call for tenders for the restoration works, which was in  “final stages of adjudication” in May.

Fort Cambridge was one of the British-built fortresses in the defence system created at Tigné Point.

The pentagon-shaped fort dates to the 1880s and is similar in design to Fort Rinella in Kalkara. In fact, both forts housed one of the three famous 100-tonne coastal guns, which required a gun crew of 35 – Fort Cambridge was built specifically to accommodate it. Work on it began in 1878 but it was not finished until 1898.

The restoration approved by the MEPA board will restore the fort to its original layout through the cleaning of the stonework, and opening up of areas which had previously been blocked or covered over.

When approving the project, the MEPA made it clear that while it had no objection to commercial facilities located in the restored fort, any such development required a new MEPA application.