Mehmet Özhaseki announces financial damage of February 6 earthquakes

Minister of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change Mehmet Özhaseki shared the Final Declaration of the Earthquake Reality and Urban Transformation Council with the public.

DAMAGE OVER 100 BILLION DOLLARS

Mehmet Özhaseki stated, "We are facing damage of over 100 billion dollars from the February 6 earthquakes. Turkey is an earthquake country. The only solution is urban transformation."

Highlights from Özhaseki's statements are as follows:

"We have completed the transformation of 2 million 200 thousand independent units across Turkey. Currently, the transformation process of approximately 400 thousand independent units is ongoing across Turkey.

In Istanbul, we have completed the transformation of 800 thousand independent units to date. Our ministry has provided resources worth 480 billion TL within the scope of urban transformation projects across Turkey.

At the Earthquake Council, it was suggested that a 50+1 majority should be sufficient not only for the demolition phase of a building but also during the licensing and functional change stages. It was decided to issue a notification decree regarding the bottlenecks and delays encountered in urban transformations. It was agreed that notifications should be made via e-Devlet, posted on the building, and made available at the neighborhood headman's offices (muhtarlık).

MEDIATION SYSTEM

At the council, the idea of filing a lawsuit to resolve co-ownership issues after risky structures are demolished and turned into plots was put forward. The council requested a transition to a mediation system to resolve disputes in urban transformation.

VILLAGE HOUSES WILL HAVE STEEL FRAMES

We are planning to build future village houses in Turkey using steel frames. In the first stage, we want to build these steel houses in 4 cities affected by the earthquake to show them to our citizens.

215 THOUSAND APPLICATIONS

So far, 215 thousand of our citizens have applied for on-site transformation. We have determined the amount we will provide as loans and grants for this purpose. So far, more than 50 percent of the debris and rubble removal has been completed. With the 200 thousand tenders we have conducted so far, 41 thousand residences will soon be ready for our citizens to move into.

FINANCING IS A PROBLEM IN ITSELF

Istanbul's settlement dates back thousands of years. We do not have the chance to just open and widen a street as we wish. Currently, our primary concern is to relocate the structures in the areas we consider most risky as soon as possible. We will leave every area we vacate to the districts.

Financing is a problem in itself. I am confident in myself regarding solving the financing problem. The Ministry of Treasury and Finance has not imposed any restrictions. We are planning to establish a General Directorate of Resource Development. We will offer and sell thousands of plots to citizens who want to use them in a competitive environment. We will use this as a resource for urban transformation."

News Source: 12punto