Property conference praises Larnaca’s development prospects
A recently held property conference held in Larnaca expressed great confidence about the city’s real estate prospects, while also providing assurances that the redevelopment of the port and marina will be pursued at all costs.
The event, titled ‘Property Show Larnaka 2024’, gathered a large number of property sector professionals and other stakeholders interested in the development of Larnaca, with twenty specialised market factors speaking about the city’s potential, new projects, competitiveness, and attractiveness to foreign investors.
The conference was organised by FMW (Financial Media Way and was under the auspices of the Larnaca Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Evel), the Larnaca Development Company, and the Larnaca Regional Tourism Board (Etap). The main sponsor of the conference was the Bank of Cyprus.
Interior Minister Constantinos Ioannou, through Lenia Zachariou of the Larnaca District Planning Department, addressed the event, saying that “the state aims to activate the real estate sector with the aim of creating affordable housing for all income groups of the population”.
He added that this is being pursued “through the continuation of incentives to increase the maximum building coefficient, where through the increase of the total buildable area of development, additional residential units are expected to be created for social purposes”.
The state’s interest, he continued, “also focuses on the development policy aimed at attracting strategic investments to Cyprus”, thereby “strengthening Cyprus’ profile as an attractive destination for economic activity“.
Moreover, Ioannou commented on the recent approval by the Council of Ministers of a bill aimed at streamlining and expediting licensing procedures for large and strategic developments.
The minister stated that with this specific bill, the government aims to establish a regulated urban and building framework to facilitate the swift licensing of developments within a one-year timeframe.
He explained that this will be achieved through a modernised one-stop-shop framework, thereby eliminating delays and bureaucratic hurdles for both foreign and local investors.
Elsewhere, Evel president Nakis Antoniou stated that “Larnaca was chosen to host this conference because it is developing, and development is the goal of all entrepreneurs who will push the city forward, create new jobs, keep their children in the city, and the future of which depends on us”.
Antoniou also referred to the unified development of Larnaca port and marina and conveyed to the attendees “the commitment of the Minister of Transport, Communications, and Works, Alexis Vafeades, that the project will be implemented one way or another“.
“The development of our city will not stop here but will continue with the creation of the major project of the port and marina,” he added.
In his greeting, Larnaca mayor Andreas Vyras stated that “the longstanding and complete cooperation with all city stakeholders is excellent, beloved, and effective, and through a wide range of joint actions, we solve city problems and lay the foundations for new development projects, making Larnaca attractive for investments and favouring the business environment“.
“Within this cooperation and with the collaboration of the significant institutions and bodies of the city, we have achieved quite a bit in the field of Larnaca’s development and prosperity,” he added.
Referring to the redevelopment of the port and marina, he stressed that “despite any problems, it will be carried out”.
He also noted that within the next few years, projects totalling €100 million are expected to be completed in Larnaca.
Larnaca Regional Board of Tourism (Etap) president Dinos Lefkaritis expressed “particular satisfaction that tourism in Larnaca is on a significant path of growth, with visitors increasing by approximately 100,000 people in the last six years, while the region’s share has increased to 12.1 per cent”.