Streets of Bursa to reflect its history

The Osmangazi Municipality has started work to improve and restore Osmangazi Blind and Üftade Street in the Tophane neighborhood, where the historical texture is most dense. The bid for the third street will open in the following days.

Reflecting the history
Osmangazi Blind, located between Bey Palace and the sepulchers of founding Ottoman Sultans Orhan the First and Osman the First and also one of the streets that managed to preserve its traditional architecture, is soon to look like its neighbor, Kale Street, which reflects Bursa’s historical background. All the buildings will be handled within the context of the project.

 The pavement and infrastructure will be removed and the façade of the buildings will be made compatible with the area’s historical texture. Recep Altepe, mayor of Osmangazi, said in a statement that the municipality is serious on this matter.

Altepe said they were the only municipality that received awards from the Union Of Historical Towns three years in a row. Also, they are the third Turkish municipality to join the World Union Of Historical towns, after Istanbul and Konya.

Altepe said they would carry out every project that would recreate Bursa’s historical atmosphere. "Our projects of non-physical cultural heritage from 2005 are in the agenda of UNESCO now. We are sharing experiences on every subject with relevant people and organizations." Altepe said the improvements of the streets would strengthen the city’s identity.

"Kale Street, which was the model restoration project years ago, is still being visited and photographed as ’The Street of Bursa,’ but we have a lot of streets that need attention," said Altepe. The restoration work is expected to last six months and cost YTL 250,000.