kalkankath

It's become apparent that building work has been allowed to continue in Kalkan until 15th May this year instead of it ceasing on 1st May as usual.

I'm not talking about the new road construction - it's a pretty large development of villas and apartments. Apparently, the Belediye gave one developer a 'special licence' to continue for the additonal two weeks.

Obviously, this is not good for visitors to Kalkan and it's businesses in general and the long-term implications could be that the tourist season shrinks year on year until eventually, there will be construction work being done for 12 months!

Someone has had the foresight to set up a petition to the Belediye to try and prevent this happening again - if you value peace and quiet in Kalkan (for a least 6 months of the year), please can you add your name to it? I'm unable to place a link to the relevant page as URL's are not permitted on this site but the petition can be found on the EnjoyKalkan forum under the heading 'Building Work (Now Including a Petition)'.

Many thanks!

Tim

Hi

Where exactly in Kalkan is this happening? Can you give me a clue as I will not be able to get out there til September (cos of the arrival of the little one) and I am hoping I will still recognise Kalkan when I do!

kalkankath

The work did stop as of 15th May and the area in question is the hillside above the Kalamar road behind the villa development Aslan Uzun built about 4 years ago. I'm not sure if it was just that one area or if there were more areas affected but the point is, it could happen again next year only it might be extended for another couple of weeks and before you know it, we'll be into June before there's any peace and quiet! It obviously won't affect you in September but it may do in future years so please give some thought to signing the petition!

john wike

Would love to sign petition but cant find it!!

ClubPatara

Hi John

The petition is on the ENJOY KALKAN website. Without publishing the link on here which is against the rules im sure you can find the site via google

Jon

Tucker

You villa owners need to keep a closer watch on what the Belediye is permitting and the longer term future of Kalkan - see Kendalian's last post on the Tripadvisor website for the link to details of their plan for Kalkan and a major development above Kalamar Bay.

Kalamar Bay

Hi Tucker, the major development you and Kendalian mention is the LeVanta project which is not in fact in Kalamar Bay but more, i believe off the Kalamar Road down by and beyond the Regency Hotel. There have been several articles on the development in some of the UK sunday national newspapers. The Sunday Times reported on it on 30th March 2007. The articles have certainly 'sold' Kalkan as the beautiful place we all know it to be. So as a villa owner its good free advertising for those that may want to rent out their villas.

ClubPatara

Hi everyone,

Just to keep you all updated - 57 signatures...... Thank you for your support!

Lets see if we can hit 100 !

Jon

Icaru

Two years ago this mayor allowed building and stonework to continue in front of our pool throughout the summer, throughout august. We went several times to the Belediye, called the Jandarm who also came several times to stop the workers, we sent a letter to the Ankara and Antalya government offices responsible for tourism and building infractions -- all to no avail. The construction workers continued on and I suspect are the people responsible for the only break-in and theft we had in Kalkan (in revenge).

Petitioning the mayor is a nice idea but this mayor is impervious to anyone telling him anything. I will give you a very recent example of what can happen if you bring yourself to the mayor's attention.

A week ago I received a phone call from a very distraught and sobbing Turkish friend. She and her husband own a B&B in town. This pansyon is the only source of their income, and is of course seasonal.

At a recent local town meeting prior to this phone call, the husband had protested the installation of a sewage pipe destined to dumping sewage into the harbor, just near Ibo beach. This pipe is designated 'an alternative' dump whenever the regular sewage plant isn't working, for example, a cut in electricity (frequent), or a breakdown of any kind.

Her husband protested and said an alternative solution should be used (as did several others on the mayor's committee). Our dear Mayor reportedly said "You are telling ME what to do?" With that he emphatically stated that no alternative plans would be considered further and the discussion was closed. The pipe is going to dump in the harbor when the sewage plant is out of operation.

About a week after this meeting my friend heard a crashing noise in her garden. The Belediye had sent in without warning a bulldozer to smash it's way through the garden wall, their barbecue, their solar panels. All smashed to pieces. The bulldozer operator only said he was opening the way for the infamous pipe which just happened to pass through the back part of their garden.

This is the beginning of tourist season. How do you operate an Bed & Breakfast with no hot water (no solar panels) ... no amenities like a barbecue and a shady garden to sit in? All totally destroyed. In other words, their possibility of seasonal income is nil until they raise the money to rebuild their walls, buy and install new solar panels, redo the garden and rebuild the barbecue. As you might imagine, this is a facility with 12 guest rooms, so the need for large panels and hot water is imperative to their economic survival.

The Belediye has not responded to complaints and the matter has now gone to the Ankara government and there will undoubtedly be a court case. Every Turk in Kalkan knows about this.

Another example.

A foreign resident told me that the new company collecting garbage is burning toxic plastics in the open air just near his house. He told me this releases toxic gas into the air. He went to the Belediye and QUIETLY suggested that this is not the correct way to dispose of plastic waste. He told me he dare not make too much noise as he is afraid his residence and/or work permit might be rescinded or never renewed. He could be right.

This very thing happened to yet another British woman in Kalkan. She set up a biz with a Turkish partner. Some local owners didn't like the competition and denounced that biz, saying that the British woman's work permit had expired or was up for renewal. The Jandarm came and closed the business the next day. The shop owner had to go to Ankara to prove that the work permit of her partner was valid.

Moral of this story. Be careful about putting your name on docs that will be seen by the Belediye. Until this government changes, you've little hope of gaining anything or even of being heard. Criticism is not taken lightly.

And PS. The federal government is cracking down this year on tax evaders and foreigners working 'illegally'. Read Zaman online.