Important restrictions on the construction of Santorini for housing and tourist accommodation are set by the prevailing scenario of the study for the Special Urban Plan (EPS) presented yesterday by the General Secretary of Spatial Planning and Urban Environment of the Ministry of Environment and Energy (YPEN), Mr. Efthimios Bakoyannis, in the Bellones Cultural Center of Santorini, in the presence of local actors and residents.
In particular, for the construction of a residence, the researchers propose an increase in the adequacy of off-plan plots to eight acres, from the current four. As for the tourist infrastructure, the completeness is projected horizontally to 40 acres, with a building factor of 0.15. Today, the right to build tourist facilities is given by 8 acres (and by way of derogation, 4 acres) in the 200 meter wide zones surrounding the settlements and 15 acres in the remaining off-plan areas.
Prohibition of building in the Caldera
Also, it is noteworthy that in the Caldera of both Thira and Thirasia, for reasons of safety from landslides and protection of the landscape, a ban on building is proposed. For protection reasons, caldera slope support projects will be allowed but only at the points where there is a risk of collapse, port facilities, road interventions, etc.
Regarding the qualities required for various infrastructures (sports facilities, refreshment rooms, parking areas, equestrian centers, renewable energy projects, agricultural warehouses, industrial facilities, etc.) are determined at 10 acres. For basic uses in a cultivated area (religious places, gas stations, soil improvers, biological cleanings) 6 acres are defined with the exception of local product processing facilities which remain at 10 acres. In the area of central functions that is located centrally, between Mesaria and Monolithos, the area for healthcare uses, department stores, shopping centers, offices is limited to 4 acres, while for the development of social housing for the accommodation of mainly workers on the island, it falls to 2 acres.
Activity reception areas in Santorini
The main objective of the PES Thira is the drastic limitation of off-plan building in Santorini, which is directly linked to the protection of the important development resources of the Municipality, such as agricultural land, the natural environment, archaeological sites and traditional settlements. At the same time, it is sought to create favorable conditions for the development of the primary and secondary sectors – where the island currently lags behind – and the diversification of the developed tourism sector by strengthening alternative forms of tourism and the smoother distribution of tourist flows in space and time. In order to satisfy the dual objective of protection and development in terms of sustainability, specific activity reception zones are proposed, with appropriate urban planning conditions and restrictions, so that a policy of reducing or banning new activities outside the specific areas can be implemented.
Thus, three individual areas of vine-growing landscape are defined in Santorini and complemented with an additional zone of agricultural activity and compatible uses on the east coast of Thira. Also, zones of tourism-leisure activities are identified in specific coastal areas that already function as tourist (Perissa, Monolithos) or are offered for a longer-term development (north of Oia). The Airport as a gateway is complemented by the planned New Passenger / Commercial Port in the neighboring Monolithos. The conditions are thus created for the sustainable development of a zone of productive activities, logistics and commercial operations directly served by these major transportation infrastructures of the island.
Small settlement extensions
In order to highlight and protect the settlements, it is proposed to demarcate the traditional settlements before ’23 Tholos, Finikia and Imerovigli, which have not been demarcated to date, and to re-approve the limit of the 18 demarcated settlements. For all of the above settlements (with the exception of the demarcated settlement of Perissa) zoning is proposed in accordance with the provisions of the PD plan which the Ministry of the Interior brought to the attention of the researchers. In addition, for the settlements that have a Town Planning Study, Thira (Government Gazette 852/D/1991) and Perissa (Government Gazette 428/D/1993) the land uses are updated according to PD 59/2018.
Finally, based on the needs that have emerged from the capacity assessment for the year 2040, extensions were proposed to the settlements of Oia, Fira and the newly demarcated settlements of Tholo and Imerovigli. According to what Mr. Bakoyiannis, the proposed design avoided larger extensions because otherwise it would be at risk of being considered by the CoE as an “overflow” of settlements.
In terms of statistics, based on the current Residential Control Zone (ZOE) of the island, the protection zones occupy 28.2% of the island and the development zones 71.8%, while with the proposed special urban plan the protection zones will reach 66, 7% and the corresponding development will shrink to 33.3% of the island.
From today Friday and for 5 days, interested parties (citizens / agencies) will be able to submit comments and proposals for the PES of Thira on the Participation Platform created by the General Secretariat of Spatial Planning and Urban Environment of the Ministry of the Interior (The consultation process will take place later, on the Strategic Environmental Impact Study (SES) of the PES.
Source: ot.gr
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