A gift to transform the face of Athens
A memorandum signed last week via teleconference by Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis and representatives of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation in New York marks a turning point for the city of Athens. The foundation’s gift to the city of a new National Library and National Opera House, along with a Culture and Education Park on the site of the old racecourse at the Faliron Delta, is about to become a reality. The Greek state, in a reflex action that is by no means its usual mode of operation, has risen to the occasion by accepting a gift that will change the face of the city’s seafront, most likely bearing the signature of a major international architectural firm. Foundation board member Andreas Drakopoulos, one of the co-signers of the memorandum along with Spyros Niarchos, is the administrator of the foundation’s legacy and a board member of the New York Public Library. In this interview, the first time he has spoken publicly about the plan, he said discussions would be held with the world’s top architectural firms and noted that there were no plans for the foundation to be involved in the institutions after completion, projected for 2015, without entirely ruling out the possibility. How did the idea come about? We’ll have to go back to 1999 when members of the foundation visited the National Library. An initial discussion was held with the then director and we started thinking about it. A more systematic approach began in 2004. The following year at the New York Public Library we held a small conference on the future of public libraries in connection with new technologies. We had invited library directors from all over the world, from the Far East and from Europe. The conference sessions got us thinking again about the National Library. Things developed differently with regard to the National Opera House, where the input from Professor Eftychios Voridis, a member of our advisory committee and former president of the Opera House’s board of directors, was decisive. He was concerned that we should do something to help the opera company find a permanent home. It was more by chance that the two issues were combined. So it was natural to raise the idea of doing both buildings together. When we were looking for a site and the old racetrack was suggested, the idea of a park was raised. Three projects in one, that is. Precisely. Personally I believe that the park is as important as the two buildings. Living in New York, and seeing every day what a park means to a city, and being aware of Athens’s needs in this area, we decided to proceed with a unified plan that included all three. For us, the park is as important as the new library and opera house. At the moment there are several projects of a similar nature under way – in Miami for example, they are creating something similar to our project, that is, museums in which everything is combined with large green spaces, to create what is called in international terminology, «family destinations.» Once the plan assumed the form it now has, that is, when we knew exactly what we wanted to do, we began talks with the prime minister’s office, whose part in this we would like to emphasize. We decided on a site and then announced the project last October. The point is that what we are trying to do has nothing to do with politics or with business. We do not expect to get absolutely anything out of this project. It is a national issue. How are you dealing with Greek bureaucracy? There have been objective difficulties, but we have to be fair. It is a complicated project and given the pace of Greek government, things are moving quite fast. Are there major obstacles ahead? There are obstacles and there will be more of them right up to the last minute. I repeat that everyone is helping. We are talking about a huge project with an enormous budget. There could be a dispute over the site itself. Once you have a large space that has been empty for many years, some people are certain to complain. It is a great change. There are no zoning problems. In any case, we prefer to proceed slowly but surely. Will the foundation have exclusive control of the project? As you know, we are paying for all phases of the project. We will hand it over to the Greek state fully completed, that is our commitment. Our only demand is that we have sole control of the project so that it is carried out to our satisfaction. We are getting the best people available, both for the National Opera House and the National Library. We are looking for advisers and we want the views of Greek environmentalists. We have already been in contact with representatives of both the institutions. Will the architectural competition be open or closed? We have not reached a final decision. According to the schedule, we will have chosen the architect, or architects, by spring of next year. I say that because there may be one architect for the library and another for the park. We are trying to find the best in the field. Rather surprisingly, there are not many people around the world who design and carry out projects of this nature. There are some very famous names, but there are not many of them. We will not have an open competition because these do not always attract the better-known names. Will there be two separate buildings or just one unified complex for both opera and library? We want to build two separate buildings, unless there is a very interesting architectural proposal that we feel we have to consider. When will it be completed? If all goes according to plan, we will be finished in 2015. But remember, you know what happens even when you start building a house and the kind of obstacles you come across. There are rumors that the National Opera is aiming to rival the Athens Concert Hall. Is that so? I’ll let others be the judge of that. In my opinion, the issue doesn’t exist. When you have a very good hotel in a town, there is nothing wrong with building a second very good hotel. It is to the town’s benefit. First of all, it isn’t the same thing, they don’t serve the same purpose. Therefore I believe they can complement each other. You said you will hand over the building to the Greek state and will not be involved in any way with the organization of the two institutions. Do you believe that the Greek state can be trusted to do the job properly? We have certain concerns. But we are not gods, we can’t know everything or do everything. Where we can help is on the financial side and that is because we have the experience. Our joint agenda is that we are doing something to benefit the Greek people. As to how the project will proceed, how it will be managed, that is all up to the Greek government. I think it will be a major test for our society. Something big is being offered and has to be managed properly. So do you rule out any possibility of changing your policy in midstream and having the foundation take over management? One should never say never, but we couldn’t even if we wanted to. We simply don’t have the know-how or the experience. But individual actions for the good of the project, such as looking for an experienced and capable manager, or to training staff, yes, we could do these sorts of things.
