Conservation project of Kurtulus Sports Club building (Tatavla Hercules Gymnastics Association)

Kurtuluş, formerly known as Tatavla, is a historic neighbourhood in Beyoglu, Istanbul, Turkey. It is located on the north upper parts of Golden Horn, and surrounded by Feriköy in the north, Kasımpaşa in the south, Dolapdere in the east and Cindere in the West. The first settlement in the area started during the reign of Sultan Süleyman of the Ottoman Empire, in the 16th century. The first building of the district was Hagia Dimitri Church, which became the first town centre. Early residents of the settlement were the war prisoners that were captured by the Ottoman Navy during naval battles. All early settlers of Tatavla had Greek origins, which later lead for other Greek settlers such as merchants to prefer taking up their residence in this region. During the Ottoman Reign the Greek population of Tatavla kept increasing. Towards the end of 18th century, the neighbourhood had a population of ca. 20,000 that only consisted of Greek Orthodox people. There was even a period where keeping the population of Tatavla solely Greek Orthodox was ensured by a law. Tatavla remained one of the most crowded neighbourhoods of minority in Istanbul well into the 20th century, with its residents making more permanent investments for their society such as schools, leisure centres, clubs, etc. Thus, Tatavla became a significant city centre of Istanbul. After the establishment of the Turkish Republic, the Greek population in Tatavla started to decrease. There was a population exchange between modern Turkey and Greece, where the Greek population of Turkey were exchanged with the Turkish population in Greece. Although this exchange did not include Istanbul Greeks, a proportion of them started to immigrate to Greece. The two main events that had a more impact on the Greek population of Tatavla however, occurred later. The first of these two is the great fire of Tatavla. As a settlement that mostly consisted of attached timber houses, the neighbourhood was vulnerable to fires, which resulted in a lot of destruction in cases of fire. The biggest fire in the area happened in 1929, which destroyed most of the dwellings and stores. The name of the neighbourhood was changed into "Kurtuluş" (Salvation) for surviving such a disaster. The second event that most greatly affected the settlers was the incidents of 6-7 September 1955. Due to a diplomatic crisis between Turkey and Greece, there were riots all over the country targeting Greek neighbourhoods. Many Greek stores and buildings were damaged by rioters. After the incidents, and the soon following verdict of deportation for people of Greek origins to Greece, the decrease of Greek population of Tatavla/Kurtuluş became steeper. This dramatic decline in population was followed by new settlers starting to immigrate to the region from Anatolia during 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. The striking change in the social fabric of the region reflected on the architectural 'texture', with multi-storeyed apartments replacing the timber dwellings and other low storey buildings from Kurtuluş's Ottoman Period. Nowadays approximately 500 Greek residents remain in Kurtuluş. Its population is dominated by the Anatolian settlers, with a small addition of Syrian, African and Eastern European immigrants. There are still remaining buildings that sustain the Greek heritage in Kurtuluş such as churches, schools, a bath and a sports club: Kurtuluş Sports Club. Kurtuluş Sports Club, or as it was originally established, Tatavla Hercules Gymnastics Association, is one of the most important remnants of the Greek period in Tatavla/Kurtuluş region. It is situated near the Hagia Dimitri Church that shaped the old town centre. The club building has been constructed after the year 1899, and served as headquarters to two of the major Greek associations of Tatavla; The Educational Brotherhood of 'Proodos' and Tatavla 'Hercules' Gymnastics Associaton. The name of the building's architect, N. G. Parlos, was engraved on its entrance façade, and he was one of the registered Greek architects of the time. The Educational Brotherhood of Proodos served as a charitable association to the Tatavla Greek Orthodox community by financing the education of children in need. Tatavla Hercules Gymnastics Association on the other hand, trained athletes, and served as a gym to the two Greek schools in the area. The two institutions were the result of the minority associations movement that started during the Tanzimat era, a period in Ottoman history where many reforms were made in the intent of modernisation. During this period, the minority people throughout the empire acquired many privileges in areas such as ownership, entrepreneurship and common law. Hundreds of Greek minority associations were founded in many cities such as Istanbul, Izmir, Thessaloniki at this time in order to promote the newly established, independent Greece's identity and heritage among the Greeks of the Ottoman Empire. In the last years of the Ottoman Reign The Educational Brotherhood of Proodos helped educate many unfortunate Greek children, while Tatavla Hercules Gymnastics Association trained many important sportsmen, sent athletes to the Olympic Games and even brought back gold medals. Once the Ottoman Empire collapsed, and the Republic of Turkey was established, the members of the Proodos Brotherhood left the country. The members of the Hercules Association remained however, and continued their activities in the two associations' headquarters with their new name; 'Tatavla Sports Club'. The club and its building went through every change the district of Tatavla, and later Kurtuluş went through and adapted accordingly. They survived the great fire of 1929 and the incidents of 1955. The club building itself has a special significance with its wood engraved gym ceiling and well-preserved structure. To this day, Kurtuluş Sports Club still serves as a sports club for the neighbourhood, despite the change of identity in the area. As a functioning cultural heritage building in a changing environment, the Club presents a challenge for the conservation of its architectural and intangible heritage. This study firstly aims to understand the context this building was built in. With this purpose, the history of the building's neighbourhood was thoroughly analysed. Moreover, the position of the Greek minority within the Empire during the 19th century was analysed through the noteworthy changes in Ottoman Empire's social structure. The significance and the role of the minority associations in building a nation's cultural identity were examined with an emphasis on sports associations. After establishing Kurtuluş Sports Club's building context, it was aimed to conserve the historic building