DLGOs to gain power to demolish dangerous buildings

Local propertiessafetyTop News DLGOs to gain power to demolish dangerous buildings Epikindines Oikodomes Leukwsia 1 (2) Relevant News DLGOs to gain power to demolish dangerous buildings 4 September 2026 Cyprus races to finish last mobile desalination units by 2027 4 September 2026 Environment Department rejects 5 MW solar park near Aradippou 4 September 2026 Vassos Vassiliou 4 September 2026 FacebookXWhatsAppEmailPrintViber Cyprus’s District Local Government Organisations (DLGOs) are set to gain the power to demolish or seal off dangerous buildings, or parts of them, whenever they judge these to have become dangerous. Under a bill drafted by the House Interior Committee itself, whose approach the Interior Ministry supports, the cumbersome procedures for notifying owners will be bypassed. Some owners can never be traced, so under the new rule it will be enough to send a letter to their last known address and post a notice in a visible place on the dangerous building. The relevant DLGO must also publish the danger notice on its website for 30 days. The Interior Ministry says a fee on development permits would let DLGOs, which are responsible for managing dangerous buildings, build up a financial cushion. Both DLGOs and MPs disagree with this approach, arguing that a citizen seeking housing should not have to bear the cost of irresponsibility or inertia by owners who fail to support their dangerous buildings. There is also disagreement over who should pick up the tab for propping up dangerous buildings, the state or the DLGOs. The Ministry says it has allocated €2 million to support hundreds of dangerous buildings. The Larnaca DLGO has 1,087 dangerous buildings within its boundaries, and said the cost of supporting just 351 of them was estimated at €7 million. Nicosia DLGO president Konstantinos Giorkatzis proposed that the state provide €2 million a year for the next ten years, in the form of a loan, to give the DLGOs time to recover their support costs from owners. Most owners do not pay, but DLGOs would recoup what they spent if the buildings are later sold or disposed of. House Interior Committee president Aristos Damianou called on the Interior Ministry and the DLGOs to find common ground on the various aspects of the issue, so that legislation can be approved before tragedies occur from building or balcony collapses. Interior Ministry Director-General Elikkos Ilias, who backed the proposal under discussion, said it would introduce the ability to ban the use or rental of dangerous buildings and cut off electricity and water supplies, along with the power to carry out total or partial demolition where required. It would also allow a charge to be registered on the property to recover the authority’s costs, enable faster recourse to court through ex parte procedures, and strengthen administrative and criminal penalties. He said the competent authority intervenes only when there is inertia or non-compliance, and where protecting human life, public safety or residents’ property requires it. What DLGOs are asking for in their memorandum In a memorandum submitted to Parliament, DLGOs are seeking the right to intervene immediately, with police assistance, and to act without first obtaining a court order, as is currently required, particularly in cases involving a risk of serious injury or death. They are also asking for the services involved to submit their views within 15 days. Separately, they want the right to fence off, mark and block access to a dangerous building immediately. DLGOs argue that lifting a building’s dangerous status should require a certificate from an ETEK-certified engineer, ETEK being the Cyprus Scientific and Technical Chamber. They say a mechanism should be set up to recover the costs they incur supporting buildings, with affected owners’ debts paid as a priority when the property is transferred or sold. They are also seeking a broader definition of “owner” to include co-owners, management committees, heirs and estate administrators. On serving notice that a building is dangerous, they have suggested it be posted on the building itself or published in the Republic’s official gazette, instead of in two newspapers as currently happens. DLGOs are also asking for licensing powers to return to the Organisations’ councils rather than remain with technocrats, as is currently the case, and say that alongside this request, they would accept responsibility for handling dangerous-building cases. The Famagusta DLGO disagrees with transferring this authority to the councils, arguing it is a purely technocratic matter. What the legislative amendment seeks The Interior Ministry’s director-general said the amendment aims to strengthen, modernise and make existing tools more effective, so the relevant authorities can intervene faster and more decisively on public safety issues. He said the new measures are expected to significantly reduce the number of cases in which authorities are forced to carry out danger-removal works themselves. The goal, he said, is to exhaust the compliance and enforcement tools provided under the legislation first, limiting the authority’s own intervention to cases where it is absolutely necessary in the public interest. On funding, Ilias said the fee and financing of the dangerous buildings sector was part of the licensing sector, and that the Organisations should make provision within building-licensing budgets to cover the sector’s running costs and allow for measures to be taken where required, “without the owner being released from responsibility.” Subscribe to our Newsletter Latest News Cyprus races to finish last mobile desalination units by 2027 Environment Department rejects 5 MW solar park near Aradippou Von der Leyen rules out EU farm payments in occupied north Menogeia site to become Cyprus’s central police detention centre Retirement age forces 310 teachers off Cyprus appointment list Amathousia Festival’s 29th edition set for September 18 Mountain Games Cyprus 2026 brings four days of sport and culture to Troodos Follow en.philenews on Google News and be the first to know all the news about Cyprus and the world.