Faistos mayor reports unauthorized beach umbrellas at Kommos, seeks meeting with culture minister
The mayor of Faistos, Grigoris Nikolidakis, has told Cretalive that private individuals recently set up umbrellas at Kommos beach without authorization from the archaeological service, the latest development in an ongoing dispute between the municipality and archaeological authorities over the popular Heraklion-area beach.
Nikolidakis said he has requested a meeting with Culture Minister Lina Mendoni to address the situation.
Dispute over “untouched” beach status
According to the mayor, the conflict began at the start of the tourist season when the local archaeological service sought to prevent the tourist development of the beach, which the municipality has contested, including through an appeal to the Ministry of Culture aimed at overturning the decision.
Nikolidakis said Kommos had been placed on a list of “untouched” beaches under a joint ministerial decision by the Ministries of Environment and Finance, on the grounds that it is a highly protected area with a natural habitat safeguarded under national legislation and home to rare flora and fauna. At the same time, he said, the Ministry of Culture designated the beach as an area of special natural beauty, imposing strict restrictions that bar tourist development.
The municipality filed an objection and succeeded in having Kommos excluded from the “untouched beaches” designation, and the beach entered a tourist-leasing process, which the mayor said did not move forward.
“This situation created many problems for our municipality. I will just say that 90% of visitors to Pitsidia and Kalamaki are mainly interested in this beach. The loss was enormous. But we have endured this too, and we keep fighting it,” Nikolidakis said.
Rejection by the Central Archaeological Council
The mayor said the Interministerial Committee ultimately accepted that the proposed section of the beach did not belong on the list of “untouched” beaches. The municipality then appealed to the Central Archaeological Council (KAS). Nikolidakis said the former Secretary General of the Ministry of Culture had shown understanding of the issue but subsequently resigned.
“A week later, the matter finally came before the KAS without any notice to us, and the atmosphere turned hostile toward us. They rejected our request, and no one knows what will happen now,” Nikolidakis said.
