Latraac is a skate bowl and social space in a drug-infested area of Athens - part of a new wave of creative projects transforming the city’s fortunes.
The sun is shining brightly on Kerameikos, a district in central Athens that has seen better days. Greek architect Zachos Varfis is leading us through tree-lined streets a short walk from Athens’ main tourist zone, past crumbling, sun-baked buildings daubed with colourful street art. We turn a corner and pass three Roma children playing with their toys on the pavement. It feels calm and friendly but at night the area is a no-go zone for sensible Athenians, being overrun by hard drug addicts and brothels.
Further down the street, Zachos stops at a tall and imposing gate, slides open the heavy metal door and ushers us in to his hidden oasis of skate. We’ve arrived at the nearly-completed Latraac, a cutting-edge skate bowl and social space that Zachos hopes will shake up the balance in Kerameikos. Its an exciting shoot of the slow-growing creative renaissance in Athens, as enterprising characters like Zachos find ways to work around Greece’s economic collapse and launch new grassroots projects – many of which, like Latraac, would have been impossible before the crisis.