The Royal Malta Yacht Club has finally found a new home - after an eight-year saga of negotiations for its relocation from Fort Manoel to Manoel Island's north shore.
A site in Ta' Xbiex has been identified and given the green light in a matter of weeks. The club is to be housed at the Malta Maritime Authority (MMA) premises in a move that club commodore Georges Bonello du Puis described as a "godsend" and "worth the wait", despite having invested time and money in a project that never got off the ground.
The building is to be leased to the club, effectively closing a tripartite situation - between the government, the club and Midi, developers of Tigné Point and Manoel Island - that was starting to stagnate.
Infrastructure Minister Austin Gatt seems to have taken the bull by the horns to end the long-drawn-out issue which was raised when Midi took over Manoel island.
A solution was necessary and, together with the RMYC, Dr Gatt was willing to consider available alternatives that the club would be happy with, the ministry said.
Since Malta's accession to Schengen, border control and customs operations are no longer being conducted at Ta' Xbiex and, therefore, the opportunity for an alternative use of the premises used by the MMA presented itself.
The club had presented the MMA premises to the government as one of its preferred locations around four years ago, Mr Bonello du Puis said. The club had drawn up a plan of alternative sites on the Marsamxett Harbour, which it recently presented to Dr Gatt, under whose portfolio the Midi project falls.
Mr Bonello du Puis expressed his satisfaction that the "saga is over" four ministers down the line.
He envisaged that works could start soon and, once started, should be finalised in about six months - the other development, which was estimated to cost €1.16 million (Lm500,000), would have run into years as it had to be built from scratch.
Among the advantages of the new site is the fact that it would cost less as it would only have to be renovated; that it could be completed in months; that it would not be in the heart of a construction site for years.
More than anything, the club would not have to abide by the operational restrictions Midi was imposing, Mr Bonello du Puis said.
"When we had accepted the Midi site, we were compromising," he said, adding that the developers had "lost out" on having the prestigious yacht club on Manoel Island.
The project would be divided into three phases, Mr Bonello du Puis said. After the development of the existing building there was the possibility of expanding onto an adjacent area for more outside space to be able to focus on dinghy sailing and a sailing school.
The club also wants to create its own yacht marina to be able to host international events. It is keen to safeguard the future of the Rolex Middle Sea Race. The club had reached an agreement on the terms and conditions for the north shore premises last summer, but it had appeared that the government and Midi were not seeing eye to eye, Mr Bonello du Puis said, leaving the project at a standstill.
The lease agreement is currently being discussed between the MMA and the RMYC. Although no major problems were expected, the ministry preferred to wait for the conclusion of the talks before saying when it would be signed. Mr Bonello du Puis, however, was hopeful that it would be a matter of weeks and that works would be able to start imminently.