The Planning Authority today approved the restoration of an early nineteenth century Garden Battery located at Tigne, Sliema, built during the British period as a military coastal battery.
The proposed restoration works, submitted by Midi Plc, were also approved in a previous permit, however the permit was never utilised.
The Garden Battery was constructed as part of a series of coastal defences undertaken by the British forces so as to provide one whole defensive complex for the Grand Harbour. It remained in use up to the early years of the 20th century, when the configuration and armaments of the Garden Battery and other similar fortifications were deemed obsolete. “As a result, most of the ditch in front of the battery was filled up and several structures were built over the glacis and the actual gun emplacements,” the case officers report read: “Years of neglect, vandalism and insensitive additions rendered the Garden Battery unrecognizable to the extent that the Outline Development Permission indicated the Garden Battery as ‘historic remains to be demolished’.
“Following the issue of development permission and removal of accretions, it became apparent that the Battery is mostly intact; and in the opinion of Fondazzjoni Wirt Artna, the Superintendent of Fortifications and the Heritage Planning Unit it was deemed worthy of retention. This resulted in a re-design of the development to allow for the retention and integration of the structure into their development. The Garden Battery is partially located in the path of the tunnel leading to the Sliema front and as a result, the construction of the second part of the underground trunk road involved the partial dismantling and reconstruction of part of the Garden Battery to pass the trunk road under the Garden Battery without destroying it. The concrete gun emplacement was reinforced by beams underneath to support its full weight. A reinforced concrete ring was constructed around the gun emplacement in order to stabilize the site when the rock beneath was excavated. The casemate and shell store (vaults) were then dismantled to allow for the rock cutting works for the tunnel and each stone/voussoir numbered. Once the tunnel structure reached completion the casemate was re-constructed.”
The application discussed today consists in the restoration of the historic fabric as already approved in a previous permit. “The proposed restoration seeks to address the deterioration mechanisms present on site, which are typical of buildings constructed entirely of globigerina limestone and concrete which is exposed to the elements for a substantial period of time. The main deterioration mechanisms are rising damp, salt related damages, pollution and lack of maintenance.
“The submitted Restoration Method Statement clearly details the existing situation and the interventions being proposed which mainly include cleaning of the masonry and concrete surfaces, pointing (where missing) and re-pointing with a suitable lime mortar mix (where this is currently pointed in cement), repair of the stone blocks and stone replacement (where severely damaged or deteriorated), repair to spalling and damaged concrete, and the preservation and treatment of the metal gear and any fixtures,” the case officer’s report read.