Immortal Greek Bureaucracy… A team of administrators from the Land Office and Rhodes Port Authority inspected the “Santa Marina” beach bar in Rhodes and found illegals (19 metal structures) in the sea as well. As violations on the beach.
The decision of the municipal committee, signed by the mayor of Rhodes and posted in Dagia, was decided to be sealed. Omiros Sabalos (MEGA), the press representative of the Ministry of Finance, assured that it will not be opened if it does not comply with the operating rules and does not receive permission from the Archeology and Urban Planning.
“After he gets the permits and removes all the illegal installations he has installed, fines are imposed and then he can reopen,” he said, adding that “he certainly does not rule out the possibility of removing him from the beach and barring him. For five years from future electronic auctions”.
A few hours later, the business’s managers ignored the restrictions and the commotion that ensued, showing they weren’t sweating. As if nothing had happened, they set up a party with dozens of vacationers enjoying bathing, eating and drinking in illegal constructions over drinking water.
“The issuance of a protocol does not change the reality (…)” (MEGA) Christos Malliarakis, member of the network for the protection of public space “Umbrella”, refers to the “Greek bureaucracy and the reluctance of the competent bodies to immediately implement the protocol ».
What did the test show?
On Knights Island, sunbeds from the same company that occupied the news a year ago with a “swimming-staff” and published demolition protocol have reappeared in the ocean this year.
This year, the audit conducted “within the beach-beach inner zone, a 25 m concrete and tiled floor was previously constructed and functional in front of the store. 15 m approx., concrete and tiles on the right side of the store connected by a wooden pergola of the corresponding dimensions and the first 4 steps measuring 45 m A shelter with a second floor-level construction of 7 m., a shelter with a wooden pergola of suitable dimensions and a total of 37 tables and 150 chairs have been created for customer service.
The total area of these constructions is -690-sq.m.
Finally, it does not have the appropriate approval from the relevant archaeological service for the legal operation of the business (…), which causes a change in the operating conditions (expansion) of the store in question due to the development within the land zone of the coastal area. Beach (…)”.
Nothing has changed…
However, this company is not the only illegal one. On other beaches in Rhodes, the sunbeds are almost in the water, in no case four meters from the shore.
“The shops are still operating arbitrarily, not complying with various protocols for demolition, removal, instructions from the Archaeological Service, new monuments, instructions from the authorities,” said Christos Mallearakis.
The first samples of beach encroachments and illegal umbrella seating heralded a summer of crackdowns on control measures and a severe crash test for a government that has vowed to crack down on illegality, fearing a dynamic “fragmentary movement”.
Complaints against the ‘MyCoast’ app have already reached 3,000. Specifically, 500 complaints were made in Preveza, 350 in East Attica, 350 in Halkidiki, 300 in the Cyclades and 300 in the Dodecanese.
Businesses that prevent the public from free access to the sea, beach and coast will be fined between €2,000 and €60,000.
