Paphos centre gets €1.5 mln facelift

Paphos Mayor Phedonas Phedonos unveiled the revitalised area surrounding Fellahoglu street that links the areas between the commercial centre and the old Turkish Cypriot neighbourhood of Moutallos, one of the many revamps the old part of town is undergoing.

The Fellahoglu project, costing €1.5 mln, aims to revive the former commercial centre of the upper part of town and is near the similarly revitalised areas of the Old Market, Kennedy Square leading down the pedestrianised Makarios Avenue, the cultural centres of Palia Ilektriki (Old Electricity) and the Markidio theatre, as well as the Kosti Palama square, near the town hall and municipal garden.

It’s was 14 months ago the mayor got behind the wheel of an excavator to demolish a number of illegal constructions, such as a convenience store, a mechanic’s garage and other temporary buildings that lacked permits or were erected on public property.

The project should have been completed within 36 weeks, or at the end of 2019.

Clearing the area around Fellahoglu street, which had not seen any repair work since the intercommunal troubles in 1963, has made way for 170 new parking spaces, with a new parking lot also scheduled for delivery soon with 320 additional spaces, making the area more accessible.

Mayor Phedonos said that the state has contributed about 80% of the revitalisation cost that also included revamping a third of the shops that now have wider pavements, while work continues to restore other properties as well, making the area more attractive to new business start-ups.

He said nearby Karavella bus depot will be the largest of its kind when it is completed, facilitating thousands of tourists who wish to visit the old town and travel to other areas, from Poseidonos seafront to the Tombs of the King’s road that reaches all the way to Kissonerga, Peyia and Coral Bay.