The plans and works of İzmir Metropolitan Municipality related to Alsancak, especially transportation, traffic and parking, were discussed at the İEKKK meeting. Mayor Soyer stated that they will soon be out for tender for the urban transformation of Ege Mahallesi, and that they are also working for the culture-art-based planning of the region behind the Port. We are excited to take great steps that we will leave to the next generations in these two regions. ”
Alsancak was on the agenda of the 91st meeting of the Izmir Economic Development Coordination Board (İEKKK). The members of the Board exchanged views under the topic of “What should be Alsancak”, taking into consideration the problems and future perspective of Alsancak, which is the important center of the city, in many ways. Making the opening speech of the online meeting due to the coronavirus outbreak, IEKKK President Sıtkı Şükürer stated that Alsancak is an ore and said, “This valuable ore needs special touches. We are in need of restoring Alsancak from its historical right. It should be considered as a special project in itself; "It should be on the agenda of not only the people living in this region, but also of all İzmir, the central administration, the public, and civil society."
18 streets to be pedestrianized
During the meeting, the Chair of the Transportation Department Mert Yaygel made a presentation on the planned and executed works related to traffic, transportation and parking arrangements in Alsancak. Stating that they are working within the framework of 2030 Transport Master Plan and subsequent Action Plans with the aim of increasing air quality in the city and creating a cleaner and healthier urban environment, Yaygel said, “Metro as Metropolitan encourages mass transportation by speeding up the rail system investments. We encourage bicycle and pedestrian transportation. Our strategy for Alsancak is that residents in the region have their own parking garages for free or at a low price, and this figure is high for those who come to the region from outside. According to the Izmir bicycle and pedestrian action plan, Alsancak is expected to be a pedestrian priority region. We started to work on making decisions about pedestrianization of 18 streets in a short time. We will implement a shared road application where the pedestrians are the priority vehicles and controlled. He will also be pedestrianized on Bornova Street by the end of the year. ”
58-kilometer bike action plan
Stating that they want to create a city center where pedestrians speak, Yaygel said that they made an elevated pedestrian crossing on Talatpaşa Boulevard as part of the Tourist Road project, which was worked on Agora from Cyprus Martyrs Street, and they used graphic designs specific to İzmir on the ground. Stating that they are working on the nostalgic tram project between the Port Viaducts and Cumhuriyet Square for pedestrian-first Alsancak, Yaygel stated that they will make a new bicycle route of 58 kilometers in İzmir in the short term in line with the bicycle action plan they have prepared with the participation of universities. Saying that they have implemented 40 kilometers of this life by separating the road with lines in the pandemic period, Yaygel said, “We have arranged a bicycle on Vasıf Çınar Boulevard. At our meeting with the local people, citizens said that they were not against the bike path, they could carry goods from the front of their houses and put them down. We will also make a UKOME decision and make an arrangement where they can perform these operations at certain times. We are working for a sustainable, clean, green Izmir city center. City centers that add value to their cities are pedestrian and human oriented. The most valuable city center of Izmir is also Alsancak. We want to leave our children not a city surrendered to the bus, but a sustainable city that gives priority to pedestrians and people. ”
Thanks from the board members
EGEV Chairman of the Board Mehmet Ali Susam, Chairman of Izmir Chamber of Commerce Mahmut Özgener, President of Alsancak Conservation and Beautification Association Dilek Olcay, President of Izmir Commodity Exchange Barış Kocagöz, President of İzmir Italian Chamber of Commerce Rebii Akdurak, CEO of Arkas Holdi, Önder Türkkanı, ESİAD Board Member Muhittin Bilget, TARKEM Vice Chairman Uğur Yüce, ESİAD Board Member Mustafa Güçlü, ESİAD President Fadıl Sivri, ESBAŞ President Faruk Güler, Urla Bağ Yolu President Can Ortabaş, İzmir City Council President Nazik Işık took the floor. He made an assessment of his current situation and his future. Expressing their satisfaction for a comprehensive meeting about Alsancak, the board members emphasized that the green texture of Alsancak, one of the most important centers of the city, should be improved, and that pedestrian and bicycle use arrangements are very important in this sense. he said.
