OUR case of Ideal and Astor might spark more discussion on this center of Athens. In this case, the discussion is mainly about the two main central roads, University And Stadiumto which one could also add academy. From Omiro street down towards Omonia there is an atmosphere that can hardly be called attractive, and this is something not related to the work of cinemas.

This is a complex issue, multifactorial, with social, economic and political dimensions. He deals with eternal problems such as cachexia in business, poor lighting, lack of control, insecurity and lawlessness. The negative impression is exacerbated by the slovenliness of public spaces, inadequate infrastructure and the poor maintenance of most buildings.

True, the new value-based measure of the quality of life is pushing some citizens (mostly under 40 years old) to demand better conditions. And this is being done with a different intensity and pretentiousness than it would have been in 2010 or 2015.

The case of the Ideal and Astor, although it has a (partly) strong oppositional and anti-developmental dimension, is a case that forces us to view the Athenian situation in a comprehensive and responsible manner. And this obliges us to take into account the intangible weight of the cultural footprint, as well as the associative, multiplying power of collective experience. Cities develop under the influence of measurable and immeasurable factors. The atmosphere of the city is determined by what a person feels. What is served as an experience.

If we summarize what reigns after 18:00 at the University, at the Stadium and at the Academy from Homer to Omonia and Caningos, then desolation would be the most appropriate description.

The inhospitable urban environment does not attract pedestrians and consumers. Tourists accommodation in his hotels Omonia and his silk factory they are simply forced to walk along these central streets in order to reach the Constitution and rejoice (only there and up to Monastiraki or Kolonaki) the atmosphere of a normal metropolitan city.

antisocial attitude

Between them there are the following phenomena. Dirty abandoned buildings, entangled in slow bureaucratic procedures, give rise to a sense of disgust for the city. Storefronts are closed, ATMs are closed. Property and land confiscated without consequences by institutions that for half a century have been damaging the entire city and public interests with their anti-social attitude. I mean the corner of Katranzu, Aiolos and Stadio (an unacceptable situation for 42 years old) and the corner of Stadio and Americas with two dilapidated neoclassical buildings of the same age. Unthinkable situations for any civilized city.

On top of that, we have Klafmonos Square, a dead zone dedicated to crime. The Athens Trilogy: The National Library cut off from the life of the city, the University with those who sometimes consider it their own, the Academy of Athens (one of the most important neoclassical buildings in the world) girded with sheet metal for more than 10 years to protect itself from anti-social elements .

Cities develop under the influence of measurable and immeasurable factors. The atmosphere of the city is determined by what a person feels. What is served as an experience.

Between the University and the Academy are the steamboats of death. cancer of life. Without lighting, with the admission of everyone. Let the minister walk across the Riga Ferai Street at 10 pm and tell about his impressions.

Next door, the Archaeological Society, with its glorious history, is forced to barricade the entrance to protect itself from vandalism. All of this is happening at the same time that, a little further on, the constant reminder of the disability of this society, Atticon and Apollo, were forgotten like fossils. Shells abandoned in a dry city.

Interlocutors

And yet in this central area, that is, in the heart of Athens, a number of organizations, banks, enterprises, institutions, bodies coexist, which should also be invited to discuss social responsibility. Athens will be saved by those who live there every day. And all of the above should become interlocutors.

In this agreement to bring life back to the main streets of Athens towards the Athenian Trilogy and Omonia, one would like to have a social agreement. General recognition that the cause of Athens concerns us all. In addition, there are many investments already made and more to be done.

Many of us would like to see at the table for the exchange of experience and ideas, for making proposals, for the possibility for each contracting party to overcome this whole backbone of society and economy, which is based on the Stadium, the University, the Academy.

That is, the Bank of Greece, large banks (Alfa Bank pioneered the sculpture protection program, and the Piraeus Bank owns Megaro Serpieri, the former Agricultural Bank), department stores and historical enterprises, large hotels, trilogy noble institutes, the Archaeological Society, the German Archaeological Institute, Goethe Institute, Catholic Church, Ophthalmological Clinic, Educational Society, Council of State, National Theater in Rex, Historical and Ethnological Society of Greece in the Old Parliament, Vouros-Euftaxia Foundation, Foundation of State Engineers and Contractors (TMEDE) in Klatmonos Square, Philological Society of Parnassus, The Athens Club and of course the Municipality of Athens, the EOT and the relevant ministries. We are all responsible for Athens.

“Cultural Boxes”.

Emilios Harby

President of the Republic Katerina Sakellaropoulou In a rather extensive post on social networks, he spoke about the danger of Athens gradually losing its memory, noting that with the loss of such halls as Astor, Ideal and Iris, “we are losing the mysticism of the hall, the charm of the collective experience. We are losing spaces that are not just cinema halls, but arks of culture.”

And he continues: “A city, every city is a living organism that is in constant transformation, just like the people who inhabit it. However, it is always looking for its constants. His guidelines. And these are not only her monuments. These are its houses, cafes, cinemas and theatres, gardens, squares, everything that gives the city its identity, everything that contains the history of people, their aspirations, passions and expectations, what supports its inhabitants.”

Director George Lanthimosfor his part, with a video message, he also supported the historic halls, describing their value on a social and cultural level as a matter of course and asking the authorities to do everything necessary to declare them preserved “and continue the work they provide.” many generations of people.”