Save the balance of Athens – No tourist mall around the Acropolis

“We do not want the area around the Acropolis to become a tourist mall. We want it to retain its authenticity,” stressed Haris Doukas, Mayor of Athens, in a discussion within the framework of the Athens Democracy Forum 2025, (September 30 -October 3, 2025) which is being held under the auspices of the HE of the President of the Republic and organized by the Democracy & Culture Foundation, in collaboration with the Municipality of Athens and The New York Times.

From left: Jyoti Thottam, Senior Editor, The New York Times - Haris Doukas, Mayor of Athens - Bill de Blasio, former Mayor of New York

During a discussion that also included former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, Mr. Doukas referred to the problems facing local communities, such as the lack of affordable housing. “Many municipalities don’t have the money or the people to solve these problems, so they have to turn to the government,” he stressed, adding that trust and cooperation are required, as well as transparency regarding responsibilities: “Which body is responsible for what.”

Regarding the issue of overtourism, Mr. Doukas stressed that in some areas of Athens, the balance between tourists and residents has been lost. “We had to react to this,” he said, recalling that the Municipality stopped new short-term rentals (Airbnb) in the specific areas.

“We don’t want the area around the Acropolis to become a tourist mall. We want it to keep its authenticity,” he emphasized.

Referring to the hotels, he asked “what kind of new units do we want and, above all, how high should they be?” “We want to ensure that everyone can see the Acropolis,” he emphasized, referring to the relevant decisions of the City Council that place restrictions on the height of buildings.

“It is our duty to keep Athens alive and maintain the balance with tourists,” he repeated.

On the issue of social housing, in response to a question from coordinator Jyoti Thottam (Senior Editor, New York Times), he called on the government to give municipalities the responsibilities and resources to build apartments for vulnerable families. “Without decentralization of powers, we waste time, as the procedures are complicated, and this negatively affects social cohesion,” he stressed.

“The role of the Municipality is to ensure social cohesion, to ensure that no one is left behind,” Mr. Doukas further stated, expressing his solidarity with the mayors of Istanbul and Budapest, who – as he said – are facing threats and persecution by the authorities.

For his part, the former Mayor of New York, Bill de Blasio, noted that there is a crisis of social cohesion in all cities. “Social inequality is not sustainable,” he stressed, calling on leaders to recognize the problem. At the same time, he welcomed the role of cities in efforts to strengthen Democracy, where – as he said – a strong “bottom-up” mobility is developing. “This can be the starting point for the restoration of Democracy. Hope is found in the roots,” he stressed.

Elsewhere in the discussion, he called on governments to strengthen the decentralization of powers, so that the tools for solving problems are closer to citizens, at the local level. “We must create the demand for governments to do more,” he added, reiterating the importance and necessity of decentralization.

In fact, he noted that the problem is not the lack of money, but its distribution. “The money exists,” he stressed, calling for a movement to be created in favor of taxation of the rich, through which the creation of tens of thousands of affordable homes for middle- and working-class families can be financed.