Paphos municipality has sent a letter to the Bishopric hoping to put an end to a long legal battle over the construction of a church in the public gardens that had seen some €8m the local authority’s assets frozen by the court in July but later overturned.
According to CNA on Thursday, the letter was sent on December 19 requesting a meeting with the Paphos bishop so that the Church can clarify its position,
The case has been going on since 2010. The disagreement began after the public gardens were returned to the owners, the Church of Cyprus, when a long-term agreement expired in 2005. The Church had rented it to the municipality on a long lease and instead of continuing the agreement, as the municipality had hoped, the Church expressed a desire to build a church on the grounds instead.
In 2020 it was revealed that the environment department objected to the creation of a new church in the grounds of the town hall and called on the municipal council to reconsider as in 2019, a slim majority had voted in favour of the construction.
But the environment department said at the time that reasonable alternatives should be included in the environmental impact assessment study, and also asked whether the needs of churchgoers in the area could be met by other churches nearby.
Another complication was the fact that the municipality had in 1981 reduced the building coefficient of the municipal garden to 1 per cent from 160 per cent to protect the garden from development.
Around a decade later, the interior ministry lowered it to zero so to construct the church, it would entail a relaxation of the code and to secure such a decision the Bishopric must apply to the derogations council. It could not do so without the agreement of the municipal council, which refused.
There is also disagreement over the value of the land. The municipality said it was worth €22m while the Bishopric valued the land at €25m as far back as 2016.
The municipality now wants to know whether the Church plans the construction, and if not, whether it agrees to be compensated for the alleged decrease in the value of its property due to the change in the building coefficient.
It asks whether the Church wishes to exchange the entire piece of land for a property of equal value, or in rent the land back to the municipality.
In the letter, the municipality notes that its primary obligation is the proper management of its resources, including the completion of ten urban infrastructure and projects.
“Under no circumstances is it right to surprise the Municipality of Paphos with unilateral actions through the court which can leave everyone exposed,” the letter said.
The letter was sent following a decision by the Paphos Municipal Council with a majority of 19 votes in favour and one against, during the session on December 14.
In the context of the session, the decision of the District Court of Paphos dated December 7, 2023 was also discussed, which annulled a ruling from July that had frozen some €8m in the bank accounts of the municipality on behalf of the Church.
The municipality expressed its willingness to enter “into good faith into a dialogue” with the Bishopric with the aim of resolving this long pending issue.