The mayor of Spata–Artemida, Dimitris Markou, has appointed the veterinary surgeon Georgios Kasimis as an unpaid special adviser for the organisation and operation of the Municipal Veterinary Clinic. Decision 716/2026 was signed on 30 September, published on the ‘Diafania’ transparency portal on Monday 5 October, and is valid for two years, until 30 September 2028. The adviser will make recommendations regarding day-to-day operations, staffing and the procurement of medical supplies, medicines and equipment. The post is unpaid, carries no decision-making powers and does not constitute an employment relationship with the Municipality.
Prompted by this decision, we checked on Diaugia to see how much it costs to run the veterinary clinic today.
Vets through the Attica Development Agency
The veterinary clinic is not staffed by municipal employees. In May 2025, the Municipality signed a programme agreement (28893/08-05-2025) with Attica Development SA-AOTA, entitled ‘Provision of administrative support for quality of life’. The documents note that the relevant department of the Municipality had stated that it was unable to meet the requirements. In the budget, the expenditure is listed as ‘operational support services for the municipal veterinary clinic’.
In June 2026, the Municipal Committee approved the first amendment to the contract (Decision 381/2026). The budget rose from 226,076.80 to 294,557.04 euros including VAT, an increase of 68,480.24 euros, and is funded entirely from the municipality’s own resources.
The annex to the amendment sets out where the money is allocated over a period of 31 months. The two vets cost €1,908 per month each, for 27 and 30 months, totalling €108,756. The two assistants cost €1,484 per month, for 30 and 28 months respectively, totalling €86,072. Coordination and administrative support cost €42,718. The total is €237,546 plus VAT. In Article 6 of the amendment, the duration is stated as ‘thirty-one (31) years’, whilst the annex and the budget relate to 31 months.
Medicines: 37,000 euros in two months
Medicines and supplies are purchased separately. On 26 June, the mayor signed two direct award contracts with the same company, DIMITRIOS N. TSOKANOS S.A.: €18,526.68 for the Municipal Unit of Spata and €18,471.09 for the Municipal Unit of Artemida, totalling €36,997.77. The contracts were signed on 7 July for a period of two months, until 6 September.
As at 30 September, €34,948.40 had been paid: the full amount of the Artemida contract, in three instalments, and €16,477.31 from the Spata contract. The latter was granted an extension to the deadline for the delivery of materials on 9 September. We have not yet found any new procurement notices for the coming months on the Diafania transparency portal.
What the documents don’t say
None of the documents state where the veterinary clinic is located, what its opening hours are, or whether it treats residents’ pets or only strays. The documents link it to the management of stray animals. In June, a five-member committee was set up to monitor the operational programme for stray companion animals. To catch stray animals, the council is preparing a new contract worth 37,088 euros, whilst for the reporting platform for strays 31,000 euros were paid.
Source: Municipality of Spata–Artemida, Mayor’s Decision No. 716/2026 (Diafania, 5 October 2026); 1st amendment to programme agreement 28893/08-05-2025 with the Attica Development Agency (Diaugia 26/06/2026); Mayor’s Decisions 469/2026, 470/2026 and 665/2026; payment orders dated 20 July, 4 September and 30 September 2026.
