Tender will be held to convert iconic inn into five-star hotel

ISTANBUL

The Sansaryan Han in Istanbul’s Sirkeci neighborhood was once home to poor Armenian children, a police headquarters and the Istanbul Courthouse. Today, its landowners want to put it out to tender to rent it out for the next 35 years and make it a five-star hotel.

The inn, where the iconic figures of both Turkey’s left and right-wing such as Nâzım Hikmet, Ahmed Arif, Ruhi Su, Aziz Nesin, Mihri Belli, Alparslan Türkeş, Nihal Atsız and Deniz Gezmiş were arrested and interrogated, had been tendered to operate as a five-star hotel. But the tender had been canceled due to a number of lawsuits filed against the plans.

Following the conclusion of the legal process in favor of the General Directorate of Foundations, the inn was re-auctioned on Dec. 30, with the announcement published in the Official Gazette.

The Istanbul Directorate of Foundations held a tender in 2013, which two partners had won to convert the building into a five-star hotel.

But the Armenian Patriarchate of Turkey objected to the decision to hand the inn over to third parties.

The Supreme Court ruled in 2017 that, contrary to its previous decision, the ownership of the inn belongs to the General Directorate of Foundations.

The inn would be rented out for 35 years, covering three years of restoration and 32 years of operation, according to a statement.

The cost of restoring and repairing the building was determined to be around 27 million Turkish Liras ($4.5 million).

The tender will be held on Jan. 28, 2020.

Officials have also said that “the Number 5 Inn” next to the building could be added to Sansaryan Han.

In addition to Sansaryan, another inn located on the same street with a store and a basement will be rented out for 35 years for a restoration of approximately 12 million liras.

Many writers, poets and politicians were tortured for speaking their minds in the Sansaryan Han, which had 36 cells.

Among other historical venues to have been converted into five-star hotels is the Sultanahmet Prison, one of the most important buildings in Istanbul and located within the borders of the historical peninsula of the city.