The property of EOMMEX (Hellenic Organization of Small and Medium Enterprises and Crafts) in Tavros, owned by the Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund (HRADF), continues to be claimed by the municipality of Moschato-Tavros. The date for submission of bids in the international tender announced by the Fund has been extended to March 31 and the municipal authority is running a race to prevent its sale.
On Monday afternoon, the members of the Municipal Council discussed the future of the building, in the presence of MPs from all parties. The Municipal Authority of the city, with the consent of all parties, opposes the sale of the property and requests the cancellation of the tender, its return to the State by legislation and then its concession to the Municipality. The Mayor of Moschato-Tavros, Mr. Andreas Efthymiou, had attempted at the end of November, with a letter to pressure the Ministry of Finance and the Administration of the HRADF, to reconsider their position, in order to give the space to the municipality and use it to the advantage of the public and residents, as a Center with educational and cultural activities.
But as there was no response, the Municipal Council decided on Monday unanimously, to request a meeting with the Minister of Finance Mr. Christos Staikouras. In fact, it was agreed that, if the issue has not been resolved by next Monday morning, at 5.30 p.m. on the same day, a protest rally will be held outside the old warehouses of EOMMEX.
“This building housed the social canteens during the Occupation, how is it possible that we can accept it to be given for exploitation to businessmen engaged in food service? “This building has a historical memory”, said, among others, Mr. Efthymiou. The property, which is located at the junction of Koryzi, Thrace and Timotheou Eugenikou streets, was built in the “heart” of the district with the refugee settlements of Tavros. During the years of the Occupation, it was the seat of the National Solidarity, the organization for the support of the population in occupied Greece, while for some years it also housed the Sivitanidio School.
Within the area there are five old buildings with uses of exhibition spaces, laboratories and warehouses of EOMMEX, with a total area of 1,527 sq.m. One of them, with a coverage area of 584 sq.m. and total construction of 837 sq.m. was declared a “monument” last June, following a decision of the Central Council of Modern Monuments of the Ministry of Culture (decision 207951 / 8.6.2021 – Government Gazette 368 / D / 2021).
According to the reasoning of the decision, it is a remarkable sample of a public building with particularly remarkable features from an architectural, typological and morphological point of view, and is a vehicle of historical memory and a memorial of the evolution of the area in the early 20th century. from a historical, cultural, cultural and social point of view. The other four buildings that were built from 1940 to 1970, according to the HRADF, are not of interest and can be demolished. In the listed building, the load-bearing body is made of reinforced concrete, with mosaic floors and wooden frames. The rest of the buildings are made of stone, with tiled roofs and metal roofs.
The utilization of the property (total area 3,300 sq.m.) can be utilized in accordance with the existing urban planning regime that governs the area and the institutionalized building conditions that provide for a building factor of 3 and coverage of 0.60. Thus, the building capacity can approach 9,900 sq.m. The area of Tavros where the property is located has a general use of “Urban Center”, which gives many development opportunities, such as hostels, hotels, shops, offices, restaurants, cultural buildings, etc.
However, a government official speaking to the “Economic Post” says that if the municipality wants to use the property can “go down” in the tender. As the same source points out, “this has happened in other cases, with the Attica Region, the Municipality of Halandri, the Municipality of Maroussi who were interested and finally bought properties that interested them from the HRADF”.
