A new theme park is set to be constructed in the ören district of Muğla with a total investment of $3.2 billion. A total of 17,000 people will be employed as part of the project, titled the Mediterranean Integrated Amusement Center, which has already received approval. The project will come into being after the final approval is published in the Official Gazette.
The Disneyland in Paris and the Heidi Park in Germany are two of the models on which the project, to be created on a 5,200-acre lot in the Aegean city of Muğla, will be based. Prepared by the Konsept Yatırım Destinasyon”s manager and tourism agent Tekin Erdoğan the resort will embrace the entire Mediterranean. Construction work will take about two years.
12,000 visitors a day
The amusement park in Muğla is set to be bigger than Disneyland Paris, and the Ottoman Seljuk architecture is expected to give life to the complex. Animation shows and Disney characters will welcome 12,000 visitors a day to this all-star resort, which will include seven-star hotels and 8,000-bed capacity accommodations bringing the log house concept together with technology. Construction of a dock is also going to be part of the project in order to bring in more people by ferries and yachts.
Investment cut due to power plant
Erdoğan, the man behind this large undertaking, said the park had not received any investments due to the Gökova power plant in the region, even though it is a perfect fit for tourism. “There wasn”t any investor in the region because of the power plant. We designed this project for more employment and fresh blood in tourism. We wanted to create a different tourism concept. We drafted amusement park blueprints.”
The ministry”s support
Babakan Olcaysü, the district”s investment concept license holder, said he applied to the Prime Ministry on Dec. 28, 2007 and the decision came out three days later. The Council of Ministers, Culture and Tourism Ministry and 74 affiliated institutions also approved the project and they control subsequent decisions. “With a budget of $3.2 billion, this investment will bring additional value to the country”s economy and provide employment for tens of thousands of people in construction, investment and operation stages,” said Olcaysü, adding that the infrastructure is ready for the amusement park.
Theme park investment in Ankara suspended
The Theme Park Joint Venture Group, which has been working for three years on the construction of a theme park in Ankara, has recently suspended its investment in the area. The group had made up a proposal for the purchase of the area in the city”s Ballıkuyumcu district with the support of foreign investors and finance companies three years ago and did the necessary feasibility and master plan studies of the area after consulting with Ankara Metropolitan Municipality. The fact that TOKİ opened the area to the settlement of the cooperatives despite the offer from the group and the fact that the size of the area allocated for the construction of a theme park was decreased to 3.8 square kilometers seem to be the major reasons behind the suspension of the group”s investment in the area. Turkey”s Mass Housing Organization, or TOKİ, has put a 3.8-square-kilometer park in Ankara”s Ballıkuyumcu district up for sale on the condition that a theme park will be opened in the area. Authorities note, however, that the Theme Park Joint Venture Group will not attend the bidding.
Resource: Doğan News Agency
