Three of our members were interviewed for about an hour by Mrs. Reveka Sgourea, of NET TV (local channel based in Kalamata), for the programme Prosopa. You’ll be able to watch the programme on Monday, 29/10/2007, at 10.00 p.m, and again on Saturday, 3/11/2007 at 7.00 p.m. Of course, we’ll keep a video cassette, so if you miss it and want to watch us, contact us at pro-mani@otenet.gr
On
Monday, July 2nd, 2007, at the Dymos-( Townhall) in Kardamyli, the local
authorities of the Municipality of Lefktro presented a study about the
reorganization of the area, aimed at the elaboration of a plan of development.
A team of various experts, technicians and professionals worked on the study
and produced a series of detailed maps and proposals, to be submitted for
approval to all levels of Greek authority (local, regional, national).
Roughly, these are the main points of what was said at the meeting (apologies for any inaccuracy, the hall was very crowded and the acoustics were poor):
The distinction between “settlements” (οικισμοί) and areas “outside the plan” (εκτός σχεδίου, i.e.: outside the borders of the settlements) remains.
As regards the areas “outside the plan”, this is what the commission of experts proposes:
1 – Some areas will be protected (the Taygetos, the gorges, some parts of the coasts)and
construction will not be allowed. No further details were given as to how exactly
the status of protected area will be implemented.
2 – Against the proposal of extending to 8 “stremata” (= 8,000 square metres) the
minimum required to obtain building permits, the Mayor pointed out that the
Council of Lefktro supports the preservation of the actual 4 stremata limit.
3 – Encouragement to the extension of touristic activities from the coasts toward the
mountains, with the establishment of "agro-touristic" compounds (no one defined what agro-tourism would mean..)
4 – Along the coastal road between Stoupa and Agios Nikolaos, there will be a “freer”
zone, so that ‘noisy’ activities related to entertainment (discos, bars, etc.) will find
a location far from the villages.
Where “settlements” (οικισμοί ) are concerned, the guidelines are as follows:
1 – Extension of the status of “traditional settlement” to 36 villages of the area (now
there are only 3: Thalames, Langada and Old Kardamyli). This means
preservation of the traditional architectural style, support to renovations and
limitations of new construction. Another 13 villages will have a ‘mixed’ status
(i.e.: some parts will be considered as traditional, others will be freer).
2 – The BORDERS of the settlements will change dramatically (note that inside these
borders construction is almost free and unlimited): now the usual criterion to
identify what is inside and what is outside the borders ,is to measure 800 metres
from the centre of the village. Within this 800 mt. radius the territory is
considered οικισμός (settlement) and the restrictions to building are very few.
The proposals are for these areas around the villages (where building is allowed) to be considerably reduced.
You can see the official maps of the plan on our page: http://www.freewebs.com/protect-mani/developmentplan.htm
Each map is divided into two sections, so make sure you look at both. On one of the two halves, a table indicates the changes of the total area of the village in stremata (1 strema=1000 square metres). So you have: first the original area, then the proposed total area, and finally a further extension proposed for the future. On the maps this can be seen with different coloured dots and lines: roughly, the pink dots lines indicate the new boundaries, the yellow ones the proposed further extensions.
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For February, we decided to call a meeting only of the managing committee, as many of our members are away. The following topics were discussed:
1) wind-powered electricity generators: lots of such plants are being built and planned all over Greece. We’ll try to find out precise information about the plans in the Mani.
2) The renovation works in Old Kardamyli: there seem to be no irregularity: the work has even been approved and financed by the E.U.
Anyway, we will write to the authorities, the Archaeological Service and some local newspaper in order to ask for a more respectful and CONTROLLED approach when such massive works are done in ‘sensitive’ areas like Old Kardamyli.
3)
Next action: composition of a file about activities
that look ‘dubious’ as regards building/environmental/architectural
rules. The collection should be as
extensive as possible so we need the help of ALL the people interested in the
preservation of Mani’s beauty: send us material (photographs accompanied by a
short description of the place, the problem, the location) about
destructive/ugly/polluting/dangerous/apparently illegal activities, to our
e-mail address.
Once the file is ready, we will use it to:
A) present
and discuss with the local authorities,
starting from the Demos and then upward, as well as with the relevant public
agencies such as the Forest Authority or the Archaeological Service;
B) submit
to the media.
4 ) Next general meeting, to be held in March.
On November, 19th, 2006, and January, 7th, 2007, two general meetings of the association Protect the Mani were held. During these meetings, a provisional managing committee was elected ( chairman Sotiris Spyreas, secretary Marzio Campanini, treasurer Silvia Lazzari, other members Panayota Kylidirea, Stephen Webster, Dina Theodoropoulou, Kostas Xydeas) and plans for the future of the association were discussed. Our actions will be focused on the following issues:
1 – petition against the overbuilding in the Mani, asking for a new plan of construction more respectful of the environment, the architecture, the landscape and the culture of the Mani;
2 – Support to the project of restoration of Nikos Kazantzakis’s house in Prastova, Neo Proastio, as an example of a particularly interesting place, both environmentally and culturally;
3 – Contacts and collaboration with other associations and organisations working in the Mani;
4 – Regular meetings (monthly), during which two of our members working in public institutions (Nikos Morgan of Kardamyli’s Community and Kostas Xydeas of the Demotic Council) will keep us informed about the works of the local public authorities;
Our next meeting will be at the beginning of February. Meanwhile, work continues on the website , the petition and contacts with the media. Contributions welcome (…needed!), especially as regards documentation (photos, articles, etc.) about precise examples of particularly destructive activities in the area.