The urban renewal and urban regeneration plan, which includes a plan for the rehabilitation and reuse of abandoned buildings by a management body rather than their owners, is based on four axes, while it also paves the way for floating photovoltaic power generation systems in marine areas.

The bill was presented to the cabinet by Environment and Energy Minister Costas Skrekas and Deputy Minister Nikos Tagaras.

The four main pillars of the bill are:

The establishment of a framework for urban revitalisation and the regeneration of cities, settlements and their parts. Through this framework, the regeneration agency will be able to develop and implement climate neutrality, smart city, architectural heritage management, etc.

The establishment of a framework for the intervention procedure for the restoration and re-use of abandoned buildings or parts of buildings. The possibility of intervention will be given to management bodies with specific conditions and respect for the right of ownership, as noted by sources in the ministry. These interventions will take into account the impossibility or absence of interest in rehabilitation on the part of the owners. The aim is to avoid or remove the risk to public health and safety caused by abandoned buildings, to improve areas with a large number of such buildings, to make use of existing buildings and to protect cultural heritage.

facilitating, by means of clear provisions, the expropriation of urban land in order to safeguard public spaces.

The adoption of specific urban and spatial planning regulations to resolve more specific issues, including the issue of arbitrary controls and the possibility of installing and operating pilot floating photovoltaic installations.

The draft law makes minor improvements to the New Building Code (NOC) in order to achieve a uniform interpretation of each specific regulation on the construction of buildings, while attempting to end the inconvenience of citizens regarding the examination of issues whose time is running out in the Councils that apply the planning legislation.