Union proposes lease of old quarry

A SOLUTION proving cheaper stone for Gazimağusa restoration projects could be on the horizon with a proposal to lease an old quarry by the Cyprus Turkish Construction Contractors’ Union.

Union head Cafer Gürcafer proposed this week to “cut stone without profit” and supply the necessary “calcarenite” limestone at close to cost price solely for restoration purposes, after which the quarry would again be closed.

European Union-funded works on Gazimağusa’s historic walls, via the UN Development Programme’s Action for Cooperation and Trust (UNDP-ACT), were held up after officials refused to pay prices tendered by a private firm three years ago.

Alarm bells first rang in 2015 when the historic quarry in the Port İsbi area of the town’s Free Port was leased out to Tosunoğlu Construction by the Antiquities Department without being put out to tender.

Okan Dağlı, a member of the bicommunal Mağusa Initiative, warned at the time that leasing the only source of suitable stone to a private company would give it an effective “monopoly” on contracts, and that works would stall if stone ran short or was too expensive.

The bicommunal Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage then rejected a bid for finished stone priced at three times the rate in South Cyprus, and Mr Tosunoğlu later announced that he had “no further interest” in leasing the quarry. Ali Tuncay, Turkish Cypriot representative on the bicommunal committee, appealed to Gazimağusa Mayor İsmail Arter and supporters of cultural heritage protection to find a cheaper solution, adding: “Three million euros have already been given for past and present work. An economic solution for stone would free up even more funding. Every euro spent here by the EU will come back to us twofold.”

Mr Tuncay called for a technical study to assess the quarry capacity and detailed project requirements.

Walled City Association chairman Serdar Atai said: “We understand that three Gazimağusa firms approached the contractors’ union who submitted a written request to the Antiquities Department.

“There is also a feeling that this stone should only be used for Gazimağusa, but since the Turkish Vakıflar plan restoration works to Lala Mustafa Paşa and Selimiye Mosques, we do need to liaise with all concerned as to how much stone we have and where it needs to be used.”

Speaking at a meeting of the Walled City Association in Gazimağusa last week, Tourism and Environment Minister Fikri Ataoğlu expressed his discomfort with the initial deal which had later been revoked by his ministry, adding that a new quarry tender could be issued for specific restoration requirements only.