Tunalı Hilmi Caddesi

About Tunalı Hilmi Caddesi

Tunalı Hilmi Caddesi is a busy shopping street in the Kavaklıdere neighbourhood of Çankaya. Both sides of the street are lined with shops, cafés and restaurants, branches of well-known brands and small shopping arcades, and several countries have embassy buildings along it. The street's character is closely tied to Kuğulu Park, which sits at its head and makes a natural start or finish to a stroll. Until 1964 it was called Özdemir Caddesi; it was then renamed after Tunalı Hilmi Bey, a leading figure of the Young Turk and Turkish nationalist movements who served as a deputy in the 1st, 3rd and 4th terms of the Turkish Grand National Assembly. A statue of him was put up at the entrance to Kuğulu Park in 2006. Once fully closed to traffic, the street is now open to one-way traffic, and parking is in short supply. It is also a stage for street music and theatre events. In 1996 local shopkeepers founded the Kavaklıderem Association to keep the street orderly and liveable, described as Turkey's first neighbourhood association. Among the buildings along the street is the Üniversite Apartmanı, begun in 1958 by a cooperative of Ankara University academics and described as the first significant building put up on the street. Tunalı Hilmi pairs well with Kuğulu Park and the shops and cafés of the surrounding Kavaklıdere streets.