The importance of efendibey urban renewal project within the urban development process of niĞde efendibey kentsel döNÜŞÜm projesiNİn niĞDE’Nİn kentsel geliŞİm sürecindeki Önemi

THE IMPORTANCE OF EFENDİBEY URBAN RENEWAL PROJECT WITHIN THE URBAN DEVELOPMENT PROCESS OF NİĞDE

EFENDİBEY KENTSEL DÖNÜŞÜM PROJESİNİN NİĞDE’NİN KENTSEL GELİŞİM SÜRECİNDEKİ ÖNEMİ

AKÇAÖZOĞLU, Semiha¹; GÖKÇE, Mehmedi Vehbi¹

¹ Niğde University, Faculty of Architecture, Department of Architecture, 51240

ABSTRACT

The zones included in the expanding cities of the developed and underdeveloped countries have been facing a renewal process as a result of new spatial distributions. This fact assigns renewal works as one of the most important issues of the local authorities. Recently, municipalities have been producing city renewal projects with various scopes and goals, aimed at gaining a position within the globe. However, most of the projects eventually fail in reaching their aimed objectives, due to having been prepared without considering the local characteristics. These projects can only accomplish their objectives in case they look into the cities from a holistic perspective and deal with the social, physical and economic components of the sustainable development as a whole. Because each city is “sui generis”. For this reason, city renewals should not be considered as an operation carried out independently on the zones of the cities but it should be remembered that renewals affect the overall city from the point of view of the quality of life.

Municipality of Niğde, as the local authority of a city, its roots dates back to far old times, has started a slaving to implement the “Urban Renewal Project of Efendibey District”. The project covers an urban area of 1,210,000 m². Within the framework of the renewal, 6,000 apartments of various sizes, 240,000 m² recreation areas, 120,000 m² urban parklands, 2 new and 3 to-be-preserved mosques; cultural centers, shopping centers and business centers, health care centers, open sports grounds, a lycé building, amphitheatres, two elementary school buildings, and squares are going to be constructed. The project is expected to surve the purpose of transforming the chosen zone into a more attractive space from the point of view of living, working and investment.

The purpose of this study, is to investigate the dynamics of urban renewal projects within the framework of social, cultural, economic, technologic and special points of view and to study the possible effects of the “Urban Renewal Project of Efendibey District”, which is the first urban renewal project of the city through its history, on the municipal development of the City of Niğde. The Project would be a story of success from the aspect of sustainable development of Niğde, in case it could reach the goals such as increasing urban quality of life, ensuring sustainability of the historic texture, enlivening economic life and ensuring participation at all levels. As a result, it is concluded that The Project will economically, culturally and socially contribute to the city besides it will also bring in a new perspective to physical planning of Niğde.

Keywords: Niğde, city, urban renewal, physical planning.

ÖZET:

Günümüzde gelişmiş ve gelişmekte olan ülkelerin büyüyen kentleri içinde kalan alanlar yeni mekânsal dağılımlar sonucunda bir yenileme süreci ile yüz yüze kalmaktadır. Bu durum kentsel yenilemeyi yerel yönetimlerin ve planlamanın en önemli problemlerinden birisi haline getirmektedir. Son yıllarda kent yönetimleri küresel dünyada yer edinebilmek amacıyla farklı kapsam ve hedeflerle kentsel dönüşüm projeleri üretmektedirler. Ancak, çoğu proje yerel özellikler dikkate alınmadan hazırlandığı için başarılı olamamaktadır. Kentsel dönüşüm projeleri, kente bütüncül bir bakış açısı ile bakmaları ve sürdürülebilir iyileşmenin sosyal, fiziksel ve ekonomik bileşenlerini bir bütün olarak ele almaları durumunda amacına ulaşabilmektedir. Çünkü her kent kendine özgüdür. Bu nedenle kentsel dönüşüm yalnızca kent parçaları özelinde yapılan bir operasyon gibi görülmemeli, kentin tümünü yaşam kalitesi açısından etkilediği gözden kaçırılmamalıdır.

