Planning Board approves restoration of Mriehel Farsons brewery

The Planning Board has approved planning permission for restoration and rehabilitation works on the old brewhouse within the Mriehel Industrial Area, which forms part of the Farsons Brewing Plant.

According to the Planning Authority, once it is restored, the Grade 2 protected building will become a museum together with a visitors’ centre and other ancillary facilities, which include catering establishments and offices.

The iconic, old brewhouse occupies an area of approximately 1,975m² and was designed immediately after World War II. Its innovation lies in its structure, consisting of a reinforced concrete frame together with the architect’s focus on natural lighting and ventilation. Its main architectural highlight is the exposed functional copper brewing vats.

Separately, the Board has also approved embellishment works within the front ditch area at the entrance to Valletta, in the immediate vicinity City Gate Bridge, in order to compliment the recently approved upgrading works which will be carried out in Triton Square and King Edward VII Avenue.

The PA said that the works will include the creation of a garden, incorporating green soft landscaped spaces and a number of small piazzas, finished with local hardstone paving slabs.  A one-lane vehicular access along the counterscarp will connect the entrance parking within the ditch to the Lascaris war rooms.

The Superintendent for Cultural Heritage agreed to this project, the PA said, as a proper balance is being reached between necessary green space and open views to allow visual appreciation of the Valletta fortifications.

Furthermore, the Board also approved planning permission for the clearing and developing of a vacant site in Marsaxlokk, which will then become a surface car park, including landscaping. The Planning Directorate had recommended the application, to which the Board agreed, due to the extreme shortage in car parking facilities in the area, and following the designation of ‘il-Magħluq’ as a Special Conservation Area.

Lastly, the Board also approved the extension of two active quarries within the limits of Siggiewi, which are situated within an area with a number of licensed quarries. According to the PA, the planning permissions also include the concurrent restoration of those areas within the quarries where the extraction of the material has been exhausted.

The restoration process is said to involve three distinct phases, namely treatment and infilling, aftercare and subsequent after-use as agricultural fields.