Downtown: Where’s it gone?

The song's beat was light and its lyrics were catchy:

Just listen to the music of the traffic in the city,

Linger on the sidewalk where the neon signs are pretty

How can you lose? The lights are much brighter there...

You can forget all your troubles; forget all your cares, and go

Downtown -- things will be great when you're

Downtown -- you'll find a place for sure

Downtown -- everything's waiting for you.

In the 1960s, depending on who you asked where downtown was in Turkey, the reply would have been Beyoğlu or Beyazit.

What is downtown for the average dweller in İstanbul now?

İstanbul has been the home of numerous cultures who have each left their imprint and influenced the city's development. Even though the old city walls still surround the old town, the city has outgrown those historic boundaries.

There is still some truth to the thought that if you want to see and be seen you go to Beyoğlu, between Taksim Square and Tünel. That's why McDonald's opened their flagship fast food chain in the early 1980s at Taksim Square.

Rümeli Street in Osmanbey, Nisantaşı, has given İstiklal Street some serious competition more recently, as it has become the high fashion street and crowds go there to see and be seen. Of course, don't forget Etiler and what about Bağdat Street (on the Asian side).

The city continues to grow and every district is building its own local municipality building and cultural center. Gone are the days when you had to go to Taksim for an evening of cultural and performing arts entertainment.

It seems that city district administrators have been in a fierce competition to develop successful mini-downtowns in each district and are seeking ways to improve the ability to deliver needed services in their district. Every district seems to be improving services, including: marketing and retail promotion, special events, landscaping and beautification and environmental management (litter, graffiti). We have all noticed all the beautiful flowers along the boulevards and in the neighborhood parks.

As the city grows, the architectural style of buildings is changing considerably. On the Asian side near Ataşehir and Kozyataği, luxury multifunctional complex concrete and glass towers have been built where you may live in a complex of apartments with recreational facilities, restaurants, banks and underground parking at your convenience.

These multifunctional complexes remind me of my mother's condominium in Marina Towers in Chicago which, when they were built in the 1960s, were perceived as an alternative living style where everything was offered in a small area.

When the complex was built it was the biggest ever built in concrete and its shape was in contrast with the contemporary architectural concepts of straight lines and cubical apartment buildings. The cylindrical shape was used to have less wind pressure. The architect chose reinforced concrete instead of steel, as this was the only material in which he could create the petal shapes of the apartments. Just like the complexes being built in İstanbul today, these towers were the "jet-set" and modern of the 1960s.

İstanbul is fast moving from a city of tradition to modernism. The city has developed from a pedestrian city to one with a maze of vehicular streets and public transport. You can be sure that districts such as Beyazit or Beyoğlu or Nisantaşı and, don't forget, Kadıköy (you know, on the Asian side!) will remain congested with residents living on top of one another and cars, bicyclists and pedestrians, no matter how much the municipality tries to improve the circulation of traffic in and around these areas. Unfortunately, streets were not designed in these areas to support the traffic load that exists today.

Similar to Marina City in Chicago, the TWA terminal in New York or the Opera House in Sydney, the city of İstanbul is bringing architecture one step further and usually building wider streets and underground parking.

Who knows if it is for better or worse, but the "downtown" that Petula Clark sang about in the 1960s will not ever be the same. When you find your "downtown," may it help you forget all about your cares.

Please keep your questions and observations coming: I want to ensure this column is a help to you, Today’s Zaman ‘s readers.