Turkey sees clock tower boom

Hacer Boyacıoğlu ANKARA

Clock tower projects planned to be built in city centers are booming in towns and cities across Turkey.

Municipality projects for the construction of clock towers have gained momentum over the last six months, with hundreds of municipalities across the country initiating tenders for clock towers of various shapes and sizes.

One of the most sophisticated clock tower projects in the new craze is to be built in the Çayırova district of Kocaeli province. There, the municipality will purchase LED aluminum visuals with a star and the crescent design and a Tuğra (Ottoman sultan’s signature) for the construction of clock towers at crossroads across the town.

Some of the projects differ from classic clock towers. In the Karaköprü district of the southeastern Şanlıurfa province, the municipality wants to adorn the clock tower with two fountains, fed by city water. The Central Anatolian Kırşehir Municipality has also issued a tender for the construction of the clock surrounding the historic underground bazaar’s chimney in the city square. A firm won the tender with a bid of 90,000 Turkish Liras and the tower has recently been completed.

Other tenders have been issued for future clock tower projects, including in the Black Sea province of Düzce and the southern province of Osmaniye. The Antalya province’s Manavgat Municipality has completed a monumental clock tower project tender for 214,000 liras, while the Mersin province’s Anamur Municipality has completed a tender worth 141,000 liras, the Kozlu district of Zonguldak province has completed a 150,000-lira tender for an LED clocktower, and the Ayvacık district of Çanakkale province has completed a tender worth 144,000 liras.

Some cites have decided to leave the decision to locals. In the Genç district of Bingöl province, the municipality has prepared five different modern clock tower projects to be voted on by the public.

Meanwhile, the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality - whose Mayor Melih Gökçek has made it a personal mission to support the random spread of clock towers across the city - has now started purchasing clocks for other cities. The municipality has already purchased decorative clock to be used within the boundaries of the eastern province of Erzincan, for a contract worth 218,900 liras.

“City gates” and clock tower projects in the capital Ankara have caused controversy in recent years.

The municipality constructed a total of five city gates and clock towers at the entrances of the city, each costing 5 million liras, ahead of the local elections last year.