We should increase the use of bicycles
Izmir Metropolitan Municipality Mayor thanked the members of the board for their contributions. Tunç SoyerEmphasizing that the use of private cars has increased all over the world after the pandemic, which causes traffic problems, he emphasized that the importance of bicycle use has increased. President Soyer said, “After the pandemic, the process called new normalization has begun. This is not in the context of going back to the past, of course, a new life is beginning that will not return to the old. On March 10, 2020, the daily use of public transportation reached 1 million 900 thousand. This figure has decreased to 200 thousand during the pandemic. It has now reached 900 thousand. So about half. This shows that people use their private vehicles. This increases the traffic problem. Since this is the case all over the world, countries and cities have started to produce various solutions. Paris pays cyclists 400 Euros in cash. We really have to encourage bicycle transportation. Izmir was already an attractive city for cycling. Now we must bring this charm to life and use it more. There will be promotional methods that we will develop for this.” Reminding that the entrance of motor vehicles to city centers all over the world is limited, Mayor Soyer said, “We dream of an Alsancak where fewer motor vehicles enter, battery-powered vehicles and pedestrians with increased bicycle use will enjoy walking. We are continuing a study that will evaluate all suggestions and requests regarding the development of Alsancak as a whole. We will come up with a solution by considering the priorities of all without neglecting any of them," he said.
The front of Alsancak Station will be organized
Stating that the works on the underground and traffic underground to be created in front of Alsancak Station are continuing, Mayor Soyer said, “The project works are going on. Very troubled tables were encountered. It turned out to be an alluvium base. The project will be finished in 2 months. We will definitely make this underpass. We are planning to solve one of the critical key points for the relief of the city traffic of İzmir. ” He said that they turned Soyer Havagazı Factory into the youth center and they wanted to make İzmir Fabcity.
Development plan for Alsancak and Kültürpark
Stating that the preparations for 1/5000 zoning plan are continuing for Alsancak and that they are at the end of the zoning plan work for protection for Kültürpark, President Soyer said:
“Kültürpark is both a natural site and a historical site. Why? Because the founding administration that made Kültürpark was envisaged as a public university. We have to respect that. Our zoning plan for conservation will reveal a picture that protects the historical site with a natural aspect. We will make Kültürpark a place where there is a boutique museum and culture theater and street theater activities. ”
Two important projects for Alsancak
Saying that there are two important projects that decorate their dreams when it is said Alsancak, President Soyer said; “One is Ege Mahallesi and the other is behind the Harbor. We have completed urban transformation projects related to Ege Mahallesi. We are going out to the tender soon after. In two months, we will hold 200 separate tenders for the urban transformation of 4 houses in Izmir. Ege Mahallesi is one of our priorities. The construction industry is in a crisis. If necessary, we will put the companies of the municipality into these tenders and carry out this project. We actually envision the area behind the harbor as a second Alsancak. It will be a living area where young people will be more popular and will be included in culture, art, food and beverage venues. ”
IEKKK meetings were suspended due to the summer period
In the meeting, İzmir Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Advisor Güven Eken gave information about the Orange Circle certificate that was created in order to facilitate the compliance of the businesses in İzmir to the normalization process after the pandemic and to ensure that İzmir can overcome this process safely. Eken also said that they wanted to turn the city into an instagram plateau by reflecting the artifacts and patterns of Izmir's thousands of years of history to different parts of İzmir, and the first example of this was the drawings on the Fethi Sekin ferry and the other on the elevated pedestrian crossing on Talatpaşa Boulevard. While it was decided to give calls to IEKKK meetings due to summer, 92. It was decided to hold IEKKK in September.
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