Nicosia wants radical changes to current urban plans

The Nicosia Municipality is busy studying the proposals that it plans to submit to the discussion that will take place this coming autumn between the Interior Ministry and municipalities regarding urban planning.

The mayor of Nicosia, Eleni Mavrou, revealed to Politis daily that the Municipal Council would propose radical changes to the current local plan. A team of experts will be formed to advise the council and, in composing the proposals, Mavrou stated that the active participation of the citizens themselves will be paramount.

All municipalities, including Nicosia, have until September 15 when they will be required to present their position on the Interior Minister’s report regarding basic policies of urban planning.

According to the paper, the council’s main priority will be to improve and upgrade the town centre. Mavrou declared that she will support an increase in the building coefficient to allow for taller buildings to be built, in the hope of attracting investors and so that amount of housing available is enhanced. She stated that “the continuous horizontal expansion of developments without planning constitutes a waste of space, infrastructure and money,” and went on to comment that “with the increased land value, these days, the need for a better use of land is clear. If we want to offer housing at affordable prices, then yes, we need to re-evaluate our planning policy to encourage the creation of more, larger apartment blocks.”

Mavrou said it was insufficient to consider increasing the height of buildings alone and she emphasised that this must happen simultaneously with the implementation of other policies that will allow the city to “breathe” and the living standards to be acceptable.

The mayor stated that the accumulated concentration of population within the city centre, certainly presupposes that the current traffic problem is resolved – something which requires a functional public transport system.

According to the daily, Mavrou commended the Interior Minister for encouraging this discussion between the Ministry and the municipalities and not waiting for the current local policies to have already been implemented for five years.

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