Niğde Belediyesi, geçmişi çok eski yıllara dayanan bir kentin yerel yönetimi olarak “Efendibey Mahallesi Kentsel Dönüşüm Projesi”ni hayata geçirmek için bir çalışma başlatmıştır. 121 hektarlık bir kentsel alanı kapsayan proje, 6 etaptan oluşmaktadır. Dönüşüm çerçevesinde, sekiz farklı büyüklük ve tipte 6.000 adet konut, 240.000 m² park ve rekreasyon alanı, 2 adet cami, alışveriş merkezi, kültür merkezi ve ticaret merkezi, butik otel, sağlık ocağı, açık spor alanları, lise, amfiteatrlar, 2 adet ilköğretim okulu ve meydanlar inşa edilecektir. Ayrıca bölgede bulunan üç adet cami ve bazı taş evler koruma kapsamına alınmıştır. Proje, seçilen bölgeyi yaşamak, çalışmak ve yatırım yapmak gibi açılardan daha çekici bir hale getirmek adına önemli bir ihtiyaca karşılık verecektir.

Bu çalışmanın amacı; fiziksel, ekonomik, sosyal ve kültürel bakış açıları çerçevesinde kentsel dönüşümün dinamiklerini araştırmak ve Efendibey Kentsel Dönüşüm Projesinin Niğde’nin kentsel gelişimi üzerindeki etkileri üzerinde değerlendirmeler yapmaktır. Proje, kentsel yaşam kalitesini artırmak, tarihi dokunun sürdürülebilirliğini sağlamak, ekonomik yaşamı canlandırmak ve her ölçekte katılımı sağlamak gibi hedeflere ulaşabildiği takdirde Niğde kentinin sürdürülebilir gelişimi açısından başarılı bir örnek olacaktır. Sonuç olarak, Proje’nin kentin fiziksel planlamasına yeni bir perspektif kazandırmasının yanı sıra, ekonomik, kültürel ve sosyal açılardan da kente olumlu katkılar sağlayacağı düşünülmektedir.

Anahtar Kelimeler: Niğde, kent, kentsel dönüşüm, fiziksel planlama.

1. 
   INTRODUCTION
   

Urban renewal is described as a comprehensive vision and act that proposes solutions to city issues and is aimed at providing long lasting solutions to economic, physical, social and environmental questions of a zone which has undergone alteration (Thomas, 2003: 15). Urban renewal projects, from point of view of the citizens, mean a new way of life, new infrastrucure opportunities and new environmental acquisitions while they offer a positive public opinion for municipalities (Kütük İnce, 2006: 24).

Fundemental elements that should be present in a city are properly designed spaces, environment integrated with the nature, and preserved cultural and historic heritage (Lynch, 1960: 3). From this point of view, newly produced urban areas’ inclusion of urban renewal components, taking natural characteristics of a city into consideration, and providing a city with sustainability of its position within its historic process are the elements that would contribute to the success of the renewal works. Renewal projects should be planned and implemented considering social, cultural, historic, economic, functional and administrative features of the area in question. Within this framework, arises the necessity of designing any such a project with a participatory planning approach.
Renewal projects are effective tools that bring spatial and social improvements to the frazzled, dilapidated areas in which they activate local economic dynamics. But lay the danger of new decomposed areas of problem under the partial approach which arises in case these projects would not be dealt with an integrative considerence (Couch, 2003; Erden, 2003). Furthermore, these projects have the potential of creating greater problems instead of solving the existing ones in case they are dealt with an undertanding of renewing city areas with higher buildings, that is far away from a proper planning, describes merely partial physical arrangements under the coercion of rant (Kütük İnce, 2006: 103). For this reason, renewal projects must be prepared in a strategic sense, depending on a top plan and the project sites should be integrated both with each other and with the entire city.

