A ‘toxic’ division
WITH the clank and clatter of construction vehicles and clouds of concrete dust, a walk through İstanbul’s Fikirtepe district is a shock to the senses.
A few kilometres from the Bosphorus shore, Fikirtepe is home to one of the most notorious gentrification projects in Turkey’s biggest city.
Formerly a working class quarter of shabby apartment buildings and unkempt gardens on twisting, hilly streets, over the past few years the neighbourhood’s modest housing has been mostly levelled and replaced by luxury residential high-rises.
In 2010, the then-mayor of İstanbul, Kadir Topbaş, announced that a citywide urban transformation effort would begin with Fikirtepe.
Demolitions began in 2012 and are ongoing. Today, the skyline is dominated by tall, flashy edifices as dozens of construction companies build towering apartment blocks for wealthy buyers.
Some Fikirtepe residents feel like they’ve struck gold, as they sell their rundown apartments in return for flats in the brand new blocks. But others are frustrated over stalled negotiations between contractors and residents.
Çetin Er, who has lived in the neighbourhood all of his life, is among those happy with the transformation. He signed off the rights to one of his properties in exchange for a brand new flat in one of the shiny apartment towers that he says is on the verge of completion.
“It’s as if the people of Fikirtepe have won the lottery,” he said. Others don’t feel so lucky. Fahrettin Canbaş, a shopkeeper and 40year resident of Fikirtepe, is among those nervously waiting for the spoils he was promised.
Four years ago, Mr Canbaş sold the deed to his small shop and his home in the same building to a contractor, and most of his neighbours have followed suit. But since a minority of property owners on the plot have yet to come to an agreement with the contractor, his building stands ominously surrounded by other new construction projects that are continuing full speed ahead.
To make matters worse, a makeshift cement factory chugs along directly across the street, spewing choking dust into the air so Mr Canbaş can no longer open the windows in his flat.
It’s not just Mr Canbaş’ street that has been choked with dust.
In July, Aykurt Nuhoğlu, the mayor of Kadıköy, the district in which Fikirtepe lies, announced that municipal testing of the area indicated that particle pollution levels in Fikirtepe had reached hazardous levels as a result of the heavy construction.
The polluted air, combined with the unsettling sight of abandoned buildings, makes walking through the neighbourhood an eerie experience.
“There are projects that have been completed, and there are some areas that have been turned into abandoned war zones. The reason for this is because some of the homeowners aren’t finding the contractor’s offer to be sufficient,” said Nazan Gürkan, the muhtar of Merdivenköy, a next door quarter of which a part falls into the transformation zone.