Four hotels or hostels, three restaurants, four cafes or refreshments, shops selling souvenirs or agricultural products and of course museum spaces will “occupy” the buildings on the Tatoiou estate. The proposal of the Ministry of Culture is beginning to take its final form – not without disagreements – while at the same time the projects that have been included in the NSRF or the Recovery Fund are being auctioned. Last summer’s fires, however, in addition to the destruction of vegetation on the estate had several other consequences, including the slowing down of schedules and, most importantly, the adaptation of political decisions around the estate to the new conditions.
A year ago, the Minister of Culture, Lina Mendoni, presented the viability study carried out on behalf of the ministry (with funding from the Laskaridis Foundation) for the development of the Tatoi estate. The shift, in relation to the two studies conducted by government agencies in the past (Public Real Estate Company and Athens Organization) was that, as Ms. Mendoni herself stated, the new study was based not only on respect for the environment and history of the estate, but also in the principles of economic viability.
Since then, the Ministry of Culture has started the process of finalizing the selected development scenario, mainly in discussions with the scholars of the exhibition. According to information from “Kathimerini”, the proposal that the Ministry of Culture has reached, regarding the use of existing buildings, is the following:
• The palace (3,100 sq.m.) is converted into a museum and the neighboring kitchen building (357 sq.m. plus 90 sq.m. basement) into a ticket office of the museum, with a shop and a bar.
• The shelter (245 sq.m.), building west of the kitchens, will house the administration offices of the estate.
• The staff building (614 sq.m. plus 182 sq.m. basement) will be converted into a hotel. In fact, the Ministry of Culture has already launched this change, commissioning studies for its restoration and conversion, which are being completed these days.
• The Sturm house (240 sq.m.) and the telegraph office (170 sq.m.) will host an exhibition of individual thematic collections. The project will be included in the NSRF.
• The caretaker’s house (80 sq.m.) and its warehouse (11 sq.m.) will accommodate offices of the estate administration. It is worth noting that the entire aforementioned building complex (except the palace and kitchens) was proposed by the sustainability study to be converted into a VIP hostel with spa. The project will be included in the NSRF.
• The two parking buildings with the drivers’ houses (4 buildings, 200 + 116 + 82 + 66 sq.m.) will be converted into a car show. The project will be included in the NSRF.
• The barracks building (960 sq.m.) will be converted into a hotel with a social event space and a restaurant.
• The house of the archbishop (100 sq.m. plus 50 sq.m. basement), located at the end of the palace unit, will be converted into a control center of the estate with funding from the NSRF.
• The house of the forester (112 sq.m.) is planned to become an information center by the Association of Friends of Tatoi (if of course the association accepts it).
• The directorate (416 sq.m.), which burned down in the summer fire, decided to become a restaurant with local products.
• The police station will be relocated to the forestry office (100 sq.m.).
• The complex of buildings where the police station is located today, was decided to be turned into a hotel. It includes the pre-existing hotel building (376 sq.m. plus 124 sq.m. basement), the officers ‘house (190 sq.m.), the gendarmerie station (100 sq.m.), the three workers’ residential buildings (288, 182, 80 sq.m.), the workers’ workshop (90 sq.m.) and a warehouse (30 sq.m.).
• The old Voustasio (428 sq.m.) will host an exhibition of the carriages of the former royal family. The viability study had proposed to host research and startup facilities.
• The stables (420 sq.m.) will host a cafe, shop and a space for creative employment of children.
• The new dairy (1,498 sq.m.) is proposed to become an exhibition space for agricultural production, with vehicles and equipment that existed on the property. A refreshment area and event space will be created on the first floor. In the sustainability study it was proposed to host the museum of carriages and cars.
• The pigsty (190 sq.m.) will become a souvenir shop.
• The butter factory (108 sq.m.) will become a butter museum and will also host a doctor’s office. The project is to be included in the NSRF.
• Platanos stable is proposed to become a restaurant and cafe.
The remaining (out of 55 existing) buildings will receive agricultural uses or outdoor activities, of course excluding cemetery buildings.
