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We should make a business centre in Athens whether on the coast or in the mountains to allow the city play the role we believe it is destined for its specific features, says Evangelos Lirudias - Chairman of the Union of Architects in Greece. He talks about the decline and rebirth of the historic centre of Athens, overcoming the crisis in the construction sector and the profession of architects in Greece and the effects of its "opening" in an interview for grreporter.info.

The role of Athens as a business centre on the Balkans
 
What I think is important is that Athens with its special characteristics should play the role of a business centre on the Balkans. Athens is a world centre. International assessments rated it the 32^nd capital and it should take higher position - to become attractive, to host international business meetings organized by African and Balkan countries and the Middle East. Syrian and Jordanian businessmen tell me to meet in Istanbul because it is easier for them to take a visa for Turkey and this is inappropriate. These are measures that will directly influence the function of Athens. There is no business centre in Athens - central business district, because there is the historic centre in Athens and we can not build skyscrapers to close the view of the Parthenon. So, the policy we follow is conservative, aiming to keep the historic centre. However, there should be a business centre, whether near the coast or in the mountains. These are decisions that should be made if you care about your city and if you have a concept to give the city the role it should play. Bulgarians are in a better position than us now because they have believed in Europe and pursue their goals...
 
The historic centre of Athens ...
 
Each historic centre has a life cycle. Each city goes through boom and decline. Typically, the cycle of a residential neighbourhood lasts 30 years. If it has been in decline for 30 years then it enters a cycle of improving the quality of life. Various investments in the historic centre of Athens have been made already. The buildings were purchased at very low prices and a comprehensive plan is necessary through which the state but also the life cycle will give a message to investors. Ultimately, economic interests determine the improvement in the quality of life in a region and change the image of it.  Some businessmen who have proposed real estate to raise the quality of life in the historic centre were promoted on SKY TV. We witnessed such a decline in the Athens centre not for the first time. It was so scruffy that you could not step there for the last time in 1973. All those most notorious had moved to Plaka. There were bars everywhere and all the residents were evicted. The same phenomenon repeated in the Psiri neighbourhood later - all who lived there or had small shops left the neghbourhood and it became a centre of entertainment. A situation intolerable for some people had occurred in combination with the presence of economic immigrants but there have been some opportunities for investors at the same time. When this story is over the government should make interventions and decisions of public interest that could push and release developments to improve the quality of life in the historic centre. This is called back to the city movement and it takes place after the flow of residents to the suburbs have been completed. A city centre usually is in decline because the majority of residents move to the suburbs, which is related to an economic boom – residential blocks have been built in Halandri, Maroussi and Dionysos. But young people want to return to the city centre now and the state should act to create a space of housing, youth life, entertainment, education, so that it corresponds to the level of a historic city like Athens.

Prospects for overcoming the crisis that hit the construction industry ...

The crisis has caused huge unemployment because there is no urban planning. There is no urban planning on the one hand and environment protection should be defined on the other hand, because there is no urban land to invest. Nobody knows what is allowed and we are in a process of regional planning reorganization. There are contaminated areas and no one knows whether construction will be permitted or whether they will continue to be used for agriculture. We should also determine the specific rules for adjusting the buildings to new technologies, to green architecture, or train staff for this. Green architecture means to build houses of zero emissions. This also helps increase the unemployment. I have been in cooperation with any government as president of the Union of Architects and I can say that an event on Occupation Architect will be held in March. And I believe that there will be projects by June-July. As president of the Union of Architects I believe that Greece should begin a comprehensive planning, i.e. everything should be planned following the example of how this was done in Holland.
 
The consequences of opening up of the architects profession...  
In practice, opening up of the architects profession means nothing. Anyone who has studied architecture and practiced for two years, or meets the requirements to be an architect, obtains a permit and works in this field. The profession of the architect is not closed because it is not limited to the place where it can be practiced, nor can it be an inheritance for our children. What is changing with the opening of closed professions is the minimum pay.

There was a minimum pay so far and it was allowed to sign a private contract for a possible reduction. However, this did not mean reductions in taxation. Taxation and state revenue of construction works were determined on the base of a minimum pay. Apparently, that minimum pay will be negotiated freely at the time and each customer will be able to bargain. However, this allows greater tax evasion. It is recognized that the state will not tolerate tax evasion on such a scale. So, the state will have to propose minimum pay which is used in some European countries. The proposed minimum pay could reduce the loss of revenue because of tax evasion for the state.  

Liberalization here does not mean that anyone who wants would become an architect or as pharmacists say – there will be a pharmacy on every corner. Liberalization here means that minimum pay will be cancelled. But I doubt its complete implementation very much because it will lead to another kind of tax evasion.

The profession of the architect in Greece ...

The profession of the architect is not institutionally "patented" in Greece. Anyone could be architect in Greece. All who are diplomated engineers are practicing architects. We believe that the profession of architects should be institutionalized. And those who do not meet the requirements under Directive 36/2005 should not be allowed to practice the profession, nor to sign architectural designs. If this does not happen and if architects are not allowed to sign designs in order to take the ultimate responsibility for the environment and its protection this will be deemed law violation. In this case the law from 1930 should be applicable according to which all Polytechnic University graduates are allowed to sign designs. We can see the consequences of this outdated law around and they're not particularly pleasant.

An engineer of technical education without qualifications will be able to make architectural designs but they will be of lower quality, as we say. Therefore, we associate the minimum pay cancellation with lower quality of designs. Of course, professional ethics makes us believe that an architect would never trade-off the quality of his work. If an architect can not get paid the cost of the work done, then there is no reason to get involved in this work. But necessities of life and living very often make people compromise.  

The opening up of the profession of the architect is associated with the free practice of the profession in all EU countries. All professionals should meet the same standards, i.e. there will not be restrictive rules particularly for Greece. You should be certified to begin to practice as architect and work on state projects in Greece. This could not be applied to our colleagues from abroad as only their biographical references are assessed. The opening up of the profession will be followed by an alignment of standards for architects in Europe and these certificates will have to be cancelled at some point.

There is a side effect - old houses adjustment to green technology. This adjustment requires special training which is not described in detail and can not be described in the form of minimum pay. So, a contract containing the "job description" should be drawn. This description will be a kind of civil contract between the architect and the customer. It will be negotiable but it will have to correspond to an applicable law when the both parties approve it. It is unacceptable the both parties not to be able to resolve clear frauds in court for a decade. It is unacceptable a person not to be able to assert his rights.

This means that the profession needs to be institutionalized because all have been practicing it since 1930 and the result is staring right in our faces. Civil contracts should become applicable and quality and customer interest should be guaranteed. The state should review all these issues in the mass.