Cyprus Latest News Oct07

Read the inside story on the Cyprus latest news Oct07

Water shortages reach critical point

Following lower than average rainfall for the past three winters, reservoirs are now only 18% full, compared to over 36% last year.

“If the public does not become aware and help in this effort we will be forced to proceed to cuts.”
said the Agriculture Minister Fotis Fotiou back in August.

Over the past decade, the highest inflow of water to the island’s reservoirs came in the 2001-2002 period, with 167.9 MCM (million cubic metres), and in 2003-2004 with 150.5 MCM.
The lowest took place in the 1996-1997 period, with just 24.9 MCM, and in 2005-2006, with 24 MCM.

Whilst the Polis/Latchi area is fortunate not to be reliant on reservoirs for drinking water (it comes from boreholes in the area), even the boreholes are at risk of runnng dry, so everyone needs to conserve as much water as possible.

Some easy water saving tips:

Flush the toilet less often or use the half flush option

Collect water from air con units in a bucket (a small unit will produce 5-6 litres of water in only a few hours!) then use it for watering the plants

Throw your dish washing water on your plants

Turn off the water when in the shower - just use water to rinse off the soap!

Buy a solar pool cover which reduces evaporation from sun and wind by up to 80%

Whilst the government is hastily commissioning desalination plants to help resolve the current problems, these will not be ready until late 2008 and 2010, so we MUST save water whenever possible.

In the meantime, an on-the-spot fine of £30 for the thoughtless use of water has now been increased to £50. But you still see people washing down the streets every morning...

New arrivals in Polis and Latchi

The Polis and Latchi area is fast becoming THE place to live. No longer the sleepy end of the island, things are changing fast. In fact, recent development and the opening of new shops make it almost unnecessary to venture into Paphos!

Here are the latest new arrivals:

Papantoniou Supermarket. With a BIG car park and lots of choice, the tiny E&S supermarket, which used to be the only supermarket "chain" in Polis is now all but deserted.
Personally, we'll still be using the small "froutaria" and the local butcher/fishmonger for our everyday shopping, but it is great to be able to buy more exotic items like Chinese and Indian ingredients and our favourite Dorset muesli!

Syrian Restaurants in both Polis AND Latchi. One called Damascus (Polis) and the other called Damascuse (Latchi), these restaurants provide alternative cuisine but are a little pricey in our view for what they serve.
If you order a meze, be warned - you will not get much for your money compared to a traditional Cyprus meze.

A Bowling Alley! Yes , Polis will shortly have its very own bowling alley. Work is just being completed so we will soon have something else to entertain us over the winter months.

A new stationary shop called the Pencil Box for all your computer and stationary needs.

Coming Soon in Polis/Latchi/Paphos

Find out what's planned for the local area in the coming months:

A Cinema. We don't have an opening date yet but it will be in Polis.

The Paphos to Polis motorway extention. Long rumoured, the tenders are now out and work is planned to begin sometime in 2008.
The motorway will likely take 5 or more years to fully complete as there are several sections which require major construction work. This new fast link will, however, bring much needed revenue to the local restaurants and hotels in the area. We just hope it won't spoil everything.

The Limni Golf Course. Planning permission has now been given and there will be several hundred villas built within the golf course grounds to rival Aphrodite Hills. Work has not yet started, however, so it may be a few years yet until you are able to play your first round!

More big supermarkets. We know that the E&S will be opening a large store in late 2008 near the warehouse units on the outskirts of Polis. More will undoubtedly follow...

Development explosion in Latchi

Latchi is now witnessing a development explosion.

In the past two years, a large number of villas have been built between Latchi and the Baths of Aphrodite.

Now, there are at least 6 new developments starting from Latchi itself all the way along the coast up to the Baths.

Aristo are building large Greek Cycladic- inspired villas right on the seafront opposite the municipal beach in Latchi. Further along, Pafilia have now started a major project and several other key developers have their sales signs up and land is being prepared. On the other side of Latchi, next to the Polis municipal beach, Leptos have also now started a big development of beach front villas.

Prices are not cheap (CYP350,000 and upwards for villas) so investors need to act quickly before prices rocket even more.

Contact a good property agent if you want to find out more:

Contact a good estate agent

We can't help feel, however, that the prices being asked are slightly crazy. But someone is prepared to pay the price.

We just hope that someone, somewhere, is planning for the inevitable water shortage that will happen longer term with all the swimming pools being built.