Floating restaurant proposed next to Macina

A floating restaurant is being proposed for Triq it-Tarzna, beside the deck of the Macina in Isla, by the company Port Cottonera Limited, in addition to the application for a two-storey hotel inside the Macina which the consortium filed in March 2015.

The proposed restaurant will include a 57 square-metre covered area and a 155 square-metre al fresco area.

The application is a change from plans approved back in 2013 by the same consortium, to re-use the historical building for a mixture of exhibition space, conference facilities and catering establishments.  

The works approved in 2013 included the demolition of the second floor of an existing building, considered as an accretion to the original building. But this storey is being retained in the proposed hotel. 

The sheer bastion building (above) derives its name from the ‘macchina’, a mechanism which was used for ship-mast fitting. The mechanism was originally made of strong hardwood, but in 1864 the British changed it to a modernised steel structure. In 1927, the structure was dismantled by the Admiralty to be replaced by a floating lift crane.  

Il-Macina has subsequently been used for a variety of purposes, including the Admiralty’s Head Office, a Trade School and as the headquarters of the Malta Labour Party until 1992.

Port Cottonera, which represents a variety of entrepreneurs and established business groups, is the developer of the Cottonera Waterfront, which hosted the Casino de Venezia and a host of restaurants and corporate offices. 

The concession included the 3,000 square metre vaults of the Gateway Building, used for marina-related storage and chandlering, the Macina fort and the promenade.