It was 1988 when ELLET adopted saving, restoring and reopening the Tatoi estate as one of its goals.
- 2000: ELLET financed the first architectural survey and the photographic documentation of all the buildings (except the palace), a work which it handed over to the Ephorate of Modern Monuments with a request for the Estate to be designated as a protected area.
- 2003: as a result of this action, ELLET succeeded in persuading the Ministry of Culture to declare a large part of the Estate, including about 40 buildings, as a protected area. In his way, the 42,000 acre Estate was saved in its entirety and as a whole, despite the fact that, at the time, there were numerous proposals to divide it up.
- Throughout this long struggle, the main driver behind ELLET’s efforts to save the Tatoi Estate was, and still is, the distinguished historian Costas Stamatopoulos, former ELLET President (2014-2017) and since then its vice president.
- 2013: ELLET proposed to EUROPA NOSTRA, which it represents in Greece, that the Tatoi Estate should be included in the “7 Most Endangered” programme – the list of European Monuments which are at greatest risk. The programme is a joint project by the European Union, Europa Nostra and the European Investment Bank – EIB Institute.
- 2013: when EUROPA NOSTRA celebrated its 50th anniversary at the Herodion Theatre, ELLET proposed allocating the proceeds of the event so that the first European feasibility study of the estate as a public good could be carried out based on European standards which encourage the cooperation and participation of private entities. The current feasibility study of the Estate was based on this study.
ELLET believes that Tatoi as it is today, without further construction activity taking place, and once the existing buildings have been properly restored, can be profitable and cover all its operational costs if it has an efficient management structure and is properly managed. The estate can become a real cultural and natural breathing space for the people of Attica, and also for visitors from all over the world.
