Lawyer Scraps Marsaskala Drive Thru Cinema Plans Due To ‘Unfair’ Backlash And Insults
Marsaskala won’t be getting a drive-thru cinema after all, with the lawyer behind the proposal scrapping it entirely due to the “unfair” backlash and insults he received.
“I withdrew the proposal upon a personal request after seeing all the negative coverage and cut-and-paste objections,” Martin Testaferrata Moroni Viani told Lovin Malta.
“After seeing all the fuss, unfair innuendos and insults, I thought ‘why bother?’. It would have been fun, a form of entertainment in line with COVID-19 regulations and local plan constraints.”
His plan, which was submitted to the Planning Authority, would have seen a drive-thru cinema ODZ land built around Marsaskala’s historic Mamo Tower, located at Triq id-Daħla ta’ San Tumas.
It would have been Malta’s first drive-thru cinema and a form of entertainment in line with COVID-19 social distancing regulations.
Testaferrata Moroni Viani argued that his plan was fully in line with the local plans for the area, which earmarked the area as a caravan site.
Testaferrata Moroni Viani's proposal
“I don’t see a difference between caravans and cars drive-thru cinema and I’m confident the PA would have accepted my proposal,” he said.
However, the plans hit a wall of criticism, with the Marsaskala local council warning it would destroy the environment of a highly sensitive geological area.
Cultural preservation organisation Wirt iż-Żejtun and activist group Moviment Graffitti shared similar sentiments.
Graffitti hailed the withdrawal of the plan as a “victory”
“This is thanks to the organisations and individuals who objected in their hundreds within a few days,” the group said. “Pressure works.”
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