The Mayor of Limassol, Yiannis Armeftis, proposed to the Minister of Defense, Vasilis Palmas, in a recent meeting, the expansion of the Polemidia Forest Park (Agia Fyla) in the area of the Limassol Recruit Training Center (KEN), so that it could serve as the starting point for the Metropolitan Park of the wider Limassol area.
Mr. Armeftis told “Entrepreneurial Limassol” that the Municipality has identified areas that may be unused by the Ministry of Defense and has marked them on specific maps. This concerns a plot of approximately 40–50 thousand square meters, which could be incorporated into the Metropolitan Park under development.
The Mayor of Limassol noted that, internationally, it is common practice for military facilities located within urban areas to be relocated through organized and long-term planning.
“We are requesting the expansion of green space so that it can be properly developed and facilities can be created around the perimeter of the camp, allowing people to walk, run, etc.,” he said.
He added that the meeting with the Minister of Defense was exploratory in nature and that the Ministry had committed to reviewing the request and providing feedback, after the relevant plans were submitted.
Mr. Armeftis recalled that in 2025 he had also met with the Minister of Agriculture, Maria Panayiotou, given that the area of the Forest Park in Agia Fyla belongs to that Ministry, which manages it. During that meeting, the development of a master plan was discussed, coordination of which could be undertaken by the Municipality of Limassol.
According to the Mayor, the current priority is the identification and safeguarding of vital areas before the preparation of the master plan, which will determine the final study area. The aim is to clarify which plots can be incorporated into the Metropolitan Park under development.
He stated that the low Polemidia forest naturally represents the first stage of the Metropolitan Park, while the second stage could involve its connection with the areas around the Polemidia water reservoir and, subsequently, its expansion toward other parks in the wider Limassol area.
The planning of the Metropolitan Park is included in the deliverables of the collaboration between the Municipalities of Limassol, Amathounta, and Polemidia with the Cyprus University, the Cyprus University of Technology, and Frederick University. As he noted, the project must mature and, before that, be included in the new revision of the Local Plan for the wider Limassol area.
“Essentially, what we want is to establish in which areas the Metropolitan Park will be located. This is very important work, especially since the process of changing the Local Plan has already begun,” he said.
Next, the master plan study will need to be developed through the three universities to create a large peri-urban park.
From his side, the Mayor of Amathounta, Kyriakos Xydias, told “Entrepreneurial Limassol” that the issue is expected to return soon to the Mayors’ Council, to give new momentum to its promotion.
It is recalled that the effort to create a Metropolitan Park began in 2022 by the then Limassol Mayors’ Council, as part of the “Integrated Limassol Development.” The goal was to protect the environment, mitigate the impacts of intense urban development, and promote sustainable growth.
At the end of January 2023, a related study was presented by forester and environmental manager Dr. Nikolas Iliadis and his team. The study covered the administrative boundaries of all six municipalities of greater Limassol, extended from the coastal front to 494 meters in elevation in the northern section, and concerned a total area of 12,463 acres (125 sq. km), providing significant scientific data for the planning and implementation of the project.
