Çukurova, Adana
Encyclopedia
Çukurova is a district in the Adana Province
of Turkey
. A large portion of the district is within the city of Adana
, incorporated under the same name as a lower-tier municipality. It is a modern residential district which came into being in the last 30 years as the city expanded north. Çukurova is located north of the Seyhan
district, west of the Seyhan River
and south of the Seyhan Reservoir.
's election as the mayor of Adana, an extensive urban plan was made. The urban plan consisted of 200,000 homes, several parks, schools and shopping places to be built over the next 30 years. The project was named as New Adana and the area grew rapidly during the 1990's.
Çukurova Governorship is the district branch of the central government operating under the Adana Governorship. The chief executive of the Çukurova district is the District Governor who is appointed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Çukurova Governorship overseas the functioning of the district directorates of the ministries.
Çukurova directorate of the Adana Province Special Administration is the district branch of the provincial administration. Çukurova district is represented with 7 members at the 61-member Adana Provincial Parliament.
Çukurova district is divided into Çukurova municipality and the villages.
Çukurova Municipality was incorporated in 2008 as a lower-tier municipality of the city of Adana, after the split of the northern section from Seyhan district. The organs of the Çukurova Municipality are the mayor, the executive committee and the municipal council .
Mayor is the chief executive of the municipality, presides municipal departments and chairs the municipal council. Mayoral candidates are either nominated by the national parties or run independently. The mayor is elected by first past the post voting for a 5-year term. Yıldıray Arıkan is the mayor of Çukurova since 2009. In the local elections on March 29, 2009, he was elected with %40.7 of the popular votes. The turnout was a high of %80.4, where the total number of registered voters were 219,019.
|-
|1
|CHP
|align="right"|Yıldıray Arıkan
|align="right"|69,782
|align="right"|40.67
|-
|2
|MHP
|align="right"|Abdülkadir Üçkardeşler
|align="right"|52,269
|align="right"|30.46
|-
|3
|AKP
|align="right"|Nevzat Ardıç
|align="right"|38,771
|align="right"|22.59
|-
|4
|DTP
|align="right"|Aysel Kılıç
|align="right"|3,017
|align="right"|1.76
|-
|5
|SP
|align="right"|Yunus Topçu
|align="right"|2,153
|align="right"|1.26
|}
Encümen is the executive committee of the Çukurova Municipality.The mayor presides the encümen and the committee consists of 7 members, 3 councilors elected from the municipal council, 3 department directors appointed by the mayor and the treasurer.
Municipal Council is the decision making organ of the Çukurova Municipality. It is responsible for approving by-laws, founding, splitting or amalgamating neighborhoods, strategic planning, urban development planning and zoning, making investments, budgeting, loaning and controlling the mayor's activities. The chair of the council is the mayor. The council consists of 37 members. The candidates for the councilor positions are either nominated by National Parties or run independently. The councilors are elected by the d'Hondt method
, where the whole municipality is one electoral district and there is 10% threshold for a party to gain seat at the council. As with mayor, councilors are elected for a 5-year term. Left leaning CHP
leads the council with 18 members, Turkish nationalist MHP
has 10, conservative AKP
has 7 members at the council and two members are independent.
In Çukurova district, there are total of 11 villages: Bozcalar, Dörtler, Fadıl, Kabasakal, Karahan, Küçük Çınar, Kaşoba, Memişli, Örcün, Pirili and Söğütlü.
) are small administrative units within the municipalities, and are administered by the muhtar and the Neighborhood Seniors Council consisting of 4 members. Muhtar and the Senior Council are elected for 5 years at the local elections and are not affiliated with political parties. Neighborhoods are not an incorporation therefore do not hold government status. Muhtar, although being elected by the residents, acts merely as an administrator of the district governor. Muhtar can voice the neighborhood issues to the municipal hall together with the Seniors Council.
Çukurova has total of 16 neighborhoods, 12 of them in the urban area, 4 are outside the urban area. The neighborhoods outside the urban area are the former villages and the municipalities that annexed to the city of Adana as city borders are expanded in 2008.
and the Turgut Özal boulevard.
North of Turgut Özal Boulevard: The most scenic section of Adana, the zone is all residential, villas on the hills overlooking to the Seyhan Reservoir and high rise buildings along Turgut Özal and Süleyman Demirel Boulevards. This zone is bounded with Özal Boulevard on the south, Sadık Ahmet Boulevard on the west and Seyhan Reservoir on the north. The 4 neighborhoods of this zone are, Beyazevler, Güzelyalı, Karslılar and Kurttepe.
East of the Adana Metro: Bounded with Turgut Özal Boulevard on the east and north, Adana Metro on the west and Seyhan district on the south, this zone is heavily residential. The 3 neighborhoods of this zone are, Yurt, Mahfesığmaz and Toros.
