‘This Should Be Fun For Everyone’: Lawyer Behind Proposed Marsaskala Drive Thru Says Development Won’t Ruin Environment
Martin Testaferrata Moroni Viani, the lawyer behind the proposed Marsaskala drive-in cinema, defended the controversial development, saying that it will not be ruining the surrounding countryside.
According to plans submitted to the Planning Authority, the proposed development would encircle Marsaskala’s historic Mamo Tower, located at Triq id-Daħla ta’ San Tumas.
By 4th January, around 138 separate objections were made to the development. Most of those who lodged the objections, including the Marsaskala local council and organisation Wirt iż-Żejtun, said that the proposed development would serve to adversely impact the area’s architectural and geological heritage.
Lovin Malta spoke to Testaferrata Moroni Viani to better understand the reasoning behind said development.
“Why shouldn’t we have a drive-in cinema? Especially in the circumstances as they are now, where cinema-goers have to be separated in their own bubbles,” the lawyer said.
“Apart from that, there also need to be some recreational areas in the south.”
The lawyer explained how drive-in cinemas are vastly popular overseas, in countries like the United States and Germany.
In light of the criticism put forward by environmentalists, Testaferrata Moroni Viani went on to explain that the development would not adversely impact the surrounding countryside.
“When we talk about development, we all think about concrete and what not – this is not the case,” the lawyer explained.
“The screen will be inflatable, there won’t be any sense of permanence to the structure. I’m not going to be building a tower.“
When asked about whether he has any plans to open other establishments in the area in the future, the lawyer said he does not.
“I have no plans to develop a village or a multi-use village in the area. These are all people’s fantasies,” he said.
“This is a private investment on private land, it should be fun for everyone.”