Larnaca orders DIPA residents out over structural danger
The Larnaca District Local Government Organisation has told around 400 people to leave the DIPA complex in the town centre after deeming it highly dangerous, while the building's manager disputes the move.
The Larnaca District Local Government Organisation (DLGO) has ordered the evacuation of the DIPA complex in central Larnaca, judging the building highly dangerous, as reported by Phileleftheros. Owners are being pressed to bring in a structural engineer to eliminate the risk.
Building manager Maria Lazaridou said roughly 400 people would be displaced and rejected the decision, while DLGO president Angelos Hadjicharalambous said it rested on two separate visual inspections and on owners failing to answer notices.
Lazaridou, who runs the managing company and owns two flats there, said no warning letters had reached residents since she took charge in 2020, and that the management had requested the structural study but was told it was confidential. The 1970 complex is among the oldest in Larnaca.
"My aunt gets 700 euros a month, where is she supposed to go?" said Lazaridou, who added that her parents receive a pension of 1,200 euros a month.
What it means for residents
For the households inside DIPA, the deadline is already here: residents were reportedly told on Friday at 10am to be out by Monday. That is a very short runway for pensioners, people receiving home care and shop owners who need somewhere to go, and it shifts the practical burden onto them while the safety question is argued out.
- If you live or trade in the complex: ask the DLGO in writing what relocation support it can offer and keep a copy of every notice you receive.
- Flat owners: the DLGO expects an engineer to start work within three days, so press the management committee to appoint one and to confirm it in writing.
- Watch the money: with flats reportedly selling for 200,000 euros and a ground-floor restaurant licensed for renovation, owners should check how those approvals square with a building now declared dangerous.
This text is written from the source article and is not a translation of it.
