Filenews 11 April 2022 - by Dora Christodoulou
Time is now counting down for the discovery of the largest urban park that will exist in Cyprus. The "Park of Colours", in the centre of Paphos, is almost complete and it is now a matter of a few weeks to be given for use to the public of the city and district.
The progress of the works and the short time that remains for the delivery of the park to the local community, announced yesterday and the Mayor of Paphos. Phaedon Phaedonos, giving to the public the first images from the still enclosed huge space, stated that if one wonders where this work is, the answer is that it is located in Paphos.
"It's one of the projects we're doing for the children of our city," he stressed. "We are giving 4 million from the municipality's Fund to invest in young people. In a few weeks the largest organized park in Cyprus will be given for use. Paphos is changing".
The largest urban park in Cyprus covers a huge part of the central fabric of the city between Elladas Avenue, the streets of the shopping centre to the Mouttalos district and which includes the area of "Pembes", which was one of the most famous green areas of the city and which in recent decades had been downgraded to a source of pollution and antisocial activities.
It covers an area of 32,000 square meters, making it the largest urban park in Cyprus and the richest on the island both in terms of greenery and infrastructure. Hundreds of new trees are planted in the park, while it includes square gathering areas, a playground, a cafeteria, a tennis court, a basketball court, a small football field, changing rooms, changing rooms, a skateboard, a climbing wall of 3-6 meters, a management and information office, an outdoor exhibition area, an aromatic-botanical garden, toilets, 83 parking spaces for the public and people with disabilities, service areas, a central route and entrance gates.
The proposal to name the park belongs to the Municipal Secretary of Pafos. The "Park of Colours" was selected among others seven proposals by the Plenum of the Pafos City Council. Based on the reasoning of the decision, the name of the park in the plot next to Charilaou Trikoupi, Athinas and Amathous streets aims to promote the value and importance of colours in everyday life. In order for this design to begin to be implemented, after the award of the architectural competition, it was necessary for the Municipality of Pafos to begin a huge cleaning project, since the area was nothing more than in recent decades but a large source of pollution, insensitivity and nuisance in the heart of the city.
Pafos city councilor Panagiotis Vorkas told "F" that during the cleaning works, tons of rubbish were found and removed, as well as arbitrary huts and trivial materials.
"And this, since the area had been left to abandonment and desolation for at least the last 50 years," he said, "which caused serious risks to public health, but also a possible source of fire in the heart of the city."
The cleaning and removal of these materials, Mr. Vorkas pointed out, took place in the presence of officials of the Department of Forests, in order to avoid possible reactions of groups, who often invoke the protection of greenery to cover up interventions and arbitrariness of decades in public open spaces of the city.
