New 31-storey high-rise proposed for Muscats Motors building

A new application has been filed with the Planning Authority to partially demolish one of Malta's oldest car showrooms, Muscats Motors in Gżira, and to construct a 31-storey high-rise including a hotel and commercial space. 

The new application, PA/04284/26, will replace a previous one which was withdrawn by the applicant late last year after a case officer advised the PA to refuse it.

It proposes a mixed-use tower that encompasses a hotel, residences and a hotel, surrounded by an open plaza consisting of hard and soft landscaping.

The applicant is Christopher Mizzi, managing director of Mizzi Estate, the company that owns the site, and the architect is Edwin Mintoff.

The latest application is still awaiting recommendation by a Planning Authority case officer.

The new application marginally reduces the footprint dedicated to the high-rise, reducing it from 3,026 square metres to 2,674 square metres. The entire site footprint amounts to 4,496.33 square metres in total. 

A drawing of the proposed high-rise. Photo: PA

Plans to build a 'statutory road' providing access from Triq Rue d'Argens to Triq Luqa Briffa have been maintained. 

So too has a pledge to restore and rehabilitate the old Muscats Motors building - a Gżira icon which was given Grade 2 scheduled protection in 2012.

If approved, the site will be a stone's throw away from the 23-storey ST Tower and just opposite the massive hole excavated for the undeveloped, 33-storey Metropolis Tower. Up the road from the car showroom is the former Wembley ice-cream factory, which is now a high-rise offering office facilities. 

An iconic landmark in Gżira, the Muscats Motors’ showroom is known for its round edges and corner windows and was designed by architect Joseph Colombo in the Streamline Moderne style. The showroom stands on the site of the Muscat Garage, which was built in 1934, and is known as one of the oldest car distributors in Malta.