2. 
   THE PRINCIPALS OF URBAN RENEWAL
   

Urban transformation applications first arose in 19^th century as a result of urban development processes experienced in Europe, in the form of demolishing and rebuilding (urban renewal) some areas. Especially in the period after the Second World War, the necessity of renewing the cities burned down, repair of damaged cultural heritage, revitalization of economically collapsed areas with new functions revealed the importance of the urban renewal concept (Karakurt Tosun, 2010:152).

Urban renewal, in relation with the existing urban texture, emerges as renewal of the sites that has historic or locational importance for the city, revitalization of the industrial sites that are engulfed in the city center as a result of the development of the city, revitalization of sites that has lost their functions, ensuring the reusability of them for different purposes (Serdaroğlu Sağ and Karaman, 2012: 164).
Urban tranformation is not an event that can be fulfilled in a short while. Whatever the size of the coverage of the goals aimed to achieve and the extent of the area in which the transformation will be carried out is, the process covers a long period of time.
According to Akıncıtürk et al. (2012:2), urban transformation;

• 
  Should have respect for the cultural texture, silhouette, social memory and the identity of the city that has developed in the course of time.
  
• 
  Should have respect natural and historical values.
  
• 
  Should have participatory planning and design solutions that have respect for life styles and expectations of the dwellers of the sites for which the transformation has been planned and for those of the citizens.
  
• 
  Should support the diversity ot the city, should prevent disintegration and protect the poor of the city.
  
• 
  Should provide affordable housing options fort he have-nots and tenants.
  
• 
  Should be integrated with the existing urban system by establishing a connection in terms of road and landscape when considering new housing projects throughout the city.
  
• 
  Should produce decisions of settlements taking earthquake and other natural disasters into account.
  
• 
  Should be economical in the long run.
  

According to Roberts (2000:9), an urban renewal has four fundemental goals and these are:

• 
  To stop physical collapse in cities and ensure historical sustainability,
  
• 
  To revitalize economic life,
  
• 
  To enhance the quality of urban life and to activate the dynamics based on culture,
  
• 
  To ensure participation at all levels.
  

One or several of these goals may come into prominence depending on the potentials and the features of the problems of the site. According to Galdini (2005:6) and Göz (2008:9), general objectives to be achieved in an area related with urban transformation are as follows:

• 
  Physical and environmental objectives: To build more qualified houses in the related site, in place of those not suitable for living in, to solve infrastrucure issues, to enhance the quality of life, to decrease environmental pollution and to create green belts.
  
• 
  Economical objectives: To attract investors in the site under consideration, to create job and employment opportunities.
  
• 
  Social objectives: To remove the reasons leading to social problems in the site, to prevent habits harmful to the individuals and the society, to improve neigborhood relationships and to integrate the habitants of the area with each other.
  
• 
  Cultural objectives: To preserve natural, cultural and historical wealths of the site.
  

3. 
   THE CONCEPT OF URBAN RENEWAL IN TURKEY
   

Turkey, for the last fifty years, has been undergoing a precipitous urbanization experience as in many developing countries. It is a known fact that, the first acts of urban renewal dates back to the experiences for the replanning of burned areas by fires which İstanbul has been exposed to, in the last century of Ottoman Empire. The main problem encountered after the decleration of the Republic has been the reconstruction of the cities burned down during the War of Independence (Yenice, 2012: 222).

Due to the rapid urbanization trend experienced after 1950s and the disparities in development between different regions of the country, the population and investments has been unevenly concentrated in certain regions resulting in emergence of disorganized, unhealthy, unsecure settlements following impetuous migration from villages to cities (Ülger, 2010: 186). Though the problem of integration of the population that has migrated to cities and been living in slums has been considered as the main issue of renewal in modernist communities before, the necessity of renewal of slum regions by municipalities has been accepted especially after 1990s (Kütük İnce, 2006: 48).

