ICON OF ANKARA: ATAKULE
There are many architectural structures that come to mind when Ankara is mentioned. As T-Cod Architecture, we will talk about Atakule, which is one of the most striking with its architectural structure and has managed to become the symbol of Ankara.
Built by the architect Ragıp Buluç in the late 1980s, this unique building is Turkey's second and Ankara's first shopping mall. The tower, named after the people of Ankara with a competition, was built entirely by Turkish engineers and workers. The building, which consists of two main parts, a shopping center and a tower, has become an important tourism center of Ankara with its architectural structure and location. The feature that distinguishes Atakule from its peers is undoubtedly that it offers its guests a city view with its revolving restaurant. This famous tower of Ankara with its revolving restaurant rotates around its axis every hour. It is possible to watch the whole view of Ankara in this restaurant that rotates 360 degrees. The tower with an observation terrace, one of the first restaurants with a rotating platform in Turkey, gives the building a monumental and symbolic quality with its technological feature. The reinforced concrete structure, built at a height of 125 meters, reaches the observation terrace at an altitude of 87 meters with two elevators that dominate the city view at the ascent and descent. There is a Cafe-Bar floor under the viewing terrace and a restaurant floor with a rotating platform above it. After the tower changed hands in 2009, the new owner of the building, Atakule Gayrimenkul Yatırım Ortaklığı A.Ş. decided to make some modifications and arrangements for the current requirements in the project. The revolving platform on the tower was preserved, and the lower mass was adjusted according to the new requirements. The starting point of these arrangements was a continuity relationship that was tried to be established by preserving the nature of the Botanical Park as well as the functional setup. It was focused on the idea of protecting the tower and its immediate surroundings by taking special precautions, demolishing the mass surrounding it and reconstructing it to meet the needs, especially with the aim of increasing the parking lot. Specially illuminated façade details were also developed in the building, where glass, bronze, and wood materials were used together, and it was restored to its new state.
This monumental building, which has become one of the symbols of Ankara, continues to host its guests with its Ankara view and many other facilities.
