Labour to lease Rialto Theatre to company owned by concrete supplier

The Labour Party appears to have selected Rialto Operations Ltd to restore and operate the historic Rialto Theatre it owns in Bormla.

Rialto Operations is 90% owned by GP Borg Holdings Limited, a ready-mix concrete supplier, with lawyer Charlon Gouder, CEO of Malta’s tuna ranching lobby, holding a 10% stake.

The PL had issued a call for expressions of interest for the lease of the building in 2021. The outcome of the call has not been made public, but a planning application submitted by Rialto Operations to rejuvenate the theatre and add an additional floor suggests the lease has been awarded to the company.

According to plans submitted with the planning application, the company wants to restore the existing theatre and cinema, and introduce a new theatre with catering facilities, a restaurant, a rooftop ‘multipurpose venue’, an interconnected social club, and a boutique hotel linked to an adjacent townhouse.

Rialto Operations is owned by GP Borg Holdings and Charlon Gouder

According to plans submitted with the planning application, the company wants to restore the existing theatre and cinema, and introduce a new theatre with catering facilities, a restaurant, a rooftop ‘multipurpose venue’, an interconnected social club, and a boutique hotel linked to an adjacent townhouse.

The plans foresee the addition of a new floor atop the building, which will be used as a versatile multipurpose venue.

GP Borg Holdings, known for its concrete business, has recently expanded into property development.  A recent proposal for a 29-room, five-star hotel near Valletta’s Peacock Gardens, next to a scheduled 16th-century building associated with artist Mattia Preti, was met with strong opposition from the Superintendence for Cultural Heritage, resulting in the application being put on hold.

Rialto Operations was set up in October 2021 and Conrad Borg and Diane Buttigieg are listed as the directors.

The PL is expected to retain ownership of the building, having said in its call that it anticipates generating revenue through a lease agreement with the successful bidder. 

The call also emphasised that the proposed commercial activities had to be financially viable and maintain high standards.

The Grade 2 listed theatre, originally opened as a cinema in 1956 before ceasing operations in 1988.

Occupying a prominent location in Bormla’s main square, opposite the Dock 1 promenade, the theatre showcases an elegant art deco design. It once boasted a capacity of over 1,000 attendees and featured advanced cinematic technologies such as Cinemascope widescreen and state-of-the-art sound systems. 

As a popular destination in its prime, the Rialto attracted moviegoers from near and far.

Following its closure, the cinema was acquired by the Labour Party, which transformed it into a conference hall. It has been utilized sporadically for party functions over the years and was the main location for press conferences given by PL leader Robert Abela during last year’s election campaign.