A discrepancy between two building density ratios raises questions over the legality of part of the hotel expansion permit. If the additional floor space has been built, it could constitute unauthorised construction, with potential consequences under Greek planning law.

Two different building density ratios in the same planning application and more than 500 square metres of construction exceeding the permitted limit are among the central findings of a 90-page report by Greece’s National Transparency Authority (NTA) into the White Coast hotel development on the Cycladic island of Milos, details of which Proto Thema is publishing today.

The report identifies a series of irregularities in the approval process for a major expansion of the luxury hotel complex in Mytakas. One finding stands out: while the topographical survey specified a building density ratio of 0.18, the site coverage plan used a ratio of 0.20. According to the Authority, this resulted in 502.91 square metres of floor space above the permitted limit.

The discrepancy has significant implications under planning legislation. The NTA’s finding raises questions about the legality of that part of the building permit and, if the additional floor space has already been constructed, whether it constitutes unauthorised building work subject to the penalties and other measures provided for under Greek law.

Scrutiny of the preliminary approval

Beyond the excess floor space itself, the report examines how the discrepancy escaped scrutiny during the administrative approval process.

According to the Authority, officials reviewing the preliminary approval failed to carry out the required cross-check between the planning figures recorded in the administrative decision and those contained in the site coverage plan and technical report.

As a result, the inconsistency went undetected, and the preliminary approval issued on 28 November 2023 subsequently formed the basis for the revision of the building permit.

The National Transparency Authority describes the review conducted before the issuance of Preliminary Approval No. 875170/28.11.2023 as inadequate. It has called on the mayor of Milos to exercise his disciplinary powers in relation to Elisavet Chorianopoulou, a Grade B civil engineer who was then head of the municipality’s Building Service.

One particularly noteworthy aspect of the case is that Chorianopoulou subsequently took up the position of Deputy Regional Governor for Environment and Spatial Planning in the South Aegean Region.

Her appointment raises questions because, according to the NTA’s findings, the former head of the Milos planning department had failed to carry out the required checks adequately before moving into a senior regional role overseeing environmental protection and spatial planning.

The responsibilities of that position are particularly significant for the Cyclades, where intensive tourism development and growing construction pressures have placed land use and environmental protection at the centre of public debate.

How the investigation began

The Transparency Authority’s report marks the latest development in a lengthy series of inspections, legal challenges and administrative interventions concerning the White Coast development.

The Municipality of Milos recently stated that it had requested an investigation into the hotel’s planning approvals as early as March 2025, just one month after revelations about construction activity at Sarakiniko brought wider concerns over building development on the island into the spotlight.

The municipality’s request covered the administrative decisions relating to the five-star White Coast hotel, the legal status of the public access road serving the property and the construction work then under way.

In December 2025, the municipality also referred the case directly to the National Transparency Authority.

By early 2026, as the controversy intensified, Greece’s Ministry of Environment and Energy had intervened, referring the matter to the independent authority for an investigation into the legality of the building permit.

Council of State halts construction

The dispute also reached Greece’s highest administrative court, the Council of State.

In January 2026, the court issued a temporary order suspending the environmental approval granted to the project by the Decentralised Administration of the Aegean in August 2024, as well as construction work authorised under the relevant building permit.

The legal challenge had been brought by the Municipality of Milos, the Hellenic Society for the Environment and Cultural Heritage, and local residents. They contested both the project’s environmental approval and the revision of the building permit that had authorised the large-scale hotel expansion.

Their appeal centred on three principal issues.

First, the applicants argued that environmental approval had been granted without the necessary spatial planning framework, allegedly in breach of Article 24 of the Greek Constitution, which provides for environmental protection.

Second, they challenged whether the property met the legal requirements for development, arguing that it lacked frontage onto a legally recognised public road. This has become a crucial consideration for construction outside designated town planning zones in Greece.

The third issue concerned the character of the surrounding area and the scale of development that should be permitted there.

As Milos still lacks an approved local spatial plan, the applicants maintained that the environmental licensing procedure should have taken into consideration the closest available planning framework, namely the draft Spatial Organisation Plan for the area.

Several months later, in Decision No. 69/2026, the Council of State’s Suspensions Committee temporarily halted most of the construction work associated with the expansion.

The suspended works included 11 new buildings, 127 private swimming pools serving individual guest rooms, and one additional communal swimming pool.

However, the court permitted work to continue on three new buildings where construction was already at an advanced stage, alongside certain interventions involving existing buildings and essential infrastructure.

The suspension was intended to remain in force pending a decision on the main application for annulment.

The judicial proceedings, however, ultimately took a different course.

On 1 October, it emerged that the Council of State had dismissed the application on the grounds that it had been filed after the statutory deadline.

Consequently, Greece’s highest administrative court did not examine the substantive arguments concerning spatial planning, access to a legally recognised public road or the permissible intensity of tourism development in the area.

The dismissal therefore did not amount to a judicial determination on the merits of those issues.

From 27 rooms to 125

Behind the administrative and legal dispute lies a hotel investment whose scale expanded considerably over a relatively short period.

The original building permit, issued in 2019, covered a hotel with 27 rooms and 54 beds.

Successive revisions followed, initially increasing its capacity to 58 rooms and 99 beds. Under the 2024 expansion plans, the development was enlarged to 125 rooms and 271 beds.

The overall project covered approximately 30,000 square metres of land and provided for 130 swimming pools – 127 private and three communal – alongside a helipad, restaurants and other facilities.

In just a few years, White Coast evolved from a 27-room hotel into a substantially larger 125-room resort complex.

Following the strong local opposition and court proceedings surrounding its expansion, the development is now back under scrutiny.

This time, the central question is not simply the scale of the investment, but how its building density figures were checked, approved and incorporated into the permits that allowed the project to proceed.