A study space has been found for architecture students who were previously told they would have to carry out workshop sessions in a “marquee tent”.

The faculty of architecture has secured a lease for two halls at Campus Hub in Msida, according to the dean, Marc Bonello.

Students in architecture and civil engineering had raised concerns about the proposal to work in a tent, saying it would be hot in summer and cold in winter.

The Campus Hub halls will be available at the start of the new academic year, which begins this month.

“There will no longer be a need to provide a marquee tent for the master’s students, whose design project workshop sessions will be now held within the two spaces at the Campus Hub,” Bonello told Times of Malta.

Around 50 students will be attending the design workshops at the new location. Undergraduate students are unaffected and will continue holding their workshop sessions within the faculty building.

Design workshop sessions are typically held in a large studio space where students can freely interact with their tutors on design projects.

Last month, master’s students in architecture and structural or civil engineering were told design workshop sessions would be held in a marquee tent in the campus courtyard.

The alternative arrangement was proposed after the Sustainable Living Centre (SLC), the intended location for the workshops, was “not yet available” and a previous agreement to lease off-campus space from the Department of Visual Art had expired.

Worried students feared a marquee tent would make it difficult for them to carry out their work due to a lack of amenities, such as power outlets and lighting.

Previously, Bonello said the faculty was “exploring” the possibility of taking over some of the SLC Design Studios by the second semester, meaning students would move into the new studio by January.

Located just a few minutes’ walk from the University, Campus Hub offers student accommodation, lecture rooms, underground parking and food outlets.