Municipality halts construction of contentious hotel in Istanbul coastline

Ali Dağlar ISTANBUL / Hürriyet

The hotel, which is being constructed on Istanbul’s last natural beach in Ataköy, was slated to be opened in August 2014, but construction will now remain halted.

Construction on a new Hyatt Regency Hotel that has drawn controversy on the grounds that it will occupy an important plot of land along the coast of the Marmara Sea has stopped following a ceast and desist order by Bakırköy Municipality.

The hotel, which is being constructed on Istanbul’s last natural beach in Ataköy, was slated to be opened in August 2014, but construction will now remain halted.

Officials from the municipality inspected the jobsite on May 26, putting a halt to further construction after a number of violations of the building’s official plans were determined, including 430 square meters worth of additional areas such as a pool, foyer, pool-washroom-kitchen area and mechanic area.

The municipality is now waiting for an official notification to halt all of the construction following a ruling from the Istanbul 5th Administrative Court to stop construction on 25 towers in the area that will each exceed 70 meters, after a negative expert report.

The report described the master plans as “improper” with regard to the principles and methods of planning and public welfare, citing insufficient evaluations regarding the public use of the coastal area and particularly earthquake risks.

TOKİ under scrutiny

The area of land was sold to Turkey’s state housing authority, TOKİ, and is being developed by Tavros Group, a hotel and investment company, and AKS, a project inspection firm.

TOKİ has been behind a building boom across Turkey that has often resulted in the disappearance of neighborhoods or green spaces in the rush to construct new residences.

Locals in the area, as well as environmentalists, have expressed their opposition to the Ataköy project, while the Architects’ Office and a neighborhood association have both opened litigation against the development.