Residents of Hatay, the hardest hit city from the February 2023 earthquakes, have achieved a legal victory against government plans to designate areas for new construction.
The government continues to designate reserve development zones in the aftermath of the earthquakes which affected 11 provinces. These designations are carried out under a controversial law passed last year, theoretically allowing the government to declare any area, including those with existing properties or cultivated lands, as reserve development zones.
In Hatay’s Samandağ district, residents of Atatürk Neighborhood have managed to get a decision to declare their neighborhood a reserve construction area overturned. The Ministry of Environment, Urbanization, and Climate Change officially canceled the designation on July 29, 2024, according to a statement by the Urban Transformation Directorate. The decision was based on a law passed in November 2023 that allows for urban transformation in disaster-prone areas.
The minister’s visit
Lawyer Ecevit Alkan from the Hatay Bar Association welcomed the decision, but stressed that similar actions are needed in other regions. “Although the area in question is small, it is central to Samandağ. We had raised concerns that implementing these reserve zones in earthquake-affected areas would lead to significant hardships for the residents. This decision is a positive step forward,” Alkan said.
The area had been designated for urban transformation under Article 2(c) of Law No. 6306, which pertains to areas at risk from natural disasters. However, the decision to cancel the designation took into account the requests of local property owners who preferred to rebuild on their existing land.
Minister Murat Kurum, during a visit to the area, had previously stated that if the residents did not want the designation, it would not be enforced. While this statement was initially informal, the recent decision has now formalized it.
What is a reserve development zone?
A Reserve Development Zone refers to areas designated under Law No. 6306 for use as new settlement areas. These zones are identified either at the request of the Housing Development Administration (TOKİ) or relevant authorities, or they can be determined directly by the Ministry.
Within these reserve development zones, the law aims to establish healthy and safe living environments that adhere to technical and artistic norms and standards. The areas can be used for various purposes, including:
Relocation of residents: Providing housing and workplaces for people residing in high-risk areas or in buildings identified as risky outside these zones.
Revenue-generating projects: The zones can also be utilized for any projects that generate income or revenue, serving as new residential areas.
(TY/VK)