The historical street of stove makers in Komotini to be renovated

Renovation works will be carried out on Kanari Street, which is the commercial centre of Komotini and popularly known as Sobacılar Street.

The contract for the project prepared by the Municipality of Komotini under the name of "Redevelopment of Kanari Street and Surrounding Streets in the Historic Trade Centre of Komotini" was signed.

The project was signed by the mayor Yannis Garanis and Dimitris Papadimou on behalf of the contractor company undertaking the project, during a ceremony held at the office of the Mayor of Komotini on Tuesday morning, 16 January.

Deputy Mayor for Construction, Planning, Town Planning and Spatial Planning Dimitris Karastavrou and Head of the Technical Services Directorate Despina Passos were also present at the signing ceremony.

The budget of the project, for which the Municipality of Komotini is the implementing organisation, is 1.500.000 euros including the value added tax.

The budget of the project is funded by the "Other strategic interventions" programme under pillar 1 of the Green Transition in Axis 1.2 of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan.

The deadline for the completion of the project was set as twelve months from the day the contract was signed.

With this special project, the historic Kanari Street (Sobacılar Street), the commercial centre of Komotini, and the surrounding streets will be renovated.

The redevelopment includes the improvement of commercial streets by widening the pavements to the maximum possible level and keeping the road surface to a minimum width of 3.50 metres (on Kanari Street), with some reserved parking, loading and unloading areas.

In addition, the reconstruction includes the preservation of the traditional granite paving stones on the road surface and the replacement of the white paving slabs with Kavala paving stones, ceramic paving stones, marble, while Kanari Street will be transformed into a light traffic road after the new works.

The project also includes the renovation of Vasileos Pavlou Street, Bakalbasi, Kriton, Androutsou, Kilkis and Ermou streets, replacing the pavements with Kavala cobblestones, concrete kerbs with marble and replacing the road surface.

The dimensions of the pavements shall be widened to at least 1.50 metres from the building boundary where possible in order to allow access for people with disabilities, visually impaired, etc.

Kanari Street is particularly well known to tourists as it is home to various iron workshops, commercial shops, health-related shops and also the New Mosque.

Speaking at the ceremony organised for the signing of the project, Mayor of Komotini Yannis Garanis said the following about the renovation works to be carried out:

"Kanari Street and its surroundings are the reference points of our historical place and the cultural centre of Komotini. This special project will improve the daily life of the professionals who have been operating in the area for many years and will also create a beautiful image for the residents of the area, as well as for the visitors who come to discover the traditional corners of our city. We continue the aesthetic improvement of the centre of the Municipality of Komotini, respecting the tradition, but also making the city functional by creating accessibility conditions for people with disabilities. Step by step, the cultural richness of our region is being revealed in a way that is worthy of its history and its people."