West of the Adana Metro: Bounded by Adana Metro on the west, Turgut Özal Boulevard on the north, Tapantepe Road on the west and Seyhan district on the south, this zone is rapidly developing area of the city. Western section is zoned for low-rise and eastern section is heavily residential with high-rise buildings. The 5 neighborhoods of the zone are, Huzurevleri, Belediye Evleri, Yüzüncüyıl, Esentepe and Şambayadı.
Adana Province
Adana Province is a province of Turkey located in south-central Anatolia. With a population of 2,085,225, it is the fifth most populous province in Turkey. The administrative seat of the province is the city of Adana, home to 78% of the residents of the province...
of Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
. A large portion of the district is within the city of Adana
Adana
Adana is a city in southern Turkey and a major agricultural and commercial center. The city is situated on the Seyhan River, 30 kilometres inland from the Mediterranean, in south-central Anatolia...
, incorporated under the same name as a lower-tier municipality. It is a modern residential district which came into being in the last 30 years as the city expanded north. Çukurova is located north of the Seyhan
Seyhan
Seyhan is a district in the Adana Province of Turkey. It is completely within the city of Adana and the municipality of Seyhan is a lower-tier municipality which serves to the entire district....
district, west of the Seyhan River
Seyhan River
The Seyhan River is the longest river in Turkey that is flowing into Mediterranean Sea. The river is 560 km and flows southwest from its headwaters in the Tahtalı-Mountains in Anti-Taurus Mountains to the Mediterranean Sea via a broad delta...
and south of the Seyhan Reservoir.
Geography
The district constitutes the northern Adana. The average altitude is about 30 m (98.4 ft). The population was 343770 as of 2010.(168 411 male and 175 359 female citizens)History
The land that Çukurova district now occupies was made up of orchards, forestry and scattered villages. After Aytaç DurakAytaç Durak
Aytaç Durak is a Turkish politician, and has been the mayor of Adana since 1984, excluding one term . He is the longest serving locally elected city mayor in Turkey, currently at his 5th term. Adding his 17 years as a municipal councillor, he will have served the municipality of Adana for 42 years...
's election as the mayor of Adana, an extensive urban plan was made. The urban plan consisted of 200,000 homes, several parks, schools and shopping places to be built over the next 30 years. The project was named as New Adana and the area grew rapidly during the 1990's.
Governance
Çukurova district is administered by three levels of government; central government, provincial administration and the municipalities.Çukurova Governorship is the district branch of the central government operating under the Adana Governorship. The chief executive of the Çukurova district is the District Governor who is appointed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Çukurova Governorship overseas the functioning of the district directorates of the ministries.
Çukurova directorate of the Adana Province Special Administration is the district branch of the provincial administration. Çukurova district is represented with 7 members at the 61-member Adana Provincial Parliament.
Çukurova district is divided into Çukurova municipality and the villages.
Çukurova Municipality
There is only one municipality incorporated in the Çukurova district. Çukurova Municipality is a lower tier municipality of the city of Adana and serves most of the district. The municipality is further divided into neighborhoods.Çukurova Municipality was incorporated in 2008 as a lower-tier municipality of the city of Adana, after the split of the northern section from Seyhan district. The organs of the Çukurova Municipality are the mayor, the executive committee and the municipal council .
Mayor is the chief executive of the municipality, presides municipal departments and chairs the municipal council. Mayoral candidates are either nominated by the national parties or run independently. The mayor is elected by first past the post voting for a 5-year term. Yıldıray Arıkan is the mayor of Çukurova since 2009. In the local elections on March 29, 2009, he was elected with %40.7 of the popular votes. The turnout was a high of %80.4, where the total number of registered voters were 219,019.
|-
|1
|CHP
Republican People's Party (Turkey)
The Republican People's Party is a centre-left Kemalist political party in Turkey. It is the oldest political party of Turkey and is currently Main Opposition in the Grand National Assembly. The Republican People's Party describes itself as "a modern social-democratic party, which is faithful to...
|align="right"|Yıldıray Arıkan
|align="right"|69,782
|align="right"|40.67
|-
|2
|MHP
Nationalist Movement Party
The Nationalist Movement Party , is a far-right political party in Turkey.In the 2002 general elections, the party had lost its 129 seats as it had won only 8.34% of the national vote...
|align="right"|Abdülkadir Üçkardeşler
|align="right"|52,269
|align="right"|30.46
|-
|3
|AKP
Justice and Development Party (Turkey)
The Justice and Development Party , abbreviated JDP in English and AK PARTİ or AKP in Turkish, is a centre-right political party in Turkey. The party is the largest in Turkey, with 327 members of parliament...
|align="right"|Nevzat Ardıç
|align="right"|38,771
|align="right"|22.59
|-
|4
|DTP
Democratic Society Party
The Democratic Society Party was a Kurdish Kurdish nationalist political party in Turkey. The party considered itself social democratic, and had observer status in the Socialist International. It was considered to be the successor of the Democratic People's Party...
|align="right"|Aysel Kılıç
|align="right"|3,017
|align="right"|1.76
|-
|5
|SP
|align="right"|Yunus Topçu
|align="right"|2,153
|align="right"|1.26
|}
Encümen is the executive committee of the Çukurova Municipality.The mayor presides the encümen and the committee consists of 7 members, 3 councilors elected from the municipal council, 3 department directors appointed by the mayor and the treasurer.
