Foreign architects to help redesign Turkestan city

TURKESTAN. KAZINFORM - Foreign architects will participate in the drawing-up of the general city planning scheme of Turkestan, which has become the regional center, said Mayor Alipbek Usserbayev, Kazinform correspondent reports.

The mayor said that an international contest of architects will be held in the city next month. The best designs of this contest will be included in the general city planning scheme. The main thing is that most of the future building should be Oriental-style. Moreover, it is required that the buildings should be modern and, at the same time, carry the spirit of history. Special importance will be given to the quality external appearance of the buildings because they are to keep in line with the historical city.

According to Deputy Head of the Regional Construction Department Yerbol Akhmetov, construction works in the downtown of Turkestan will commence right after the contest. It is expected that 300 hectares of land in the center of the eastern part of Turkestan will become a construction site.

"Turkestan is not a seismically hazardous region. In addition, groundwater is deep here. This, in turn, results in a low cost of construction because it requires lower expenditure compared to other regions having clay soil," Yerbol Akhmetov said.