Last Update August 2006

The New Club

 The building process in the year 2005

On February 3, more stone blocks were delivered to the site, stone which was later used to complete the upper balustrade on the front of the building - this work was done by Joe Zerafa.

During the month of February, Salvu Magro worked on the drainage system including the system for draining the rain water from the roof. In the meantime, work on the installation system progressed considerably. This work was carried out by Carmel Magro, Franky Mifsud and Sa1vu Magro.

On Sunday, February 6, work was initiated on the laying of the baluster base. To faci1itate this work and at the same time minimize the risk of accidents, Calmel Magro and Salvu Magro extended the scaffolding on the front of the building.

On February 19, Joe Zerafa put in place the first set of eleven balusters on the upper front of the building.

Additional work was done on the smoothing of the main rounded stairwell wal1s.

During the month of April, a couple of galvanized steel beams together with a couple of large water tanks were brought to the site in readiness for the installation of the water supply system.

During the week of April 10, because of inclement weather we turned our attention to completing the sculpturing of the balustrade base. This work was done by Joseph Zerafa, Martin Formosa, Michael Aqui1ina, Anthony and Marlon Aquilina, Baskal Ellul, Joseph Ellul and Michael Farrugia. Peter Caruana and Baskal Ellul did additioua1 work on the balustrade of the upper stairwell roof. The gravel within the halls was also leveled.

In the weeks that followed, Salvu Magro and his helpers, resumed work on the installation of the electrical system. The rest of the balustrade base of Edward St George Hall was also completed.

On May 15, Martin Formosa initiated work on the decorative motive of the main façade.

On May 31, the contractor started work on the grouting and p1astering of the halls and other rooms

At this time, work was temporarily interrupted due to the ce1ebration of a village feasts. Of course, work of a tidying nature kept on going, work which got rid of all unwanted material that accumulated on the site during the course of time. Although work on the installation of the electrical system, on the decorative motive and on covering the roof with tar was not interrupted, it was decided to defer the laying of the cement served of the larger roof to late autumn in order to avoid excessive weather conditions.

The episode for 2004 in the grandiose story of this Society has now come to a close. The impact of this magnificent building on the village as a whole is highly evident. Many are those who express their desire to see this project completed sooner rather than 1ater; then there are those who still find it hard to accept the fact that, with imaginative foresight, we managed to build such an edifice in such a central location. The effect of this new building on the St Mary Musica1 Society will undoubtedly be the widening of its scope and an increase in the efficiency of its cultural operations.

Once the equipment and other decorations used in the 2005 festa of the Assumption had been dismantled and stored away, our diligent volunteers once again turned their attention to work connected with the building of our new club premises. In particular, the biggest job now remaining was that of the roofing (kontrabejt) of the main roof. In this regard, many preparations had to be carried out prior to the job itself, for example, the laying of the rain water drain pipes against a rather high supporting wall which incidentally presented a certain amount of challenge and danger to those doing the work; the completion of the work on the electrical conduits; the coating of the concrete surfaces with tar; etc. The generosity of the friends of this Society is still strong and healthy, for example, the firm of Bonnici Bros. offered and ultimately supplied us with the gravel and the concrete for the roof free of charge. This Society is forever grateful to Messrs. Bonnici Bros. for their generous gift, so much so that the Central Committee is hereby urging their members to patronize this firm wherever possible in all the services that they might require. .Now this work had reached its final stages, attributable mainly to the ability and sheer determination of our volunteers.

. On Monday, September 5, and in connection with the work referred to above, a fair quantity of small and large stone blocks together with Stiefnu's winch and the band saw were brought down to ground level.

. On Wednesday, September 7, after the roof was treated with tar, the gravel was lifted up onto the roof and spread evenly the way it should.

. On Saturday, September 10, the day before tal-Ħniena Fair, started off with lightning, thunder and rain but in spite of all this, a good number of volunteers showed up at the site of the new club in order to carry out the work on the (kontrabejt). Luckily, the weather improved and as a result all the work that was planned was finished by 3.45pm. Everyone was satisfied with the appearance as well as the accuracy of the concrete work which was done with the use of power float. Once again we thanked Messrs. Bonnici Bros. for all the concrete they supplied to us free of charge. That evening a memorable barbecue was organized at tal-Mniena Square where everybody celebrated all that our Society was able to achieve to date with respect to the way we celebrate the feast of the Assumption, the construction of the new club, the high level of workmanship and success of our fireworks displays and, of course, the Band.

. The next day, Sunday, the day of the feast of Our Lady of Mercy, the (kontrabejt) was sawn using a power tool. This procedure relieves the stresses within the concrete thereby reducing the chance of chipping and splitting. The resulting kerfs will later on be filled with a special chemical compound.

Xoghlijiet ta’ Conduit ta’ L-elettriku fis-Swali

. On Sunday, November 27, Joseph Aquilina started work on the plastering of the balustrade and on the wall of the radio station room. Michael Farrugia resumed work on waterproofing, with tar, the periphery of all the roofs while Michael Aquilina carried on with the task of filling the kerfs on the (kontrabejt) with a special tar compound.

. The scaffolding was extended up to the highest point of the balustrade in order to accommodate a platform - the Society's emblem will be constructed above this level. This work was done by Karmnu Magro, Salvu Magro and Joe Spiteri. Without this platform it would have been impossible to do the necessary work at this high altitude. This platform which was surrounded by scaffolding pipes afforded a high level of security to the builders.

. Peter Caruana did work of a retouching nature on the radio room.

. On Friday, Twanny Callus made various cuts in the concrete using a power tool while Peter Caruana, Baskal Ellul, Johnny Spiteri and Joe Ellul loaded the enumerated stone blocks making up the Society's emblem onto pallets ready to be lifted onto the roof. The sculpturing of the stone blocks making up the Society's emblem was done by Martin Formosa and took place at ground level.

We thank all the voluntary workers mentioned above and more. Because of them not a cent was spent on working hours.