Construction has begun on the first apartment building in Nicosia under the government's KtiZo programme. Work is being carried out on land within the administrative boundaries of the Latsia municipality and is expected to be completed in 18-20 months. According to the Cypriot Minister of the Interior, Constantinos Ioannou, similar complexes will be built in other metropolitan areas and in Limassol in the coming months.
It should be recalled that the state programme covers a total of 358 buildings with 3,128 apartments in Nicosia, Limassol and Larnaca.
Of these, 43 have been identified as having critical problems with their stability and structure. These buildings, the most dangerous, will be prioritised. They will be gradually demolished and replaced by new, modern buildings.
A further 70 buildings have stability problems in a number of structural elements, and 245 buildings have less critical deficiencies. These two groups of buildings will be renovated rather than demolished. The renovation programme will last 10 years. Nearly all the tenants of the 43 most dangerous blocks have already been evacuated with the payment of a subsidy.
People were offered two options:
- temporarily relocate to another place and then receive an apartment in a new house built on the site of their demolished complex; or
- receive a lump sum compensation from the state for their property and their share of the land.
The KtiZo programme divides its beneficiaries into three categories:
- Category 1 includes first generation refugees and second, third and fourth-generation refugees who have inherited emergency housing, if they have a housing title.
- Category 2 includes refugees who have bought flats in housing estates with money allocated by the state.
- Category 3 includes residents who bought their dwellings from refugees.
Residents of shelters who did not receive an apartment in a house built in place of the demolished one can claim compensation, the amount of which depends on the cadastral value of the property and land. If the emergency house is to be repaired rather than demolished, the state will cover the cost.
Owners who have agreed to the construction are obliged to pay a percentage of the cost of a new dwelling. Specifically, this is 10,000 euros for a one-bedroom apartment, 20,000 euros for a two-room apartment and 25,000 euros for a three-bedroom apartment. For its part, the Ministry of the Interior has undertaken to provide beneficiaries with a subsidy of 30,000 euros in the case of a contract for a one-room flat, 40,000 euros for a two-room flat and 50,000 euros for a three-room flat.
Given the number of beneficiaries who have so far agreed to build 19 blocks in the first phase, the State will pay a total subsidy of 13 million euros out of a total of 130 million euros, which is included in the cost of the entire project.
For the construction of the new blocks, the scheme provides for the use of vacant land in the state settlements themselves. It will also solve the problems of apartment blocks built on Turkish Cypriot-owned land to be rehabilitated, as the owners will now be able to replace their leases with ownership documents.
The minister noted that so far the state has paid €1.5 million to cover part of the rent for the flats that owners are temporarily renting while the blocks are under construction.
In detail:
- 166 beneficiaries are receiving the rent subsidy. From the date of the beneficiaries' declaration of participation until August 2024, a total of €1.5 million (monthly expenditure of €111.4 thousand) in rent allowance has been granted.
- 94 beneficiaries received financial assistance in the form of a relocation allowance of €250 each, totalling €23.5 thousand.
- 39 beneficiaries are using the storage facilities provided by the Department of Urban Planning and Housing to store their personal belongings. The current rental value of the storage space is 15,000 euros.
- The residents of 15 blocks of flats recognised as emergency buildings have been completely evacuated. The eviction of another five blocks in the Strovolos neighbourhood is pending.