Larnaca will finally get a municipal building that matches its history, more than two decades after its municipal services were housed in an apartment building above a fast-food outlet in Finikoudes.
Delays of more than three years held up the project, but the way is now clear for the restoration of the listed old hospital building on Grigoris Afxentiou Avenue, which will become the city’s new municipal headquarters.
The contract-signing ceremony with the successful contractor will have a celebratory character and will take place on Tuesday, July 21, at 7:30pm, in the courtyard of the old hospital. “A moment we’ve waited years for. A vision becoming reality,” Mayor Andreas Vyras said in a post, calling on residents to attend the signing of the construction contracts.
He said the signing was, for him personally, more than a formality, describing it as the vindication of a long and persistent effort and the starting point for a project that would leave a lasting mark on the city.
The old hospital is gaining new life, Vyras said, adding that Larnaca is getting, for the first time, a modern municipal building worthy of its history, dynamism and prospects, and a space that will better serve residents and become a landmark for the city’s historic centre.
The new municipal building will cost €8,789,000 plus VAT, with an additional 15% allocated for unforeseen work. The project’s main financing will come through a municipal loan agreed between the Government and the European Investment Bank.
An additional €4 million will come from the sale of plots on Ermou Street, along with around €500,000 held in the Parking Space Redemption Fund. According to the municipality, the loan will be repaid through the rental of the existing municipal building, the rental of a prime municipal plot on Athinon Avenue (the site of the former Town Hall), and the sale of the old hospital’s transferable building coefficient, worth €3.1 million.
Work on the new municipal building will begin in September and is expected to be completed around the end of 2028. Under the plans, the listed buildings on the site will be restored and highlighted.
Outside, a Town Hall Square will be created, featuring a garden, green spaces, water features and modern urban furniture. The project was originally due to start in 2023, but was delayed by the relocation of the State Health Services Organisation’s health services and the state Health Inspectorate.
