Updated Paphos marina project approved

The development of a marina with residential and commercial areas, as well as a hotel and a jetty for luxury cruise ships, was decided by the Council of Ministers at its meeting today, as stated by the Deputy Minister of Tourism, Savvas Perdios, after the meeting. Mr. Perdios spoke of "an issue that has been dormant for 30 years and the Deputy Ministry has been trying to put it on the road to implementation for four years", which is achieved with today's decision, as he said.

The Deputy Minister of Tourism noted that today's meeting of the Cabinet took two important decisions concerning tourism, adding that, in addition to the Paphos marina, a project of the Recovery Fund for the Upgrade of Hotels and Tourist Accommodations in the mountains, in the countryside and in remote areas is also progressing.

Regarding the Paphos marina, Mr. Perdios stated after the Cabinet meeting that it is a "big and important project, not only for Paphos, but also for Cyprus tourism". He explained that the decision for a mixed-use development, with residential and commercial areas, a cruise ship pier and a hotel, came after an expert study that showed this type of development could go ahead.

"The study showed that indeed from a technical point of view a combined development can be done, provided that the pier for cruise ships will be for boats up to 220 meters only, therefore luxury cruise ships and not the large cruise ships that we are used to seeing, for example in Limassol", explained Mr. Perdios. "This is very important, because it is also in line with the goals of the Deputy Ministry to attract tourism of a higher income level to Cyprus", he added.

He noted, of course, that what will finally be included in the project, will be decided by the investor, "so that we can have a context that will create interest", as he said. "What is important for us as a state, and especially for the Deputy Ministry of Tourism, is that in the scoring criteria, more weight will definitely be given to combined development, which will generate more income for the local economy, but also for various villages in the region Paphos and the Polis Chrysochous apartment," he added.

He also mentioned that after the consultation with the authorities of Paphos, the Urban Planning Council, preliminarily decided to take a positive position, clarifying "that the investor, when the time comes, should submit the necessary environmental studies and masterplans".

Asked about the next steps of the planning, Mr. Perdios said that in the first stage, the Deputy Ministry will proceed with the conditions for finding an architect, who will help advance the tender to find the investor. "These are the immediate 2023 priorities for the Deputy Ministry and I believe that if we are consistent, we will have final indications of investors and where they are moving, in 2024," he concluded.

Source: stockwatch.com.cy