The old leper colony of Ayios Charalambos will become an external campus of the University of Cyprus, and will also incorporate a national park for the adjacent salt lake.
The decision of the Council of Ministers to develop the 46 acres of land, which is tucked away behind the long stretch of Phaneromeni Road, and parallel to the salt lake path, was announced last week.
The news was met with particular satisfaction by Larnaca Municipality, the Larnaca Tourism Board (LTB) and the Larnaca Chamber of Commerce, and follows intense efforts by the municipality to secure the agreement.
Work on the site will commence in around two years, and the campus will house three faculties of the university, whose main campus is located in Nicosia; the Hydrocarbon Research Institute, the Oceanography Centre and the Chemical Engineering Department.
The development of the land also allows for the creation of a national park to showcase the importance of Larnaca’s salt lake which is significant for its migratory birds – including the flamingo – and included on the list of Ramsar Wetlands of International Importance, and the EU-wide network, Natura 2000 for nature and biodiversity.
Larnaca Mayor, Andreas Louroutziatis said of the news: “This is a very important decision that creates the right conditions to put Larnaca on the development map for the island once again…
These projects will significantly contribute to our main objective of reinstating Larnaca as a town of economic growth and social welfare and making it a town of choice for the young, for professionals and for families”
Leprosy is an infectious disease that causes severe, disfiguring skin sores and nerve damage in the arms and legs that is rare nowadays.
The island’s first leper colony was built in the Ayia Paraskevi area of Nicosia, around 1808 and included a church – Ayios Charalambos. In 1955, the gated colony of Ayios Charalambos in Larnaca was purpose-built amidst secluded forestland to house the island’s leprosy sufferers.
The patients moved their church brick by brick to the new community and rebuilt it themselves.
Cyprus Weekly
