Parliament building (Malta)

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Il parliament il-Ġdid
House of Representatives (Malta)

House of Representatives (Malta)

Data
place Valletta , Malta
builder Renzo Piano
Construction year 2015
Floor space 23,000 m²
Coordinates 35 ° 53 '46 "  N , 14 ° 30' 35"  E Coordinates: 35 ° 53 '46 "  N , 14 ° 30' 35"  E
particularities
Seat of the Maltese Parliament

The Parliament Building ( Maltese Il-Parlament il-Ġdid , the "New Parliament") in Valletta , Malta , is the seat of the Parliament of the Republic of Malta. The building was constructed between 2011 and 2015 to designs by Italian architect Renzo Piano as part of the City Gate project , which also included the construction of a new city gate and the conversion of the ruins of the Royal Opera House into an open-air theater. The construction of the Parliament House led to considerable controversy, mainly because of the monumental architectural style and the construction costs, which totaled around 90 million euros.

history

Before the construction of the new parliament building, the Maltese Parliament met in the Grand Masters Palace in Valletta. In 2010, construction work began on the new parliament building. The original plan was to build the building on the site of the Valletta Opera House, which was destroyed in World War II. After the property turned out to be too small, the new building was erected on the neighboring Freedom Square , near the southern city gate.

Planning

The new construction of the parliament building was part of the City Gate project , which aimed to redesign the city portals of Valletta. The project included the demolition of the fourth city gate, the redesign of Freedom Square , the construction of a fifth city gate and the construction of the new parliament building. In addition, the already partially demolished Royal Opera House has been converted into an open-air theater known as Pjazza Teatru Rjal . The Italian architect Renzo Piano, whose plans were published on June 27, 2009, was in charge of the City Gate project. The builder, Grand Harbor Regeneration Corporation, paid a total of 6.6 million euros for the architect.

Construction work

View of the building under construction (2014)
Inner courtyard and view into the building (2015)

The demolition of the arcades of Freedom Square began in October 2010. After the demolition, excavation work for the foundations of the building followed. At the beginning of 2011, the original plan was modified due to the relocation of a staircase, the extension of one of the blocks and changes in the facade design. Construction began in 2011 and the steel frame structure of the building was completed by early 2012. The surface of the building was then covered with limestone that was quarried in Malta in Gozo . The construction project cost a total of more than 90 million euros.

The parliament building was officially inaugurated by the Maltese President Marie Louise Coleiro Preca on May 4th, 2015.

Web links

Commons : Parliament House (Malta)  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. a b c The road to the new parliament building - in pictures . In: Times of Malta , May 4, 2015. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. 
  2. Revealed: the new face of Valletta . In: Times of Malta , June 27, 2009. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. 
  3. Renzo Piano's designs for Valletta cost € 6.6 million . In: Malta Today , November 14, 2010. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. 
  4. Demolition of Freedom Square arcade starts ... and stops . In: Times of Malta , October 4, 2010. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. 
  5. Freedom Square arcades come crumbling down . In: Times of Malta , October 6, 2010. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. 
  6. ^ Changes to new Parliament House approved . In: Times of Malta , January 14, 2011. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. 
  7. Maltese stone, 'Spanish' steps . In: Times of Malta , February 6, 2012. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. 
  8. ^ Parliament House inaugurated, holds first sitting: 'A milestone in Malta's parliamentary history' - President . In: Times of Malta , May 4, 2015. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016.