Rumors of third bridge’s route leading to property market destabilization

 Engin Eren, the head of a real estate agency operating in Çatalca, noted that after Tekin's meeting more people have started to visit his office to find out the value of their property, saying most of them are insisting on not selling their property, which would lead to an increase in prices. He criticized Tekin for his announcement unofficially declaring the route of the third bridge, arguing that it has started to destabilize the property market in Çatalca. He recalled the statements of Transportation Minister Binali Yıldırım, who said the connection points were yet to be determined.

 “Before the announcement nobody cared about their property. But now, people are trying to utilize this opportunity. However, what would they do if the route Tekin declared is the wrong one, I wonder? Previously, land generally cost TL 6 or TL 7 per square meter, but now people are trying to sell for TL 15-TL 20 per square meter. I advised my clients that the connection points of the route have not been finalized,” Eren added.

 The prime minister denied Tekin's claims and said the final route had not yet been decided. He considered Tekin's announcement of the route as a fruitless attempt to appear on the political stage with baseless arguments. Furthermore, Environment and Forestry Minister Veysel Eroğlu lashed out at the claims that the third bridge would lead to the construction of more buildings and said they are attentive to environmental concerns and would not allow the destruction of forests.

 He also said the route that Tekin claimed would be constructed is almost impossible to build. “According to his plan, the route of the third bridge would pass near Sazlıdere Lake but the projected high-speed train is also planned to be built close to the lake as the 1/100,000 plan of İstanbul prepared by the municipality suggests. However, as the railway is already going to pass around Sazlıdere lake, I don't think anybody would construct the route to the plan declared by Tekin.”

 Dismissing the criticisms that the new route would lead to the destruction of forests and badly damage the water resources of the city by providing new opportunities for construction, Eren noted that despite the high number of residences around Sazlıdere, Büyükçekmece and Terkos lakes in İstanbul, water resources have not been greatly damaged. He added that the surrounding areas of these lakes only offered restricted building opportunities.

He also said the İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality would not allow new construction. “Construction licenses for Silivri and Çatalca must be given by the metropolitan municipality, not the local municipalities, for three years. I find this a protective policy pursued by Kadir Topbaş to prevent these areas from mushrooming.”

 In addition to destabilizing the property market, the rumors surrounding the route of the third bridge caused concern among the residents of Beykoz.

 “I'm getting depressed with the crowd coming to my office. Everyone comes to me and asks the route of the third bridge. People want to know whether it will pass near their house or not, especially after Mr. Tekin's announcement. They are afraid that if the bridge passes through our neighborhood their houses will be destroyed,” said Fahrettin Akman, the head of Ortaçeşme neighborhood, when asked how people view Tekin's announcement.

 Expressing his support for the construction of a third bridge, Akman compared Ortaçeşme with Kavacık. “Before the second Bosporus bridge was constructed, Ortaçeşme was far more developed than Kavacık, but after the bridge and the connection point in Kavacık it has developed a lot.” He also stated that because of the speculation on the price of land, much land has been sold since the rumors said the route would pass through Ortaçeşme.

 Another neighborhood head, Zeki Bülbül from Beykoz's Yalıköy district, said he finds the opponents of the third bridge insincere and does not agree with them. “Roads mean civilization. They connect us to the center of the city. Everything has a price; if you want roads you must sacrifice some of the forests, but I don't think the bridge would have a devastating effect on the forests.” He warned officials to be aware of the danger of overlooking the amount of construction it will give rise to.