The relevant Greek finance minister on Monday estimated that bureaucratic process for a closely watched property development project at the old Athens airport in the coastal Hellenikon district – the biggest such project in the recession-plagued country – will be completed the by the fall so that a contract is subsequently submitted.
FinMin Euclid Tsakalotos made the statement in response to a tabled question in Parliament. He also said that negotiations with the winning – and sole – bidder in a tender to develop the site will also be completed by the autumn.
“… we have several prerequisites (that must be submitted) by the Greek state … the contract will be tabled after an updating process, which is underway, is completed,” he said.
The site is located eight kilometers southeast of downtown Athens on roughly 608 hectares, nearly twice the size of New York City's Central Park. A beachfront of 3.2 kilometers is included. The proposed eight-billion-euro redevelopment plan aims to turn the disused airport and surrounding tracts of land into an international five-star destination and a landmark investment for debt-laden Greece.
A resort, high-rise residential tower, offices, shopping centers, a new marina, an aquarium and a large amusement park are all part of the plan. Speculation is also rife over the possibility of relocating the sole Athens-area casino at the site.
Lamda Development SA is the Greek developer heading an international investor group that acquired the site for 915 million euros in 2014 from the then Samaras government.
Potential investors, not to mention the country’s institutional creditors, are keen to see how the current leftist government will proceed with the project, which is a “litmus test” for large-scale and high-end real estate development in Greece.