The beginning of legal regulation searches in relation to the concept of urban renewal starting from 2000s indicates the importance paid to the issue. It is known that the Marmara Earthquake experienced in 1999, has a great impact on the formation of this consciousness. TOKİ and the metropolitan municipalities have shared the leading part in the transformation and renewal projects implemented for various purposes especially for disaster risk reduction and transformation of slum regions. The legal ground for these implementations has been tried to be formed by means of the Urban Renewal Law Draft that aimed at clearing firstly natural disaster risks then unhealthy settlements away, besides new local administration regulations that authorized these administrations for urban renewals (Genç, 2008: 116). By the law accepted in 2005 and named “The Law On the Preservation of the Frazzled Historical and Cultural Real Estate Properties by Renewal and Reuse of Them by Revitalization”, the renewal and preservation of the sites in which the cultural and natural properties were included was aimed at.

“Law of Municipalities” numbered as 5393 and modified in 2010, is considered as an important regulation giving municipalities warrant and responsibility on urban renewals (Yenice, 2012: 223). And in 2012, the “Law Draft About Renewal of the Regions Under Disaster Risk” was prepared. The draft regulates the procedures and principles related to refinement, clearence and renewal of the regions under disaster risk, and of those in which there exist buildings at risk, with the aim of creating healthy and secured living environments conforming to the standarts.
Urban renewal projects should be carried out under the leadership of the municipalities with a group of multi-actors covering the experts, municipalities, private entrepreneurs and the habitants of the site. Besides spacial transformations in the areas to be renewed, the lives of the people living in those regions also inevitably undergo great transformations due to the regulations related to renewal. For this reason, urban renewal is that kind of planning for which the utmost participation of the local population should be ensured (Kütük İnce, 2006: 104).
The people living in the renewal region have two options with the implementation of the renewal project. First one is that the people who would not be able to afford the rant created newly in the region, would necessarily move to other regions of the city. The result of this option is that the lifestyles the individuals of the region are accustomed to, relationships related states of belonging of them may be damaged seriously. Second option is to keep the habitants of the region within their own living environment by providing them with housing opprtunities in the renewal area. This time, pro-renewal housing styles and neighborhood of them undergo a serious transformation. Due to these reasons, before any project, a broad participation and reconciliation should be ensured to save the individuals from being negatively affected by this process and various rehabilitaion programmes should be prepared to adapt them to the new way of life to be emerged in the post-project period. Renewal projects could solely in this case include an improvement not only at physical and economical level but also at socio-cultural level.

4. 
   URBAN DEVELOPMENT IN NİĞDE
   

Niğde is located in the Central Anatolia Region, in the political map of Turkey. It is surrounded by Kayseri in the east, Konya in the west, Nevşehir in the north, by Adana and İçel (Mersin) in the south. Niğde, surrounded by mountains and dominated by continental climate, was called “the land without trees” due to scarcity of its forested regions, in the archaic ages (Büyükmıhçı, 1997).

In 1864, acreage of Niğde was approximately threefold of today’s (Galanti, 1951). It was declared to be an independent province apart from Konya, on April 4^th 1916 by Sultan Mohammad Rashad. It was a new province of the newly founded Republic in 1924 with the boundaries shown in Figure 1. The city was drawn back to the current boundaries by the separation of Nevşehir from its administrative body in 1954, and by that of Aksaray in 1989 (Niğde Governorship, 1973: 38).
Niğde fortress is the oldest known structure. The past of the fortress dates back to Byzantian Period. The fortress was developed in the period of the Seljuks. In the Seigniorial Era, new city walls were added around the existing ones to cover a larger city acreage. The city over brimmed these walls and started to develop towards the west and north in the Ottoman period (Figure 1).
The Ottoman Niğde was a city that developed on four main components:

• 
  The fortress,
  
• 
  Administrative center,
  
• 
  City center that comprises of a main Mosque, the hans, cover bazaar and open bazaar,
  
• 
  Residential districts and outer districts.
  

