Political will in favor of Elliniko
Lamda Development appears much more confident the Elliniko development project will finally get off the ground soon after Thursday’s meeting between owner Spiros Latsis and Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis at the latter’s office, while the planned issue of the necessary ministerial decisions next month has pushed the deadline for the Elliniko casino bids to end-September.
After government spokesman Stelios Petsas recently announced that all three outstanding ministerial decisions for Elliniko will be issued by August 10, Mitsotakis and Latsis yesterday agreed on the need for procedures to accelerate so that the implementation of the multi-million-euro project can finally begin.
The prime minister and the businessman agreed that all the necessary steps should be taken speedily, “sticking to the pledges undertaken so as to lift as quickly as possible all the obstacles that have delayed the start of this beneficial project for the country,” the PM’s office said.
Also on Thursday, the Hellenic Gaming Commission postponed the deadline for the submission of offers for the casino license at Elliniko by two months, until September 30, as the two ministerial decisions to determine land usage at Elliniko will be issued in August, per government planning.
For the government to meet this tight schedule, Development Minister Adonis Georgiadis, his deputy Nikos Papathanassis, State Minister George Gerapetritis, Deputy Minister to the Prime Minister Akis Skertsos, Environment Minister Kostis Hatzidakis and Culture Minister Lina Mendoni will meet every Friday until all problems regarding the ministerial decisions are resolved.
Government sources note that despite the claims by the previous administration that 95 percent of procedures for Elliniko was done, there are dozens of unresolved problems. One of the issues that has already been resolved by the new government is the decision for the removal of abandoned Olympic Airways aircraft from the old airport at Elliniko.
