Dispute between TEPAK and Limassol Municipality regarding the central bus station
“The Mayor of Limassol, with his suggestions and his obsession, has already caused damage to the University because he is creating disruption and muddying the waters, in a plan that has already been approved and which includes the creation of a Model Health Center, through the co-location of its services Organization of State Health Services (OKYpY) and the Faculty of Health Sciences of the University”, reports the Cyprus University of Technology regarding new statements by the Mayor of Limassol Yiannis Armeutis on Channel 6, who repeated his proposal for the creation of Park & Ride inside a part of the Old Hospital of Limassol that is part of the B' development pole of TEPAK.
This is the announcement of TEPAK
The Mayor of Limassol stated that he extends a hand of cooperation and friendship and asks to consult with the University, at the time that there was a discussion with the Presidency and the Rector's Authorities on the creation of a Park & Ride to the North Pole and for which he received a clear negative answer. However, he then proceeded unilaterally, in complete defiance of the University, with a proposal to carve out a block for Park & Ride from the second development Pole of the University and not from the many pieces of land that the Municipality has in various suitable places in Limassol.
We remind the Mayor that the three pillars of the city's development are the Municipal Authority (not the Mayor himself), the Limassol Chamber of Commerce and Industry (EBEL) and the Cyprus University of Technology. This is why we regret the aphoristic way in which the Mayor referred to the two above organizations (EBEL and TEPAK), describing their views on the matter as 'it doesn't really matter what anyone says'. In other words, he called the City Chamber and the University, which is the owner of the lot, as 'everyone'.
It is an oxymoron that, while the Mayor admitted on the air that TEPAK has limited vital development space both in the center and in the North Pole, at the same time he insists on the further shrinking and salamiization of this space, even though it has been emphasized to him many times that the above block is a VITAL SPACE for the development of the University, in the medium and long term and therefore, the granting of any part of this space is non-negotiable.
We call on the Mayor to state publicly where in the relevant Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan – referred to today – it is stated that it is beneficial to make Park & Ride in the center of Limassol and especially in the section that has been granted to the University.
The Mayor with his suggestions but also with his obsession, has already caused damage to the University because he is creating disruption and muddying the waters, in a plan that has already been approved and which includes the creation of a Model Health Center, through the co-location of services of the Organization of State of Health Services (OKYpY) and the School of Health Sciences of the University. The University – in full agreement with the Department of Public Works – is already in consultation with the General Directorate of Development and with the Directorate of Recovery and Resilience of the Ministry of Finance for the presentation of the preliminary plan of the Project and the trajectory of the actions for its financing. We consider his statement that the above piece is 'inactive' to be misleading, even though in private meetings with the Presidency and the Rector's Authorities of the University, he had called it a 'fillet'.
With today's misguided statements and his approach, it is now clear that there is no room for cooperation and understanding between the Mayor and the University, which, it should be remembered, has 3500 students and about 500 members of Academic and Administrative Staff, who provide enormous added value to city center and in the Municipality of Limassol. We also note his embarrassment when, in the absence of any serious arguments, he tried to change the course of the debate and shift it to west Limassol and the Ports Authority.
The Mayor's reference to an attempt on the part of for convening a meeting of all the 'competent' bodies, because his idea under reference had been discussed and rejected by the University authorities. It should further be noted that if anyone were to call a meeting, it would be the University, to which the plot belongs, and not the Mayor and in the absence of the University.
The Mayor's reports on student parking in the city center are completely incompatible with the concept of Park & Ride. However, if the Mayor's intention was indeed to contribute to the well-being of the student community, as he claims, he could help in practice with the construction of student residences in the center, to be granted to students, on one of the many unused plots available to the Municipality . Therefore, the tormenting question arises, if the Municipality of Limassol was the owner of the plot in question, would the Mayor ever think of calling the plot in question 'idle' and/or recommending it for Park & Ride? OBVIOUSLY NOT.
It is noted that a plot of 90 thousand sq.m. of land in the Municipality of Polemide has already been granted free of charge to the University for infrastructure development and that the Municipality of Polemide has expressed its readiness to grant another large piece of land in the same area. In addition, the Municipality of Paphos has built and granted free of charge to the University, a building worth €25 million and 150 residences with subsidized rents for needy students. The Archdiocese of Cyprus has also granted more than 200 homes with subsidized rents for needy students. So the question arises: Do the Mayor's reports for aid to the University refer to any aid similar to the above or do they refer to the further shrinking of the allocated land in the North Pole for development, for which the Mayor stated today on the air that it is limited ?! From the facts, and unfortunately, one wonders why the University should not study the transfer of further Schools to Polemidia, where the responsible Municipality treats positively, with respect and mutual appreciation, its cooperation with the University.
Finally, it is noted that, in the preface of his show, the respected journalist Michalis Papaevagorou, stated that the Mayor's approach was that he 'will not insist on his proposal, as long as the University does not agree'. So one wonders, what has come up in the interim? Finally, it seems that the weaning from old attitudes, which we mentioned in our recent letter to the Minister of Education, has not yet been achieved.
In closing, the University wishes to send a clear message to all stakeholders, but and its thousands of male and female students, that its development path has the full support of the State and is not in doubt.
