JOINT INTERVENTION FOR THE REVISION OF THE PAPHOS LOCAL PLAN - Pafos Live 4/10
Paphos needs a twenty-year Local Plan that gives a clear strategic direction for the protection of the city's character, rational development, sustainable mobility and clear land use management and answers the questions,
- Where is residential development allowed and with what density.
- Where nuisance uses remain or are transferred (crafts, warehouses, workshops).
- Which areas are protected as a natural or cultural reserve.
- Which zones are gradually transitioning to new uses (e.g. areas where residential pressure is increasing).
With our joint intervention in the Municipality of Paphos, we focus today on the issue
Craft /Industrial Area
- Gradual removal of nuisance uses from existing areas with residential pressure.
- New location of crafts in an organized zone outside the urban fabric.
- Clear framework of transfers and uses to avoid conflicts.
Background
About thirty years ago, when the land was expropriated for the creation of the Paphos Geroskipou industrial zone, the area was outside the urban fabric, with no building activity and no indications that it would develop into a residential area. The choice of that time was logical and functional.
Today, however, the reality is completely different. The Industrial Area is now surrounded by residential development, new construction, residences and infrastructure. The nuisance from the crafts is increasing, traffic is burdened and the compatibility of land uses is decreasing. If we predict the evolution of the city for the next 20–30 years, it is certain that the area will be fully integrated into the residential fabric. Maintaining a craft zone in the center of a residential area will now be a bad urban planning choice.
At the same time, the first owners of craft properties are now at an advanced age and wish to proceed with transfers or sales. Before the Municipality approves such transfers, it is necessary to set clear and binding conditions, so that today's decisions serve the planning of the coming decades.
It is therefore proposed:
- The concession contract should be fully examined and it should be ascertained with legal documentation whether it allows a transfer and under what conditions.
- In case a transfer is allowed, it should be conditional that the new use will be of mild craft activity, with reduced nuisance.
- A second transfer or sub-lease should be prohibited, so that the Municipality maintains control over the use.
- Over a period of 20-30 years, the plots should return to the jurisdiction of the Municipality and a process of land use change should begin, so that the area can be converted into a residential or mixed urban zone.
- At the same time, to identify a new space outside the city limits for the creation of a modern, clean and organized craft zone.
This proposal is not just about today. It is a thirty-year planning roadmap, which allows the Municipality to seriously plan the Paphos of the future. To protect the quality of life of the residents, to reduce nuisance, to properly organize land uses and to ensure that the development of the city will be sustainable, balanced and compatible with the needs of future generations.
The revision of the Local Plan is the right time to make such decisions. With foresight, with documentation and with responsibility towards the future of Paphos.
Andreas Grigoriadis - Municipal Councilor of the Human City
Euclid Amvrosiadis - Municipal Councilor of DIPA
