Dozens of fines for occupation of public spaces
CORFU. "Every piece of evidence supporting the above is, of course, available to everyone."
(Central Corfu Municipality) Following recent comments in local media regarding the effectiveness of the Municipal Department of Commerce and the Deputy Mayor of Commerce in addressing the issue of unauthorised occupation of public spaces by business owners, it is deemed appropriate to release the following information so that the public may be accurately informed, as is their right.
Inspection Teams
After the abolition of the Municipal Police (23.9.2013), the first Municipal Authority to proceed with the 'Formation of Teams for Conducting Inspections on the Occupation of Public Spaces in the Municipality of Central Corfu and the Diapontia Islands' is the current one under Mayor Stefanos Poulimenos.
The Municipality's Public Space Inspection Team has been active this year from March 21 until September 17. The following actions have been carried out:
a) Inspections of 225 catering establishments and 22 inspections by the team revealed unauthorised occupation of public space, with a total area of 3,426.63 square metres (an amount corresponding to a usage fee: €280,686.27 plus an equal amount in fines). Removal Orders were also issued for these illegal occupations.
b) Inspections of commercial and tourist establishments, during 34 team inspections, unauthorised occupation of public space was found, with a total area of 189.62 square metres (an amount corresponding to a usage fee: €19,905.14 plus an equal amount in fines). Removal Orders were also issued for these illegal occupations.
Additionally, 32 Inspection Reports and corresponding Removal Orders were issued for the illegal occupation of public space by e-scooters (one hundred), as the unauthorised occupation of public space was confirmed, with an area of 298.35 square metres (an amount corresponding to a usage fee: €21,746 plus an equal amount in fines).
Licences for the use of public space
Regarding the issuance of public space usage licences by the Department of Licensing and Regulation of Commercial Activities for the year 2024, compared to the four-year period 2020-2023, there is a 29% increase. Specifically:
For the year 2024, 236 licences have been issued for the placement of tables and chairs, corresponding to a fee amount of €658,929.50. The average number of public space usage licences over the four-year period 2020-2023 is 183 (2020=137, 2021=175, 2022=198, 2023=222).
Finally, the Public Space Restoration Team, following the execution of Removal Orders for the year 2024, and up to September 16, 2024, removed tables and chairs from 3 establishments that were occupying public space without a licence.
This team was established by a Mayor's decision, and its workers are employees of the Cleaning and Everday Life Services (previous municipal administrations had not provided for a structure that included workers for our Service).
As a result, despite the continuous invitations to our Service's team, they were unable to attend due to the priority of other obligations of the workers in the cleaning and daily services. This lack of workforce is the sole reason for the irregular operation of the Public Space Restoration Team, something we have repeatedly and thoroughly explained in simple Greek. In no case is the situation as is what is reported differently by some local media.
Every piece of evidence supporting the above is, of course, available to everyone.
Our Service and the Deputy Mayor of Commerce have, from the very beginning of the new Municipal Authority’s term, acted with complete responsibility, integrity, and complete objectivity towards everyone, exhausting every possibility to ensure the effectiveness of our actions.
Kostas Vousolinos
Deputy Mayor of Culture, Commerce and the Old Town
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