ABSTRACT
The Istanbul European Capital of Culture 2010 is a case expanded to a much greater scale and the subsequent struggles resulting from the complexity of its context. Istanbul heavily promoted its built heritage during the event, allocating a majority of the event funding to physical restoration works. However, due to the centralised system in Turkey, the development and management of the ECoC struggled from the lack of a singular vision. Additionally, the event was not embedded within any long-term strategic plans of the metropolitan municipality and was ultimately caught between decision makers at different levels with contrasting visions for the event and the city’s heritage. The case of Istanbul serves as an opportunity to test the limits of the mega-event as a regeneration tool when spread across vast areas of the city rather than focused in a single area or district. While the city succeeded in promoting new ideas of the city’s cultural heritage, the lack of long-term planning and funding negatively impacted a number of projects following the ECoC, in some cases even abandoned and left in worse condition than before the event.
