Fekruna Bay to be reclaimed for the public

Plans for an upgrade of the area - covering 2,750 square metres of land - have been presented by the Ministry for Transport and Infrastructure.

The aim of the project is to upgrade the area to open it up to the public after the demolition of the Fekruna restaurant which took place some months ago.

The project includes a belvedere, a soft landscaped area, timber benches, the planting of tamarisk trees and a concrete deck.

In November 2010 Malta Environment and Planning Authority (MEPA) has issued an enforcement order on the derelict site of the Mare D'Oro restaurant in the picturesque Fekruna Bay in St Paul's Bay.

According to MEPA, the abandoned building is now an eyesore riddled with dangerous structures, and is openly accessible to everyone as its apertures have been broken.

Fekruna Bay had been earmarked for villa development in the 1988 temporary provision scheme, but was scheduled by MEPA in 1996.

The Mare D'Oro restaurant's lido itself was the site of protests by residents and Alternattiva Demokratika, who wanted free public access to Fekruna Bay in the 1990s.

The authority had consequently refused an application by Mare D'Oro owner Raymond Vella to build two villas in the bay in 1998. Vella had presented another application in 2003 for the demolition of existing Mare d'Oro structure and the construction of residential units. The application was never approved.

Following the demolition of the restaurant some 18 months ago, the area the derelict site and was fenced.