Businesses leasing beach space and providing customers services such as lounge chairs and umbrellas, have over-stepped a few laws while trying to beat out competition and get as many customers as possible.
The law in Greece stipulates that businesses need to ensure some 50 percent of beaches remain unoccupied by businesses for people who do not wish to pay a premium.
It appears that many beaches are not leaving half of their business-occupied beaches free for beach-goers to use without charges, as well as refusing to practice installing 5-meter gaps between amenities and the sea, or leaving a distance of 100 meters between one business and another.
Also until this year, many businesses at the beach have been throwing the rules out of the window and many have been operating without proper permits.
“This year, out of the 46 businesses, only eight do not have a permit,” Spata-Artemida Mayor Dimitris Markou, told Kathimerini.
Meanwhile, this is a drastic improvement to the statistics from the previous year that showed only 10 seasonal businesses of the 46 had the proper license to operate, according to the Mayor’s office.
Another recent effort to deter businesses from going against the laws is a recent crack down on inspections and fees of seasonal beach businesses.
“Municipal police officers are carrying out daily inspections and have already issued twenty-five 500 euro fines,” Markou said.
See all the latest news from Greece and the world at Greekreporter.com. Contact our newsroom to report an update or send your story, photos and videos. Follow GR on Google News and subscribe here to our daily email!
