ATHENS – Despite 8,911 complaints about Greece’s beaches being unlawfully taken over, the phenomenon is continuing – with state blessing, the government unconstitutionally giving leases for private businesses, some shutting out the public.

The alleged violations were reported on the new MyCoast phone app set up by the ruling New Democracy in response to 2023 protests on islands about beaches being totally consumed with sunbeds and umbrellas for rent.

But the government, while vowing to ensure access to beaches that are all public, has pursued more luxury resorts taking them over, including Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis attending the launch of one on the Athens’ Riviera.

That luxury resort has put up a wall and gate to keep out the public, as have others on the stretch along the sea on Athens’ coast that’s increasingly seeing public beaches confiscated, some businesses charging for access and setting up turnstiles.

Some municipal officials had complained in the past but there’s been no reports of legal action, including from environmental groups, and the 8-billion euro ($8.55 billion) ongoing development of the abandoned Hellenikon International Airport is seeing more luxury waterfront residences and a 50-story tower on the seashore.

Successive governments have leased up to 50 percent of beaches – itself unlawful – but after the demonstrations the ruling New Democracy said it would further access but luxury resorts have already taken over prime spots.

Some businesses set up on beaches without leases and have been targeted but there’s been no report of inspectors reacting to the phone app complaints, fines, or shutdowns of unlawful operations.

Digital Governance Minister Dimitris Papastergiou told Parapolitika FM radio that the platform let “citizens going to a beach use their mobile phones to report cases where certain spots on the beach are illegally occupied by sunbeds and umbrellas.”

He said both the Digital Governance and the Finance ministries were also using an Artificial Intelligence system to scan beaches with recent photos “to see if the rental limits of these spaces are respected,” no report what would happen if they’re not.

In a feature, the news agency Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported on how the transgressions are continuing, and flourishing, despite government promises to let people use their own beaches without being locked out or forced to pay.

AFP pointed to Pefkochori Beach on the popular Halkidiki peninsula that has some of the most beautiful – and overcrowded – in the country and said there were two businesses running there right up to the water’s edge, neither licensed.

NOT ON THE BEACH

The news agency noted that the government is trying to crack down on some of them, including with drones and that the outrage hasn’t died down, especially during a lingering heat wave seeing people flock to the water.

“The whole beach has been taken over” with tables, chairs and deckchairs,  64-year-old pensioner Evgenia Rapti told AFP. She has a summer home near the beach. “When we bought our house 40 years ago, it was completely different, The beach was empty and it was nice to lie there,” she said.

https://www.barrons.com/news/sunbed-wars-greece-tries-to-rein-in-beach-chaos-c64d455f

Renting two mattresses and a parasol for a day on the beach in Greece usually costs between 20-40 euros ($21-43) but as high as 300 euros ($321) or more at luxury resorts, some barring public entrance without paying.

“The problem with beaches in Greece is entrepreneurs who, either with a permit or through encroachment, cover parts of the coast with sunbeds, umbrellas, tables and even permanent structures,” beach activist George Theodoridis, who is part of a Halkidiki group that has over 12,000 members on Facebook told AFP.

Under new rules, the unlawful sunbeds have to be at least 4 meters (13 feet) from the water’s edge, the only available place for people who don’t rent sunbeds to park their chairs, but that’s often violated or ignored.

“When we say there will be order on the shore, we mean it,” said Finance Minister Kostis Hatzidakis even as the government is eagerly going after more luxury resorts and leasing away more public beach space, much essentially ceded away now.

He said the answer to operations running unlawfully without a license is to award more leases – more than another 1,200 in 2024, on top of the 6,500 already given and taking away even more public beach space with the state’s imprimatur.

Anastasia Halkia, Mayor of the Halkidiki municipality of Kassandra, said inspections that were handled by five local councils have fallen to two staff from the state land service, one of whom just retired.

Sofia Papagiannidou, a 23-year-old tourism manager, said her company had submitted all the required paperwork – but was still waiting even though the season was already underway, no report whether she went ahead.

“I have no faith in the Greek state,” said another operator who declined to be identified. My business was fined 39,000 euros ($41,739) last year, and the procedure to collect the fine is still incomplete. So technically we have no license to operate, but we are still working” – unofficially – he said.