The final concrete slab of The Quad high-rises in Mrieħel has been cast, and outfitting is proceeding at a fast pace.
Contractor Elbros reported in a Facebook post that it had cast the last 175 cubic meters of concrete of the final slab at the Quad Towers. It thanked all those involved in the project.
The €70 million project consists of four interlinked towers of between 14 and 19 storeys each. It was approved by the Planning Authority amid protests by environmental groups in 2016, prompting an appeal that was eventually rejected.
NGOs had argued that Mrieħel had not been included in the policy regulating high-rise buildings when it was issued for public consultation, meaning that the public did not have the opportunity to comment on whether it was appropriate site for such projects. They also argued that The Quad towers would have a negative impact on historically important views from Mdina and Valletta.
The Quad is a joint venture of the Tumas and Gasan groups.
In April last year, Times of Malta reported that former planning secretary Michael Farrugia ordered the Planning Authority to allow high-rise developments in Mrieħel on the same day a meeting between himself and business magnate Yorgen Fenech was logged in the Castille visitor registry.
Documents obtained by the Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation through a Freedom of Information request showed Fenech clocked in for a meeting with Farrugia at Castille at 9.27am on March 5, 2014. He clocked out again at 9.53am.
That same day, Farrugia sent a letter to the CEO of the Planning Authority, telling him: “Mrieħel is to be considered as an appropriate location for tall buildings with the intention to create a strategic employment node”.
Times of Malta subsequently reported that the Permanent Commission Against Corruption was examining submissions in connection the meeting between Farrugia and Fenech. Independent election candidate Arnold Cassola asked for the probe into whether Fenech’s close relationship with top officials and the donation of expensive gifts to ex-prime minister Joseph Muscat had influenced policy decisions.
Farrugia insisted he did not discuss highrises in Mrieħel, but only Fenech’s wish to have a six-storey hotel and reclaim land in front of his company's Portomaso development in St Julian's.
The Quad will feature 44,000 square meters of professional, retail and commercial office space and a range of retail and amenity outlets including restaurants and a supermarket, as well as a large underground national carpark.