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ATHENS, Greece – Greece’s Finance Ministry says it wants to grant a chunk of a recently-privatized Athens coastal plot earmarked for luxury development to be used as a municipal waste management facility.
Deputy Finance Minister Nadia Valavani said Wednesday it was “necessary” to hand the 1.2-hectare (3-acre) area to municipalities surrounding the former Athens airport, which was a key part of Greece’s limping privatization program.
The entire 620-hectare (1,530-acre) plot was sold last year to a Greek real estate company for 915 million euros ($1 billion). The company plans to build luxury residential, commercial, sports and recreation facilities, and a 200-hectare (494-acre) park.
The four-month-old radical left-led government initially opposed Greece’s privatization program, which was demanded by bailout creditors. It has softened its stance, but remains ambivalent on the former airport deal.