Notabilia - Buildings - The Cheateau Of Rizoupolis

We wonder whether it is really pure chance that the events leading to the demolition of the Tower of Rizoupolis duplicate those leading to the demolition of the Fix Factory.

"Villa Akrivi" ({Ακριβή} = Precious), a most remarkable building and a singular example of architecture in Athens in the period between the two World Wars, has been demolished.

It was the well-known Tower of Rizoupoulis that stood beside the electric railway line between "Ano Patisia/Agia Varvara" {Άνω Πατήσια/Αγία Βαρβάρα} station [The Station] and Perissos {Περισσός} station. All that can be seen today is the remains of the building piled up in a heap of dirt and rubble. The demolition crews managed to obliterate every reminder of its history.

The villa had stood empty and forlorn for years. The last big earthquake, in 1999, constituted the final blow. The building was marked with a "red cross", indicating that it would have to be demolished. The fact that it was not a listed building made the process easier.

There were some romantics who claimed that with a little good will on the part of the authorities and the help of modern technology, the impressive tower could still be in its place, dominating the area. But their voices were not heard and the monument has gone.

The Tower of Rizoupolis was perhaps one of the few romantic relics that lent colour to the aesthetic image of the city with its tower-like upper edges that were reminiscent of the Belle-Epoque.

In addition to this, the tower at 154 Irakleous {Ηρακλέους} avenue, was tightly bound up with the history of the area. The whole area came to be named after its owner, the great landowner Ioannis Rizopoulos {Ιωάννης Ριζόπουλος}.

The last of Ioannis Rizopoulos' descendents being unable to repair the damage and reconstruct the tower, the issue was placed before the Central Board for Contemporary Monuments, in July 2001. The Board's decision was as follows: "According to expert opinion, the building is deemed a historical monument that is to be preserved because it is a characteristic example dating from early in the previous century, is a landmark of the Patisia {Πατήσια} area and is closely entwined in the memories of the residents of the area".

In spite of this, the Board reconvened a few months later so as to take into consideration the verbal instruction of the Minister of Culture Evangkelos Venizelos {Ευάγγελος Βενιζέλος} for re-examination of the issue, as well as the protest against the decision lodged by Ioannis Rizopoulos' other heirs.

The Ministry of Culture immediately issued a decision which put an end to the matter by revoking its listing as a building for preservation on the grounds of its poor condition, which, according to the decision, was such that any reconstruction work would so alter the building's original features as to make it irreconcilable with an architectural monument.

So, the Ministry of Culture along with the Ministry of Public Works and the Environment, and the Municipality, callously revoked the decision to put a preservation order on the building because it was dilapidated and its demolition would probably prove "socially beneficial" in the long term (in this case the benefit was that the owners could construct a block of flats).

So Villa Akrivi was lost and with it went the memories belonging to the Athenian district of Rizoupolis.