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The Ankara Metropolitan Municipality, currently chaired by Mansur Yavaş, has added a "page of wasted money" to its official website.
The opposition-led Ankara Metropolitan Municipality has disclosed the cost of Ankapark, or Wonderland Eurasia, amusement park, which was constructed during the term of office of ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP)'s former Ankara Mayor Melih Gökçek and is now closed.
According to the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality, which is still waging a legal struggle to take it back, the total cost of Ankapark was 801 million 288 thousand 824 USD. When calculated according to current exchange rates, it costs over 10 billion 845 million 155 thousand 768 TRY.
The municipality has indicated that only the large-scale tenders have been included in this count and the cost will be updated later. It has also announced that the total cost of other large-scale tenders than the ones held for Ankapark will also be added to its webpage.
The Ankara Metropolitan Municipality has noted that deficient and defective works undertaken in the previous term, the irregularities in the privatization of dinosaur statues, doors, imported trees, clocks and robots among several other issues will be added to the "page of wasted money."
About Ankapark (Wonderland Eurasia)
The construction of Ankapark, or Wonderland Eurasia, began on the land of Atatürk Forest Farm in 2013, when Melih Gökçek from the ruling AKP was in office as the Ankara Metropolitan Mayor.
In 2014, the Ankara 5th Administrative Court gave a decision of stay of execution for the main zoning plan which also covered the amusement park while the Council of State gave a decision of stay of execution for the Cabinet Decree which allowed for the park's construction.
However, the municipality carried on with the construction of Ankapark. In January 2015, it was announced that the park's construction had been completed by 90 percent. In 2015, the Ankara 18th Administrative Court gave a ruling of stay of execution. In response to this, the municipal council amended the park plan. In the same year, the Ankara 5th Administrative Court canceled the 1/10,000 scale Master Development Plan for Purposes of Preservation. The Council of State overturned the local court ruling.
In December 2017, the municipality announced that the cost of the park was 1.5 billion TRY and it was planned to be opened in August 2019. In May 2018, it was decided that the park be rented. Five operating tenders were held starting from June 2018; they remained inconclusive.
In the sixth tender held on September 29, 2018, the Ankapark, except for its zoo, was rented out to the GBM Ticaret-Çelik Joint Adventure Group for 26 million 400 thousand lira annual rent for 29 years.
Right before the local elections on March 31, 2019, when the opposition's Mansur Yavaş was elected the new Ankara Metropolitan Mayor, the park's name was changed to Wonderland Eurasia and it was opened to visitors on March 20, 2019. A few months later, in September 2019, the park was closed due to the unpaid debts of the operating company. In December 2019, the electricity of the park was cut due to unpaid electricity bills.
While the electricity was back in the park after the debt was paid in late January 2020, the park was de facto closed due to the low number of visitors in February 2020. The Ankara Branch of the Chamber of Architects filed a criminal complaint against Melih Gökçek over Ankapark. (HA/SD)