Figure 1. Niğde in the Ottoman Period (1471-1850) (Özdaş, 2007).
At the begining of the 20^th century, the city was started to develop towards all directions but mainly to the west. Some tombs, Sarı Han and Dışarı Mosque that were outside of the city, were engulfed in the city. The Adana-Kayseri road of the past, known as Bor Street today, became a main axis passing through the city.
An application that could be regarded as a comprehensive urban renewal or transformation has not been carried out in Niğde except for the expansion of Bor Street, still the unique main axis of the city, after the second half of 1980s; Niğde Evleri Housing Project that has been started in the first half of 2000s, and the minor restoration works in the fortress (Gökçe ve Akçaözoğlu, 2012: 158). At present, the city continues to develop towards the west (Figure 2). The city square that has developed along the 19^th century and in the early years of the Republic, the streets and the educational buildings still serve on. The old city center that has been formed before the 19^th century, especially along the Medieval, substantially keeps its historical texture today (Özdaş, 2007: 66).



Figure 2. Today’s Niğde (maps.google.com)
The population of the city, being about 50.000 excluding neighborhoods in 1995, experienced a rapid increase with the establishment of the University of Niğde and today exceeded 100.000. The university has changed the socio-cultural profile, and the cultural supply presented to the city has brought the related changes in demands along with it. Efendibey Renewal Project is a right step, taken towards fulfilling the need arisen within this sense, but a late one in the perspective of Niğde’s local administration that should have been started relatively long before (Gökçe and Akçaözoğlu, 2012: 158). However, the lack of a superior plan, a strategy of development and preservation to guide the Renewal Project, raises the possibility of limiting the Renewal Project to the area it covers.

5. 
   URBAN RENEWAL PROJECT OF EFENDİBEY DISTRICT
   

“The Urban Transformation and Renewal Project” that covers Efendibey, Şehitler and Şahinali Districts, starts from the crossroads which the İmam Hatip Lisesi (Religious Vocational School) looks out on, and ends up with the border of Niğde Evleri (Figure 3,4). The Project that has been divided into six sub-regions and would serve to transform an area of 1.210.000 m², covers a relatively acreage when compared to the scale of the city itself (Figure 5).

Figure 3. Images from renewal area (Archieves of Niğde Municipality)

Figure 4. Images from buildings in renewal area (Archieves of Niğde Municipality)


Figure 5. Efendibey Urban Renewal Project zoned layout plan (Archieves of Niğde Municipality)

The fundemental goals aimed by the Project were stated as follows (Archieves of Niğde Municipality):

• 
  To preserve natural areas and ecological resources,
  
• 
  To create sustainable and habitable environment by developing green belts,
  
• 
  To prevent environmental pollution, to form sustainable systems sensitive to the environment,
  
• 
  To give the natural and cultural resources of the site to urban life and tourism, in accordance with the principal of sustainability,
  
• 
  To enhance the use of cultural and social activities to promote the present cultural identity,
  
• 
  To create habitats that are secured against the risk of earthquake.
  

6.000 apartments have been planned to be constructed in the framework of the project. 8 plan types have been decided on being apartments of gross areas of 60, 75, 90, 110, 125, 135, 149 and 190 m² (Figure 6,7). Though the apartments of 60 and 75 m² area are relatively small, this option was offered for the low-income habitants of slums of the site for the sake of keeping them within their previous habitat. Thus, they would be able to buy new houses paying the necessary difference that would be calculated with regard to the cost of debris (Figure 8).

Figure 6. Apartment plan of 60 m² area (Archieves of Niğde Municipality)



Figure 7. Apartment plan of 190 m² area (Archieves of Niğde Municipality)


Figure 8. Images from areas of slums (Archieves of Niğde Municipality)
Within this context, it is observed that a green area of 240.000 m² has been spared in the total project content. If it is assumed that a minimum total of 24.000 citizen will be living in the 6.000 apartments to be produced, the projected green lung meets the requirement of 10 m² greenery per capita. The artificial lake planned to be constructed within the park area is perceived as a positive component of the overall design. Green belts seem to have been distributed between social centers and housing units sobersidedly. The Project seems to have managed to provide the requirement that the green belts should serve the determined purposes, ecnompass kindergartens, schools and connect these to the housing units (Corbusier, 2009: 62).

