The Kalymnos branch of SYRIZA–Progressive Alliance is calling for the immediate reversal of the decision abolishing the independent Architectural Council of the Kalymnos Regional Unit and transferring all its responsibilities to Kos.
Following the publication of Government Gazette Υ.Ο.Δ.Δ. 1399/04.09.2026, the Kalymnos Regional Unit—which comprises Kalymnos, Astypalaia, Leros, Lipsi, Patmos and Agathonisi—no longer has its own local and autonomous Architectural Council. Its responsibilities have now been transferred entirely to the corresponding body on Kos.
In a press release dated 8 September 2026, the local SYRIZA organisation described the development as “another blow” to the islands’ prospects for growth and economic independence. According to the statement, the decision by the Ministry of Environment and Energy had already been taken on 29 July 2026.
SYRIZA Kalymnos argues that implementing the decision will cause further delays in the approval of studies and the issuing of building permits. It also warns of additional inconvenience and financial costs for engineers, local residents and prospective investors.
The party organisation predicts serious consequences for construction activity and the islands’ local economies, particularly at a time when residents are already facing higher living costs and rapidly rising prices.
It also strongly criticises the government’s policy of merging public services, as well as what it describes as inaction by local authorities over the issue. According to the statement, the continued centralisation of services is weakening public structures and turning smaller islands into administrative “satellites.”
“Our islands are not ‘annexes’ to be merged,” the organisation declares, calling instead for genuine decentralisation, sustainable development and special measures to protect island communities and strengthen their local services.
The Kalymnos branch of SYRIZA–Progressive Alliance expressed its support for the Kalymnos Technical Chamber and the region’s engineering community in their campaign to have the decision overturned.
Specifically, it is demanding:
- The immediate cancellation of the ministerial decision and the related decision issued by the Decentralised Administration of the Aegean.
- Urgent action by both levels of local government—the Municipality and the Region—to staff and re-establish an independent Architectural Council for the Kalymnos Regional Unit.
The statement concludes by calling on municipal and regional authorities to defend the islands’ development and administrative autonomy and to reject solutions which, it argues, could undermine the region’s future.