Municipal Council is the decision making organ of the Çukurova Municipality. It is responsible for approving by-laws, founding, splitting or amalgamating neighborhoods, strategic planning, urban development planning and zoning, making investments, budgeting, loaning and controlling the mayor's activities. The chair of the council is the mayor. The council consists of 37 members. The candidates for the councilor positions are either nominated by National Parties or run independently. The councilors are elected by the d'Hondt method
D'Hondt method
The d'Hondt method is a highest averages method for allocating seats in party-list proportional representation. The method described is named after Belgian mathematician Victor D'Hondt who described it in 1878...
, where the whole municipality is one electoral district and there is 10% threshold for a party to gain seat at the council. As with mayor, councilors are elected for a 5-year term. Left leaning CHP
Republican People's Party (Turkey)
The Republican People's Party is a centre-left Kemalist political party in Turkey. It is the oldest political party of Turkey and is currently Main Opposition in the Grand National Assembly. The Republican People's Party describes itself as "a modern social-democratic party, which is faithful to...
leads the council with 18 members, Turkish nationalist MHP
Nationalist Movement Party
The Nationalist Movement Party , is a far-right political party in Turkey.In the 2002 general elections, the party had lost its 129 seats as it had won only 8.34% of the national vote...
has 10, conservative AKP
Justice and Development Party (Turkey)
The Justice and Development Party , abbreviated JDP in English and AK PARTİ or AKP in Turkish, is a centre-right political party in Turkey. The party is the largest in Turkey, with 327 members of parliament...
has 7 members at the council and two members are independent.
Villages
Villages are the administrative units outside the municipal areas and are administered by the muhtar and the Village Seniors Council. The council can have 4, 5 or 6 members depending on the population of the village. Unlike the neighborhood muhtars, village muhtars are granted special powers and the village administration is considered to be a governmental body.In Çukurova district, there are total of 11 villages: Bozcalar, Dörtler, Fadıl, Kabasakal, Karahan, Küçük Çınar, Kaşoba, Memişli, Örcün, Pirili and Söğütlü.
Neighborhoods
Neighborhoods (MahalleMahalle
Mahalle is an Arabic word, adopted into Turkish which is variously translated as district, quarter, ward, or "neighborhood." It is an official administrative unit in many Middle Eastern countries. In the Ottoman Empire the mahalle was the smallest administrative entity...
) are small administrative units within the municipalities, and are administered by the muhtar and the Neighborhood Seniors Council consisting of 4 members. Muhtar and the Senior Council are elected for 5 years at the local elections and are not affiliated with political parties. Neighborhoods are not an incorporation therefore do not hold government status. Muhtar, although being elected by the residents, acts merely as an administrator of the district governor. Muhtar can voice the neighborhood issues to the municipal hall together with the Seniors Council.
Çukurova has total of 16 neighborhoods, 12 of them in the urban area, 4 are outside the urban area. The neighborhoods outside the urban area are the former villages and the municipalities that annexed to the city of Adana as city borders are expanded in 2008.
Neighborhoods in the urban area
The urban neighborhoods of Çukurova are spread into 3 distinctive zones. The major separators of these zones are the Adana MetroAdana Metro
Adana Metro is a rail rapid transit system extending 14 km on the north-south corridor of Adana. It has 13 stations and can transport 21,600 passengers per hour one-way...
and the Turgut Özal boulevard.
North of Turgut Özal Boulevard: The most scenic section of Adana, the zone is all residential, villas on the hills overlooking to the Seyhan Reservoir and high rise buildings along Turgut Özal and Süleyman Demirel Boulevards. This zone is bounded with Özal Boulevard on the south, Sadık Ahmet Boulevard on the west and Seyhan Reservoir on the north. The 4 neighborhoods of this zone are, Beyazevler, Güzelyalı, Karslılar and Kurttepe.
East of the Adana Metro: Bounded with Turgut Özal Boulevard on the east and north, Adana Metro on the west and Seyhan district on the south, this zone is heavily residential. The 3 neighborhoods of this zone are, Yurt, Mahfesığmaz and Toros.
West of the Adana Metro: Bounded by Adana Metro on the west, Turgut Özal Boulevard on the north, Tapantepe Road on the west and Seyhan district on the south, this zone is rapidly developing area of the city. Western section is zoned for low-rise and eastern section is heavily residential with high-rise buildings. The 5 neighborhoods of the zone are, Huzurevleri, Belediye Evleri, Yüzüncüyıl, Esentepe and Şambayadı.