Furthermore, only 11% of the total project area has been spared for housing purposes and the rest for the social reinforcement purposes (Figure 9). That seems to be a positive understanding for a proper urbanization when the high “floor area ratio” that is currently in practice in the remaining parts of the city is considered.

Figure 9. Efendibey Urban Renewal Project layout in perspective (Archieves of Niğde Municipality)
The amphitheater and cultural center to be constructed in the renewal site would be comforting alternative when the inadequacy of the current cultural center is considered. 3 elementary school buildings with 32 classrooms, 1 lycee building of 24 classrooms and 2 kindergarten buildings have been scheduled to be built with regard to the planned population for the area. In addition, 2 sanitary facilities planned to be built would raise the self-sufficiency level of the renewal zone.
The Project includes commercial facilities targeted to vitalize the economical life in the region. 160 commercial units of 20, 35, 50 and 80 m² areas were planned to be built. 50 and 80 m² acreaged units are to be included on the ground floors of the apartment buildings that will house the 3+1 plan typed apartments. Thus, the present habitants of the region have been provided with the opportunity of continuing their commercial activities in the same environment. Shopping and trade centers to be included in renewal region, restaurants, cafés, tea gardens to be built in the proposed city park, would contribute to both urban and regional economical vividness (Figure 10). Additionally, a boutique hotel was scheduled to be built by the city park. When the limited number of high-capacity hotels in the city is considered, it is thought that the proposed hotel is going to fill an important gap within this context.



Figure 10. General view of trade and shopping centers (Archieves of Niğde Municipality)
Sürmeli, Emine Hatun, Fesleğen Mosques, and some old houses made of stone representing vernacular architecture have been chosen to be preserved. This is a positive approach within the context of providing sustainability of the historical texture (Figures 11-13). Though a specific number has not been given, the authors believe in the earnestness of the planners and the municipality administration in keeping the number of the to-be-preserved stone houses as high as possible, in the implementation stage of The Project.


Figure 11. The minaret of Fesleğen Mosque


Figure 12. Laundry building within the renewall area

Figure 13. An example of old houses made of stone

6. 
   RESULTS
   

Efendibey Urban Renewal Project is thought that it would be a positive example of renewal from the points of view of halting physical decadence, vitalizing economical life and enhancing quality of urban life. In case it could manage to achieve the goals of ensuring the sustainability of the historical texture, activating culture-based dynamics and ensuring participation at all levels; it is thought that it would be a turning point for the urban development of Niğde.

That the Sürmeli, Emine Hatun and Fesleğen Mosques and some old houses made of stone, representing vernacular architecture have been included in the preservation scope is a positive approach within the context of providing sustainability of the historical texture. That green area per capita proposed in The Project is not less than 10 m², and that these green areas are designed to be distributed evenly between social centers and the housing units are considered important steps towards enhancing the quality of urban life.
It is understood that this project which is the first one in the sense of urban renewal in Niğde has intended to provide some fundemental objectives related to urban renewal. But in a participatory approach, it is necessary to determine the lifestyle and expectations of the present habitants of the region by means of organized meetings and public surveys. Because this seems to have been overlooked, it is a necessity that comprehensive studies should be carried out about the adaptation of the habitants of the region to the to-be-renewed urban structure and to-be-reconfigured lifestyle after the project.
The implemetation of the project that has been divided into sub-regions, taking the size of the renewal area and use of financial means into consideration would probably take a long time. To realize the project without deviation from its goals, there exist a need for a wide participation and a potent determination in the urban scale. However, since the renewal work is going to be a long process that requires a long time, intensive endeavor and cost, it should be open to policy changes, and should have various alternatives for being able to make changes in vision against the probable threats.


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