PLACE – HISTORY

Neohorion is 4 Km away from the cross-road with the provincial road from Kalamata to Areopolis, close to Stoupa. It is one of the most recent settlements of Mani and it was first inhabited at the end of the 17th century (about 1680) when the Venetian Administration of the region wanted to populate the area by transferring some of the residents of Platsa. It was mainly inhabited by the residents of Nomitsi who were installed in houses constructed from building materials taken from the ruins of Lefktron. During the next decade other settlers, from Milea, were installed and absorbed into the existing community.

POPULATION – OCCUPATION

Neohorion is the largest of the three main settlements of the Municipality of Lefktron (the others being Lefktron and Stoupa).  During the last census there were 1108 registered inhabitants (Neohorio:  308, Lefktron: 171, and Stoupa 629) of the area. The main occupations of the areaΥs population are olive production and involvement in the tourist business (rooms for rent, restaurants, disco, etc.) because many tourists come to the Municipality of Lefktron.

TRANSPORT – ROADS – RURAL ROADS:

The main method of transport is by cross-country bus service. Most of the rural roads were constructed during the years 1990 – 1998 by the elected

Council of that period. The Neohorio – Proastio road has been opened up in the hope that it will become an inter-municipal road, but it is still only half-finished.  Only about 1 km of the total length has been asphalted. Construction of the road connecting Pyros – Neohorio – Agios Nikolaos has come to a halt.  It is still in the opening-up phase.  During the last decade the region has seen a remarkable amount of road development. All the roads of Neohorio have been asphalted or covered with cement. We refer to the internal roads and to the road from Neohorio to Kato Kampo, Marmoutsa, Agio Panteleimona and Gonatsa. These were also opened up and covered by ballast. The road to Kampo, north of Neohorio was also opened up and covered with ballast; it was intended to open it up as far as Agio Spiridona. As for the Neohorio -Stoupa road, day after day it becomes more dangerous because the damaged asphalt is a trap for vehicles.

WATER  SUPPLY:

The ex  Community of Neohorio (now the Municipal district) is the only community in the whole of Greece which has created a Communal Enterprise of Watering and Drainage, established in 1994. This was essential for the development of the area because it has solved the main problem of the water supply of the region.  The two drillings in the places Nerospila and Globistes, the extending of the electric network for the electrification of the installation, the two tanks and the hygienic installations facilitate the protection of the environment and the improvement of local life. The drainage installation was an important infrastructure. This big effort  to promote the  study of the project Τdrainage – biological waste collectionΥ was taking a step , when the ΤYPEHODEΥ- Ministry of Environment- Urban and Public Works, undertook fees of the edition  for the cadastral map which was made since 1995 within the framework of the community with   responsibility for the study.

As this kind of development is only appropriate for regions with more than 5,000 residents, the project did not come to fruition, but this may still be a possibility for the future.

CULTURE- BUILDING CONSTRUCTION – RESTORATION:

Although the budget of the Community was very restricted, they still managed to achieve much for the first time, especially for an area as small as Neohorio. Firstly, they took care to improve the cultural and the social life of the village, establishing for this purpose a Cultural Centre. They offered a programmer for the teaching of the German language to the children of the region. The Youth and Athletic Organization of the region, the Cemeteries and others were some of the local innovations. The restoration of the ruined buildings (the old olive mill Katsigianni), the construction of the multiple-use hall and the Cultural Centre, remain at the same stage of completion that they were left in by the previous council. The restoration of Evagelistria Churchyard, the planting of trees going up towards Neohorio, and after the village, the construction of the basketball and volleyball pitches with the stands and the electricity supply, etc. are some samples of the multiple activities during those 8 years, which have left their mark. Today, there is a lack of action and of sensibility, weak management and minimal maintenance of what they inherited.

Antonios Roumaneas