Cyprus property: A shocking situation for building development - Financial Mirror

Cyprus property: A shocking situation for building development

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By Antonis Loizou F.R.I.C.S. – Antonis Loizou & Associates Ltd – Real Estate Valuers & Estate Agents

During a recent holiday, I visited Protaras Beach (Paralimni village) within the very heart of the tourist area, where most of the hotels and entertainment establishments are located. The government has recently constructed a 5 km footpath next to the seaside, as part of a 18 km path which will connect the Paralimni beach to that of Ayia Napa (the Ayia Napa part is almost completed). This Protaras footpath is indeed the best seaside footpath so far built in Cyprus. It has sitting benches, view points, drinking water at stages, as well as WCs.


 
During our walkabout we noted originally three containers placed next to each other located next to the seashore protection zone, where no building (not even parking) is allowed and having no access. After a week we noted that the containers were faced with stone (one with cowboy logs) extended with pergola and fencing and occupied as holiday homes (having even a sign saying “to let”). No electricity was available and I assume no water supply, and of course no sewage. And all this development under the nose of the Paralimni municipality, who apparently must have taken no action to prevent this.
After three weeks, another two containers appeared on the same route and with the same specifications, which have been duly “redesigned” and are now used as café/open air bars. Access to all places are over adjoining land (mainly government owned), no official road access, electricity produced through private generators (for which a permit is required) and the seashore is gradually being converted from a protected area into another row of illegal buildings and uses.
One could understand an illegal building within a far away location, away from curious eyes, but to have this sort of illegality within the most popular spot in the most attractive beach in Cyprus, this is beyond comprehension and a sheer provocation. Last week I revisited the place and noted that the three container houses gave birth and now they have became seven!
Staying in the same municipality, there was an ex-hotel apartment under renovation and change-of-use from a hotel apartment to residential flats for sale on the beach.
Works had been going on for the last years, without a building permit and then stopped. Duly advertised in the local press and on road signs with appropriate flags to draw attention and with full view of the developer’s website.
Paralimni is not a large municipality where the local council would not know and this, coupled with many more other illegal buildings, makes me wonder not only because nothing has been evidently done, but it encourages others to follow the same route to illegality.
At the end of the day one is skeptical whether it is worth submitting an application for a building license. I thought at a time that Peyia was the “star” of illegalities (see its occupation of Coral Bay), but evidently there are others who are trying to catch up. Contrary to this, a client of ours who has erected a beach house with a building permit was refused by the same municipality (Paralimni) the certificate of final approval, because his pergola projected within the seashore zone by 60 cms (within the land), notwithstanding that it is 80 meters away from the beach. Quite rightly, but then are we not all equal in this country? Then suddenly we found out the reason why we are not all equal. These illegal chaps are ‘natives’ and have a vote for the next elections, whereas Nicosia people and others do not count.
Having said that our next door hotel has taken over the governmental land and it has illegally extended the facilities with no action taken.
So far, all those of you who have a strong point to protest, here is what you could do:
• In your municipality, check which political party the mayor is from;
• Invite a national press journalist but for both the opposition as well as from the supporting party papers to visit the site;
• Make sure that you do your own research, take photos, etc. since you will find that very few journalists will bother to conduct their own research or just send them the material if they do not show up;
• Do not necessarily use your name (let the paper do it independently), but above all make sure that your own building has nothing contrary to the building permits – since you will be paid a visit by local “technicians” (acting under instructions) to see if everything is O.K. with your property;
• If you are a local, more attention will be paid to you as opposed to foreign residents (quite unfair but this is a fact of life).
Had present circumstances not been as they are (economic situation, etc) we could have undertaken some sort of crusade with the first recipient being the Minister of Interior, who has spent years to introduce the building amnesty, only to find that this situation is still thriving.
Coming back to the case of converting the hotel apartment to flats for sale (on the beach at 5,000 euros/sq.m.) we received a letter from a furious client of ours who also has a hotel apartment on the beach (same area) to whom we have suggested not to undertake any illegal changes, etc. At the end of the day this law-abiding citizen felt very stupid when he realised that others are doing exactly the same and he is still waiting after four years for his duly applied permits.
As a matter of comparison, a similar beach house at the location where the seven house/containers are, has a sale price of around 6,000 euros/sq.m. – say for 70 sq.mts. = 420,000, whereas the converted container cost cannot be more than 50,000 euros “plus” land, say another 100,000, for a total of 150,000 euros. A huge profit don’t you agree? Who said that prostitution and narcotics are the main profit earners? There are others as long as you “do business” within an “understanding municipality”.

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