Conservation problems and solution proposals of Ottoman period civil architecture examples in Soma

Settlement had started in the 15th century in the present known historical center of Soma district of Manisa province. According to the researches and construction periods in the area, the first established neighborhoods were Karamanlı and Cuma, then Samsacı, Namazgah and Hamidiye Neighborhoods. With this sequence, district center had expanded stratifyingly from the 15th century to 19-20th century. In Soma which represents a typical small-medium avarage scale Ottoman city, there are traditional residential areas located around historical commercial center. In residential areas an ethnic settlement distinction has been observed as Greek and Turkish. Soma has the value to be a researchable subject with the important monumental structures such as khan (large commercial building), hammam (bath), bedesten (covered bazaar), mosques and tradional Turkish housing. However with the insufficient conservation and lack of conservation consciousness, the cultural values of Soma has gone through the process of loss. Therefore a preparation of work has needed to arise to examine the values of Soma. In this study, which is based on the Soma urban site boundary, the traditional housing typologies of Soma have been revealed with tissue analysis. In order to ensure the sustainability of the traditional settlement pattern in the area, solutions were proposed for the identified conservation problems.