The Municipality of Malevizi has announced, with dramatic fanfare, that the long-awaited regeneration and coastal protection of Agia Pelagia beach is finally moving forward.
Why?
Because funding has been “accepted.”
Not spent. Not used. Not built.
Just… accepted.
Apparently, this alone is now reason enough for a victory lap at the Municipal Council.
Funding Approved — Meaning the Project Can Now Start the Process of Starting
According to Mayor Menelaos Bokeas, the municipal budget has been reshuffled to include the new amounts, which means the golden gates of tendering may now open.
The money?
- €1.5 million from the Ministry of Interior
- €1.7 million from the Region of Crete
With this sudden torrent of cash (that other municipalities receive weekly), the Agia Pelagia project will be auctioned as one single, glorious package — beach restoration plus a 70-metre underwater breakwater.
Sure, nothing says “permanent solution” like a tiny breakwater trying to hold back Cretan waves that laugh in 8-Beaufort.
But let us call it an “underwater shield of protection.”
Flood Project Also “One Step from Implementation” — The Eternal Greek Phrase
The Mayor also highlighted another miracle: the flood protection works on Eleftheriou Venizelou are now one step away from implementation.
Every Cretan project, from Kasteli airport to the village basketball court, is always one step before implementation.
This step, however, required:
- Court decisions
- Approval of the tender dossier
- Approval of the draft contract by the Court of Audit
Meaning the project is now legally allowed to exist. Whether it will physically exist is a 2027 problem.
New Garbage Trucks Also Coming — After All the Necessary Paper Dancing
Further excitement emerged regarding the municipality’s future fleet of garbage trucks. A total of €1,130,000 has been secured from the Ministry of Interior, which means Malevizi will eventually receive four new garbage trucks, assuming the following hurdles are cleared:
- The Public Procurement Authority reviews the study
- The Public Procurement Authority approves the study
- The Public Procurement Authority stamps something
- Someone calls someone
- And then everyone waits again
When that happens, Malevizi will finally upgrade its waste collection fleet — a move that citizens will notice instantly, because nothing on Earth is louder than a brand-new Greek garbage truck at 4:45 a.m.
Agia Pelagia’s beach might one day be restored.
Flood protection might start soonish.
Garbage trucks might arrive before the next election cycle.
But right now?
We are celebrating funding acceptance and paperwork — which, in Greek local governance, apparently counts as infrastructure.