When 41-year-old Stefan Vassallo won a bid for the lease of two vaults by the Greek Gate at Mdina bastions, he was over the moon.
He thought he had finally got his hands on a small gem, which he would transform in the artisan catering centre he always dreamed of.
Little did he know that the venture would end up ruining him financially. He spent a small fortune on the place, €200,000, which he had saved up over the years to be in a position to take on such a venture.
Having successfully managed outlets such as Veċċja in St Paul’s Bay, the All Stars Bar and Grill in Paceville and Żmerc in Balzan, he knew exactly what he was after.
He turned the vaults into a small, tavern-like concept outlet, Maħzen XII, where tourists looking for authentic food could savour fresh, local produce and artisan cuisine.
The Land Department knew all along of the bastions project and didn’t say a word
The obstacles were there from the start. Though his project seemed to fit snugly with the official policies for the silent city, his request for a licence to run a cuisine centre was turned down.
Instead, after much to-ing and fro-ing, in May 2009, he was issued with a snack bar licence, barred from preparing food on site and specifying there could be no tables and chairs within the premises.
“I wanted to build an old oven and have traditional Maltese food classes but basically the Malta Tourism Authority was telling me to have a joint that sells pre-packaged snacks and beverages to passing trade instead.”
He devised a plan to work round the ban on tables and chairs by installing old barrels – the large ones served as tables and the small ones for stools – and brought over products like ġbejniet, fresh bread and organic olive oil, which he accompanied with a selection of wines. He even had a library with Melitensia titles on local history and cuisine.
Over the months, he was subjected to several spot checks by planning authority and MTA officials who, Mr Vassallo explained, shut the place down because the toilet for disabled people was six centimetres longer than the legal requirement.
“I couldn’t believe it. It felt like I was being singled out. On either side of my premises was a thriving wine bar and a restaurant.”
He soldiered on and Maħzen XII was even listed by Lonely Planet as the guide’s pick for Mdina, describing the outlet as a “shrine to local produce”.
But the worst was yet to come. In May 2011, just one year after he had opened his doors to customers, following three years of costly restoration, the Government announced a project to restore the bastions housing his vaults.
He was issued with a notice stating he had to clear the premises within a matter of months for the works, which would last one-and-a-half years.
“Can you imagine? Any businessman will tell you that the first years of operation are the most critical.
“You basically make no money but hope to establish your place and maybe cover some of the cost that went into opening up. I was being told to pack up before I had even started.”
The only thing Mr Vassallo was offered, according to a letter from the Land Department seen by The Sunday Times of Malta, was that the contents of the outlet would be stored but that “no responsibility would be taken for the goods”.
The restoration project has been a welcome intervention for the bastions, which was recently nominated for an award, but Mr Vassallo had no idea there were such plans afoot. And the timing, from his perspective, was devastating.
“I leased this place from the Government for 15 years and nobody at the Land Department bothered to tell me the property would be subject to such an extensive restoration.
“I could have postponed my plans by a few years but instead was left to pour my money into refurbishing the place that has now gone down the drain.”
The bastion restoration entailed digging a massive trench along the road in front of Mr Vassallo’s bar as well as extensive excavation and structural work within his actual premises.
I was being told to pack up before I had even started
“Workmen ripped into the place I had refurbished with a mechanical digger shortly after I had finished restoring it. And what’s worse, I recently discovered that the people at the Land Department knew all along of the bastions project and didn’t say a word.”
Eighteen months later, the project is almost complete but in the meantime Mr Vassallo has been left penniless, without a steady income – he only recently got a proper job – and having spent his savings on a place that is now in a worse state than when he had originally won the lease for the vaults.
“I’ve been ruined by the system basically and when I spoke to the authorities about compensation, I was bluntly told to forget it because I don’t actually own the property.”
Mr Vassallo was also slapped with a €3,700 fine by the VAT department for not filing his returns on time and a court order for his arrest for falling behind with some creditors.
“I hear of stories of VAT fines having been struck off by Presidential pardon every time but, lo and behold, my request was rejected. And while I’m ashamed to say that I have fallen behind with creditors, I have my back against the wall.
“I’ve now resorted to borrowing money from my family after police showed up at work the other day, essentially telling me that I was on the way to Corradino (prison).”
When contacted, a spokeswoman for the Land Department acknowledged Mr Vassallo’s case but said that “it is important to note that it is not within this department’s competence to grant compensation for lost income”. Questions sent to the MTA remained unanswered.
mmicallef@timesofmalta.com