Contracts for the completion of the gastronomy school in the mountain community of Moniatis are expected to be signed in the coming days, after the Moniatis community council awarded the project to J. Mantis Construction.

Moniatis’ community leader Charalambos Konstantinidis told Entrepreneurial Limassol, the periodical of the Limassol Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Evel), that the contract value stands at around €590,000.

Beyond the construction phase, the local authority is already looking ahead.

According to Konstantinidis, the goal is for the Gastronomy School to operate under the Ministry of Education and to be integrated into the Post-Secondary Institutes of Vocational Education and Training.

In that context, the Director of Secondary Technical and Vocational Education at the Ministry of Education, Elias Markatzis, confirmed that discussions with the community leader have already taken place.

He said it was agreed that a preliminary meeting would be held in December, while Konstantinidis added that Markatzis is expected to visit Moniatis middle of December for an on-site discussion.

The initiative builds on existing experience, as the Ministry of Education has been operating a Winemaking School at the Omodos Technical School for the past six years, a project previously presented by Entrepreneurial Limassol.

The project’s path has not been without hurdles. A tender for the Gastronomy School was initially announced last July but was not awarded, as only one offer was submitted and was deemed excessively high.

Following that development, certain works were removed to make the project more attractive to contractors, before it was re-announced and successfully awarded.

At the same time, the community council is promoting a broader development plan centred on the creation of a Gastronomic Park, which will incorporate the school itself.

Konstantinidis said the plans include a popular fruit market, a restaurant for visitors and a small laboratory-canteen within the school’s premises. In addition, a visitable area with aromatic plants and a botanical garden is envisaged, allowing gastronomy to be combined with both experience and education.

Alongside these developments, the state is planning the creation of a Park and Ride facility in the area of the Gastronomic Park, aimed at improving accessibility for residents and visitors.

According to the community leader, the process is progressing at a satisfactory pace.

However, the planned location of a transfer station in the area is expected to bring certain adjustments to the master plan of the Gastronomy Park.

These changes, he said, will be finalised once the school’s building facilities are completed.

Commissioner for Mountainous Communities Charalambos Christofinas confirmed that the Park and Ride project is currently before the Department of Public Works, which will be responsible for preparing the relevant designs.

He estimated that the design phase will be completed in the first half of 2026, clearing the way for the project’s announcement.

In the meantime, efforts are underway to introduce temporary solutions. Christofinas said discussions are ongoing for the Limassol bus company Emel to operate a transfer station in the area using provisional facilities.

“We are trying to find a space in the area that can be operated immediately,” he said, noting that the full Park and Ride project is expected to take around two years to complete.

Separately, the community council has also included the reconstruction and maintenance of the Trimiklini double bridge among its priority upgrade projects.

Konstantinidis said landscaping works are already underway on the road leading to the bridge, which falls within Moniatis’ administrative boundaries, adding that the project is nearing completion.

At the same time, preparations are advancing for the maintenance and enhancement of the bridge itself.

The community council has contracted architects to emphasise the monument, in consultation with the department of antiquities and the department of town planning’s preservation sector, while a broader regeneration plan is also being prepared with input from the department of public works.

Christofinas, however, noted that the reconstruction and upgrading of the double bridge has not yet fully matured as a project, explaining that communities have been asked to submit the necessary plans before it can proceed further.