An abandoned factory could become a roadside cafeteria after the Central Link project edged it closer to the Mrieħel bypass.

Located right opposite the Fort Business Centre, the area in front of the site (which is ODZ) is being expropriated as part of the massive roads project.

As reported, the plans show how the former factory will be built upon three levels. The ground and first floor will be 200 square metres each.

The site itself has seen an application turned down once before, given that it lies within ODZ.

The central link is a €55 million project that will see the reconstruction of junctions and widening of road along the  Mrieħel bypass up until Saqqajja hill.

The area around Saqqajja hill has courted significant controversy with activists and residents raising concern over the uprooting of hundreds of trees and the take-up of a large tract of agricultural land.

Meanwhile, the government has insisted on the importance of process and stressed that in the long-run the area will actually have more trees.