FROM MINING TO LEISURE

The creative concept for Karınca Valley originated from various post closure ideas to re-purpose the Çayeli Bakır mine site.
Çayeli Bakır has been extracting ore from the underground mine on this site for a long time. After more than 20 years of mining operations the resource will be depleted and the mining activity will cease in 2021. The owners of the lands in cooperation with the surrounding community plan to rehabilitate the area to make it into an attractive place for local people as well as for the many tourists that visit the region each year.
The location of the mine site is not your typical mining landscape. The mine is surrounded by tea plantations and situated in a semi-residential area of the picturesque Büyükdere Valley. To honor this natural resource (real ore) and generate a future use for the site the united vision of the surrounding community and company management is to re-purpose the mine into a very special amusement and leisure park. A park that will have all-weather attractions and appeal to visitors of all ages.
Karınca Valley celebrates the area’s mining, tea cultivation, local traditions and cultural heritage to create a unique leisure facility with modern attractions connecting the past and the future. This highly integrated concept is expected to appeal to both the local population as well as the many tourists that come to visit this region each year. The diverse appeal of Karınca Valley, a tourism development with world class attractions in a growing tourism sector represents a unique opportunity.