17.05.2025 10:20
Güngören Municipality has made a new zoning decision that grants one additional floor right to those who will build a single building and two additional floor rights to those who come together for urban transformation. The decision announced by Mayor Bünyamin Demir has also sparked criticisms regarding "buildings being raised despite the earthquake risk."
As the reality of earthquakes in Istanbul becomes more pronounced every day, the new zoning decision made by the Güngören Municipality has sparked significant debate in the public. According to the regulation announced by Mayor Bünyamin Demir in the municipal council, those wishing to build a building alone in the area will be granted one additional floor, while two additional floors will be allowed in cases where urban transformation is carried out by merging with neighboring buildings.
Aerial photo of Güngören... THE PRESIDENT SAYS "HORIZONTAL ARCHITECTURE" BUT... This decision has drawn reactions from experts and citizens. Many users on social media and local platforms argue that such practices in a city with a high earthquake risk like Istanbul will mean "more risk." It has been stated that the decision contradicts the understanding of "horizontal architecture," which President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has emphasized for years.
IS TRAFFIC AND INFRASTRUCTURE READY? City planners and officials from the Chamber of Architects emphasize that granting additional floor rights could deepen traffic, infrastructure, and disaster risks by increasing building density rather than accelerating urban transformation. The feasibility of the decision and its possible consequences seem likely to be discussed further in the coming days. Especially, the assessments of earthquake experts regarding the potential effects of such decisions are eagerly awaited.
Some comments from citizens were quite clear; You are forgetting the earthquake While Erdoğan talks about horizontal architecture, why are you still pursuing building height increases? Transform but do not elevate. You are granting additional floor rights but not mentioning the district's infrastructure and traffic at all. Istanbul has become an unlivable city. Why this insistence?