After 36 Years Abandoned, Bormla Theatre Will Soon Be Given A New Lease Of Life
A former theatre in the heart of Bormla that has laid abandoned for the past 36 years will soon be given a new lease of life.
Rialto was built in 1956 on the site of an old cinema that had been destroyed by bombs during World War Two, and it was purchased by the Labour Party back in 1983.
However, the underlying building had already been owned by Mid-Med Bank, which later became HSBC Malta. Although Labour tried to purchase the property from the bank and gain control of the whole building, its efforts were unsuccessful.
PL CEO Randolph De Battista announced today that, after all these years, a deal has finally been struck and the party now owns the entire building.
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This means that a project intended to revamp the old theatre can kick into action, with the plan being to convert the old building back into a theatre, along with a restaurant, a multipurpose rooftop venue, an interconnected social club, and a boutique hotel.
It has been leased to a company owned by construction contractor GP Borg Holdings Limited, with PL TV host and lawyer Charlon Gouder as a minority shareholder.
“A project that a few people started working on in silence back in 2019 has now, through great perseverance, led to results,” De Battista said.
“Thank you to those who came before us, including those who had the vision to purchase this national treasure back in 1983.”
“They had wanted to purchase the underlying property back then but couldn’t do so. Now that we have consolidated the building we can proceed to the next stage, which will be announced soon, to ensure the theatre can be enjoyed by the Bormla community, artists and everyone.”
“On my first day as PL CEO, I promised to place the party on strong and sustainable financial foundations, in full collectivity with committees and branches.”
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