Paphos People

Asked to pass this on by Pegeia Neighbourhood Watch
(Alan (emgeeb) please note to save you speaking to PNW they have asked for this to be shared)

Bit long winded (no pun intended) but worth a read.

Notes from the meeting of The Coalition Of Independents held 27th January 2014.

Sewage News:
The arrival of Paphos Sewerage Board (SAPA) tax bills sent to property owners in Pegeia has naturally provoked a strong response. The confusion caused is due to the failure of the Pegeia Mayor, our representative on SAPA, to provide any information or public consultation for residents. The Coalition has received countless phone calls and emails and we apologize that we’ve been unable to answer most of them, as we preferred to concentrate our resources on getting this update out. Please share this newsletter with your neighbours and friends who may not already be subscribed to this news list.
The Coalition has been writing about the plans for a central sewage system in Pegeia for many years, including SAPA plans to start taxing for it, which we reported might even have started last year. There have been numerous delays due to lack of funding for the project and an official extension to 2015 was granted to get the ball rolling, which is what is happening now.

Here’s what’s going on:
At our Coalition meeting on Monday, 27 Jan., we had a full house of very concerned residents, many of whom had received the SAPA bills which are sent to owners of property (i.e., those with title deeds). If you don’t have title deeds, you will not have received a bill. Beware that instead you may receive an inflated demand for payment from your developer! At our meeting, full support was received for our proposal for Pegeia Council to hold a public meeting in English to inform residents about the tax and the sewage project details. There were many who said they refuse to pay until full information is disclosed, such as a schedule of implementation and cost. Understandably, people do not wish to pay for many years without any action (as in the case of Paphos, Chlorakas, Kissonerga, Limassol). Everyone, including Pegeia Council, has concerns about SAPA’s competence, due to well known scandals and existing high debt level of the organization. Some residents question the need to pay for a system that does not extend to their individual homes. Everyone who owns property within Pegeia town boundaries is obliged to pay the sewage tax. It is logical that all will benefit from the improvements to the environment that a central system will provide.

At the Pegeia Council meeting that took place on Tuesday, 28 Jan., about 20 Cypriot male residents attended. A very lively discussion took place. Residents were informed of the Council decisions taken earlier that evening, as follows:

1. There will be a meeting on 4 Feb., with the Council, the Paphos District Officer and SAPA, to discuss the project, with each Councillor invited to express all concerns at this meeting. Our Councillor Linda will attend.
2. Following the Paphos District Officer meeting, the Mayor will convene a public meeting in Pegeia, with representatives of SAPA & the Ministry of Interior. Residents will be invited to attend. This meeting will provide full details of the project and residents will have an opportunity to ask questions. Linda requested that the Council hold the meeting also in English and this has been accepted, although we don’t know yet if it will be a separate meeting for English speakers or simultaneous translation at one meeting. As soon as we have further news, we will let you know.
3. The Council calls for a separate account for Pegeia to protect our investment and ensure we pay appropriate costs related to Pegeia extension (and not be loaded unfairly with existing SAPA debt costs).
4. The Council will request an extension to the 31 March deadline to pay the SAPA bill, as it is short notice for many.
5. The Council will explore the possibility of a reduction in the rate of 0.33% (based on 1980 property value).

Details of the project so far:
At our meeting on 27 Jan., questions were asked about the EU Directives on waste water management. Tala Councillor John Moffat, who attended our meeting, has provided the following links:

http://www.cyprus.gov.cy/moa/wdd/wdd.nsf/All/398CA2884255BE8EC225770400304A39/$file/Sewerage_Schemes_eng.pdf

http://ec.europa.eu/environment/water/water-urbanwaste/info/pdf/terms.pdf

SAPA now proposes that the project cost for Pegeia will be €20 million. (There was a previous estimate of €45 million for Tala & Pegeia extension, prepared in Dec. 2011 by a French company which no longer is involved with SAPA).

Reason for the lack of a start date:
There’s no funding in place yet and that won’t happen until 1/5th of the cost of the €20 million project is collected. This is why taxes need to start being paid now, so as to raise the required €4 million over the next few years. Once this happens, apparently the European Development Bank is obliged to fund the project.

What to do about the SAPA tax bill?
We suggest that people wait to pay the bill until we have full information about the project. There is time yet and already things are moving in the right direction about providing information to the public.

_________________
Dave
Moira And Dave

“I know that you believe you understand what you think I said, but I'm not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.”