A revamped Marsa racecourse could double the number of annual visitors, Parliamentary Secretary for Sport Clifton Grima said at a press conference on Tuesday.

“Last year 60,000 people visited the racecourse, just to give you an idea of how popular it is,” Mr Grima said. 

Plans to upgrade the horse-racing track forsee enlarged spectator stands and modern facilities for dressage and show jumping, among other developments aimed at elevating the sport to international standards.

Restaurants, shops, an educational family park and a child care centre will also be included, to make the track more attractive to the wider population. 

 “Today is a special day for horse-racing enthusiasts. One of the biggest challenges sports entities face is generating enough money to be financially sustainable, so we welcome the investment,” Edwin Borg, chairman of the Malta Racing Club, said. 

Of course, inconveniences and disruptions would come with the undertaking of such a big project, the chairman added, imploring everyone to be cooperative.

Last week Parliament unanimously backed a deal to privatise the Marsa horse racing track for the next 65 years. The deal obliges Marsa Race Track Ltd, the company set to take over the track, to invest €24 million in horse racing, and carry out the project within four years from the contract signing. 

Marsa Race Track Ltd. is headed by a director of cash-for-passports concessionaires Henley and Partners. The agreement also allows the company to build an eight-storey commercial complex for speculation purposes, including offices, shops, restaurants and parking facilities.

Controversially, included in the deal was a piece of public land to be used for commercial purposes. This area of land, currently used as Marsa’s park and ride facility and a key bus station, will be turned into a car park with 1,200 spaces. It did not form part of the original tender issued in 2015.

An aerial view of the race track. In the foreground is the public park-and-ride facility which will be turned over to the consortium that won the concession.

Architect Valerio Schembri, engaged by the government to make a valuation of the public land, said that the company is expecting to invest €14 million to develop the nine-storey commercial complex.  

At current prices, the roughly 12,000 square metres of space will likely yield some €2 million a year in rents.

The consortium is required to pay an upfront payment of €100,000 for the race course and another €100,000 for the park and ride site.

In addition to this, the annual ground rent for the racing track will cost €100,000, while €50,000 will be paid for the park and ride area, and €650,000 for the commercial site. The rent will be increased by 15 per cent every five years.