Mayor says:"There is no summer camp on Vidos this year because of Covid"

Mayor Meropi Ydraiou received members of Vidos Protection & Promotion Association yesterday afternoon - Stefanos Poulimenos, former Regional Governor; Sotiris Mikalef, former Mayor and former Municipal Councillors Pavlos Metallinos and Giorgos Raidestinos. The President of Old Town Permanent Residents's Association Nikolaos Olympios also attended the meeting as well as Eleni Fagogeni representing the Hellenic-Serbian Friendship Association.



All the above representatives expressed their concern at the neglect that can be seen on the island, the lack of a proper shuttle service and the summer camps that haven't been happening over the last few years.

According to the press release, Ms. Ydraiou said that noone can be happy about what has been happening with Vidos Island in recent years. "I believe that there needs to be an overall plan to protect and promote the island," she said. "There are some plans in place and we hope to have good news very soon.

The municipal shuttle boat has been completely repaired since last year and, following the tenders received, we will be selecting the contractor to operate the service for 3 + 3 years tomorrow - so it is just a matter of days before the shuttle service will start running.

This is the last year that there will not be a summer camp and the decision was taken this year because of the dangers of Covid. We have also decided to recruit seasonal staff to carry out various jobs on the island. The Municipal Technical Works Department is also planning repair work to allow various activities including sports activities to go ahead. The creative recreation programme will also be happening just like last year.

I would also like to let you know that the camp area has been given to the scouts for 15 years. Let's work all together to protect and promote the island, which is a place of recreation for us and coming generations."

In conclusion, the representatives from Vidos Protection & Promotion Association said that they aren't in opposition to the Municipality - on the contrary, we all need to work together to protect and promote this historical island so that it can be a place for recreation and historical remembrance.