VORIA: €250m Hospitality Project to Transform Northern Athens into Tourism Hub
New details of the 250-million-euro investment expected to transform Marousi, a prominent business district in the northern suburbs of Athens, into a thriving tourist spot, were released on Wednesday.
Known as Project VORIA (which means “north” in Greek), the investment includes a new five-star 150-room hotel that will be joined by a meeting space with seating capacity of up to 1,400 delegates, a variety of dining and entertainment options and 836 underground parking spaces. The complex will not include retail shops.
Project VORIA will also house the renowned Mont Parnes casino which will relocate from Mt. Parnitha to a 8,500-square-meter space within the complex.
The multi-purpose complex, designed by Athens-based architecture firm ASPA-KST, will be built on the Dilaveri estate in Marousi and will be the first strategic investment carried out in the area after many years. The estate is located at the junction of Kifissias and Spyrou Loui avenues in the Municipality of Marousi.
According to NorthStar Entertainment, the company running the project, Project VORIA will create a tourism destination in the northern suburbs of Athens.
Speaking during a press conference, NorthStar Entertainment CEO Yiannis Tsirikos said the project will include innovative environmental solutions, high quality architecture and soft construction that will blend into the urban landscape.
“We aim to develop an integrated complex that will upgrade the northern suburbs without including retail shops, thus maintaining a balance with the local market,” Tsirikos said, adding that the investment will create 1,000 new jobs and strengthen the local economy.
“We are giving Marousi the momentum to transform into a real model of urban development,” he said.
It is reminded that shareholders of NorthStar Entertainment (former Hellenic Casino of Parnitha SA) include Athens Resort Casino SA (51 percent) and the Public Properties Company SA. (49 percent). Regency Entertainment (with the Laskaridis Group, Kokkalis Group and investment funds as shareholders) is the main shareholder of Athens Resort Casino SA. The Laskaridis Group owns Lampsa Hellenic Hotels (Hotel Grande Bretagne, King George, Athens Capital-MGallery).
Construction is expected to begin by the end of the year and should take about three years to complete.
Tsirikos also underlined that an important part of Project VORIA is the creation of green spaces for the residents of the wider area.
According to the investment plan, almost 50 percent of the property – from the total of 55,000 square meters – will be assigned to the Municipality of Marousi to use as a green space.
Marousi will become a tourist hub
Highlighting the tourism potential of Marousi, Tassos Chomenidis, the CEO of Lampsa Hellenic Hotels which recently entered the shareholding structure of Regency Entertainment, said the project is sure to welcome diverse types of travelers to the area: corporate visitors, as Marousi is a business center; people traveling for medical/health reasons, as the area has many hospitals around; sports and music fans, as the Athens Olympic Sports Complex (OAKA), which hosts events, is in very close distance.
“The project in question concerns the creation of a versatile multi-purpose complex that revolves around hospitality and entertainment,” he said.
“These types of hubs offer a wide range of options and experiences to visitors such as cultural events and top dining options, while enhancing additional aspects of the tourism product, such as business tourism, in which Greece wants to invest,” Chomenidis added.
Commenting on the relocation of the Mont Parnes casino to the complex, which has been met with criticism and appeals by local bodies, Chomenidis clarified that the casino will not in any way be the main part of the project.
“This is a multifaceted investment that will be unrelated to the casino by 80 percent,” he said.
Marousi road network to see upgrade, Plans include reducing motor traffic congestion
The investment also includes significant interventions to the area’s road network so that Project VORIA, once complete, does not cause motor traffic congestion but will improve accessibility in the wider area.
In the plans presented, both Kifisias and Spyros Loui avenues will be widened. This will ease traffic:
– for cars moving from Spyros Loui Avenue to Kifisias Avenue in the direction towards Athens
– for cars moving from the downstream of Kifisias Avenue towards Athens.
As mentioned by transport expert Konstantinos Zekos, the interventions – which will also include improvement of traffic lights – will significantly ease access to the area, improve safety for pedestrians and will ease motor traffic in the area.
Road traffic projects will be licensed by an independent engineer by decision of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport.
In addition, the pedestrian bridge located on Kifisias Avenue near the premises of Project VORIA will be upgraded to include elevators.
It should also be mentioned that the project’s plans also provide a space for the creation of a metro station (OAKA station) included in the future extension plans of the new Line 4 (currently in the planning stage).
The Greek Environment Ministry recently gave the green light for the 250-million-euro investment to begin. The construction of Project VORIA will kick off once building permits are issued and is expected to run until 2027.