Turkey prepares to carry out a multi-million U.S. dollar restoration project to renew its historic Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, an senior official said Tuesday, Xinhua reported.
The 100-million-dollar project will modernize the 550-year-old bazaar, one of the largest and oldest in the world, which attracts hundreds of thousands of tourists every day.
Fatih Municipality Mayor Mustafa Demir held a press conference on Tuesday to mark the 550th anniversary of the bazaar which was established in 1461, and also explained the progress of the current assessment project.
The ongoing assessment project, which costs 10 million dollars, has identified specific restoration tasks, Demir said. "We want the bazaar to become a location where trade can be done comfortably."
The assessment will be completed at the end of 2011 when the project will begin upon approval by the assembly, he added.
The project will be funded by the owners of more than 1,200 stores in the bazaar, according to the Grand Bazaar administration.
The restoration project is expected to take up to five years once approved.
"It will become a nicer bazaar, and of course, become even more profitable," Demir said.