and its Sports Club function in the changing neighbourhood without losing its identity. In this light, the building was surveyed, and its detailed surveying project was prepared. The club building is masonry with timber floorings, and consists of an elevated ground floor, a first floor and a basement that opens to the backyard. On the club's ground floor, there's a small entrance hall with the main stairs leading to the first floor, the club president's office, the board of directors' room, a management office, the sports hall and a restroom. On the first floor, there's a club hall with the club's sports memorabilia, a small kitchen and the sports hall stands. The basement has two locker rooms for boys and girls, a storage room, the club groundskeeper's lodge with a small kitchen and a bathroom, the club theatre hall and two public restrooms. There is also a wide passage that leads to the backyard with the open sports fields and storage spaces. The club building is well-preserved with the personal efforts of the club president and directors. Still, through the years the building went through several changes. Some of the timber building materials such as railings, windows and doors were repeatedly painted over to preserve the material, which resulted in loss of original details. Most of the original timber windows were replaced with PVC windows that contradict with the original construction. There is also some visible water damage on some walls and ceilings due to poor water drainage on the roof. With the help of the old photos of the building, old maps of the area and the statements of the club workers, the earlier conditions of the building was derived and a restitution project for the original state of the club building was created. According to the Pervititch map from the year 1925 of the area some key differences between the building's original and current state were determined. In the old map the backyard passage through the basement did not exist. From this map, it is also clear that the storage room in the backyard and the public restrooms in the basement are later additions to the building. Furthermore, photos taken in the early 20th century in the club backyard shows a door on the rear façade, connecting the theatre hall and the backyard. Another important change that occurred is on the windows. There are four windows on the original building that were completely covered up, while most of the remaining window openings were made smaller and replaced with PVC windows. The kitchen area in the club hall is also a recent addition to the space. All these additions and changes were also confirmed by interviewing the club workers. Finally, a restoration and modern use proposal was developed under the main parts of conserving the building structurally with as much of its original building materials as possible, and with the aim of preserving the club's original function while creating a connection between the club's past, present and future. In the light of the research and analysis over the area and the club building, the restoration and modern use proposal for the Kurtuluş Sports Club was collected under two main parts. The first part of the proposal focuses on conserving the building structurally with as much of its original building materials as possible. In order to keep the building structurally intact during the rest of its lifespan, the structural elements and the deteriorated building materials should be strengthened. The later additions and changes such as PVC windows and the drywall contradict with the building's original features, thus should be removed and replaced with timber windows that were built in accordance with the original designs. Another contradicting addition, the backyard passage is an addition that changed the building wall it was attached to and the user circulation irreversibly. Since no deterioration on the adjacent building wall was documented, its removal was not necessary, though it was highly suggested that the contrast between this new addition and the original features should be heightened in order to make the changes more noticeable. The second part of the proposal aims to preserve the club's main function and to make a connection with the club's past and future. The club itself preserved its main function as a sports club quite well. It has male and female students from every age and there's a team practice every day. The club competes in amateur leagues, and has a team of veterans that come together regularly to play honorary matches in the club sports hall. The board of directors gather together weekly to discuss the club's matters. Nevertheless, the building maintains many rarely used spaces in the basement and on the first floor, such as the theatre hall and the adjoining backyard and the club hall. Therefore, two new additional functions for the building is proposed to support the club and bring the different communities of Kurtuluş together. The small Greek population of Kurtuluş is quite intertwined with each other. Plus, the old residents that immigrated to Greece visit their old neighbourhood often and come together on special occasions. However, the old residents are not as well connected with the rest of their neighbours of Anatolian origins and foreign immigrants anymore. In this regard, it is suggested as the first additional function that the theatre hall and the bordering spaces should be re-purposed as an event hall that serves all the residents and visitors of Kurtuluş. It is aimed that the newly purposed area would serve as a platform to get in touch with different parts of Kurtuluş society, and to create familiarity between the old residents and the new. For this purpose, the passage to the theatre hall and the backyard was designed as a cafeteria area that will also serve to the backyard. The theatre hall is re-organised as a multi-purpose hall in order to conserve the original function and the building materials. Furthermore, the later added conflicting storage unit in the backyard is suggested to be removed to make the original rear façade more visible, and to create a more functional open space for the cafeteria. The second additional function for the building is mainly in consideration of the visitors of Kurtuluş. With its historic aspect the building maintains a significance fort he whole community as well as the Greek minority. In order to create public awareness of a building with such a history, it is suggested that the club hall space on the first floor should be re-purposed as a mini-museum and research centre. The museum's theme should focus on the lesser known part of the sports history as well as the history of the Greek minority. The club building with its new functions should have a place in the İstanbul sightseeing routes that centres around minority heritage.