The new uses
According to the proposal that has been approved, the new building on the property will be 3,200 sq.m. How this new construction will be shared is not yet clear: whether it will involve (and) additions to existing buildings, as well as other activities provided for in the chosen scenario, such as children’s camps, wooden canteens, sports and rural facilities, and facilities education. The new uses of the buildings will be finalized immediately (it is not excluded that there may be last minute changes from the aforementioned list) and then they will be submitted for approval to the Central Council of Modern Monuments, which is scheduled to take place this Thursday.
However, the catastrophic fires of the summer seem to have affected Tatoi’s case in several ways. Not only because they burned down almost the entire estate, but precisely because of this destruction, more subtle political manipulations are now required. In other words, the Ministry of Culture will no longer be able to implement with the same ease the most daring of the economic development plans of the estate, something that seems to be already the concern of the Ministry of Culture. Also, the schedules set by the viability study are several months behind, indicative of the “fermentations” that have taken place in the last period.
Finally, the Ministry of Culture must (although incompetent) launch the exemption from the decision to reforest the entire estate of about 300 acres in the old rural areas and another 300 acres in the core of the estate (including the area where the palace gardens will be rebuilt ). It should be noted here that the RES responsible for environmental and urban planning has been excluded from the planning process (and) of Tatoi. The last decision taken by the ministry for the region was the pre-approval, in July of ’21, of the expansion of the facilities of the Tatoi Club and the Tatoi Sports Club, which are located nearby.
The implementation
Regarding the progress of the project implementation, the efforts of the Ministry of Culture are currently moving at three levels: in the promotion of the projects that have been included in the NSRF and those that are to be included in the Recovery Fund (both categories are projects of the Ministry of Culture ) and at the same time in the launch of the other projects provided for in the plan. In this direction, a joint ministerial decision was signed at Christmas (and published in Diavgeia… one month late) by which the Ministries of Culture, Environment, Infrastructure and Rural Development accept the proposal of the Laskaridis Foundation (which has already covered the cost of the study with a donation). sustainability) to bear the cost of all studies needed.
In this context, a Special Urban Plan should be prepared specifically for the Tatoiou estate, which will determine the new building conditions and land uses in the area. The urban plan should amend the Presidential Decree for the protection of Parnitha and possibly that of the protection of areas of Kifissos, a project that has obvious legal difficulties.
The viability study
The landscape regarding the selection of the designers and, mainly, the design directions for the Tatoiou estate is given to “K” by the coordinator of the studies and technical consultant of the Laskaridis Foundation, Giannis Pyrgiotis (former general secretary of Olympic Utilization).
According to him, the studies that will specify what has been decided will be prepared in a period of about six months, including the consultation process.
“What will specialize the studies, which are funded by the Laskaridis Foundation, are the broader arrangements needed to develop the estate in a financially sustainable way,” he said. “The basis will obviously be the viability study (prepared by the companies KPMG, ASPA and American Appraisal), while the directions will be given in collaboration with the services of the Ministry of Culture. The studies are expected to be ready in six months “.
When asked by “K” about how the designers of the estate will be selected, Mr. Pyrgiotis points out that the final word is with the Ministry of Culture. “Many of the researchers have been proposed by those who prepared the viability study, always with the consent of the Ministry of Culture and the donor and of course it plays an important role to know the area and be experienced in their field.”
But how will researchers specialize in the sustainability study when it has not been officially received by the Ministry of Culture? “The receipt was not made because the study did not have an institutional dimension”, estimates Mr. Pyrgiotis. “Now with her specialization he will get it.”
Since 2020, the Ministry of Culture has received five studies on Tatoi from donors: three (July 2020) from the Association of Friends of Tatoi for the restoration of the caretaker’s house, the dairy and the telecommunications building, one from Aigeas (Martinou Foundation) for the restoration of the old cowshed and a viability study by the Laskaridis Foundation. The donation agreement with Aegea was published in Diavgeia (September 2021), but the same has not yet happened with the donation agreement of the Laskaridis Foundation, signed in November 2021.
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