Foundation of Izmir Municipality in XIX. Century 
The emergence of local administrations during the era of the Ottoman Empire generally occurred after the second half of the 19th century. Although "Provinces municipality law" dated 1877 is the first legal regulation related to the municipality, it is possible to say that the organization of the municipality as an urban service institution in Turkiye dates back to the second half of the 19th century. Organizations of municipality emerged in port cities of the empire such as Istanbul, Izmir, and Thessaloniki. In addition to the fact that these cities were the significant trade centers of the empire and multi-cultural social fabric, they had led to the development of municipality organizations in these cities for the first time. 

Europe’s economic expansion following the Industrial Revolution not only transformed the Ottoman ports such as Izmir, Thessaloniki, and Istanbul into a market open to the West in the 19th century but also led to the initiation of urban infrastructure services from transportation to communication in these cities. Foreigners trading at the Ottoman ports used to mention the inadequacy of infrastructure services of the Ottoman cities all the time.

Following the constitution of Altinci Daire-i Belediye in Istanbul established as the first municipal organization of the Ottoman Empire and by taking Paris municipality as an example, Levanter family companies trading in Izmir and many consulates began to Express their request for constitution of a similar municipality office in Izmir like Istanbul from the beginning in the 1860’s. 

It is understood by a document in Prime Ministry Ottoman archive in Istanbul that the Ottoman Empire allowed the foundation of a municipality office in Izmir on 25th November 1867. 

It is emphasized in the said document that foreign merchants and capital owners should be presented at the city council. Works for foundation of Izmir municipality after Altinci Daire-i Belediye in Istanbul were initiated on 25th November 1867 and official works were initiated as of 1868. 

Even if sources do not indicate who the first mayor of Izmir was, it is known that a person called Mr. Suleyman among the first mayors of Izmir is expressed in the Trade Directory of Huseyin Rifat. In addition to these, the first mayor was Yenisehirlizade Ahmet Efendi becoming Izmir’s mayor in 1875 according to the sources.

Decision on the Establishment of the Municipality of Izmir 
According to a document found in the Ottoman Archives of the Presidential State Archives, the Ottoman State authorized the establishment of a municipal office in Izmir on November 25, 1867. 

The document in question emphasized that Levantine merchants and capital owners should also be represented in the Municipal Council. In the light of these developments, the official establishment of the municipality in İzmir was announced on November 25, 1867, and Izmir Municipality started its activities in 1868 with the necessary arrangements. As a matter of fact, this development was reported in the newspaper Ruzname-yi Ceride-yi Havadis dated December 31, 1867, with the following lines: “We have received news that the sultan has given permission for the establishment of such a municipality in Izmir since the establishment of a municipal department has been recognized by everyone as having visible benefits.”

The 1880 salname indicates that until 1877, when the Municipality Law was enacted, the Izmir Municipal Council did not have a presence, and that there were two municipal departments and two separate chiefs and committees, revealing the ethnic/religious structure of the city. The First Municipal Department served the areas of the city where the Turkish and Jewish population was concentrated, while the Second Department served the harbor area from the First Kordon to Punta, where Levantines, Greeks, and Armenians lived. The two departments were merged in 1889 due to the municipality’s financial crisis. In 1878, under the leadership of Governor Halil Rıfat Pasha, İzmir transformed in terms of development and services, while the municipality’s administration went through a period of purges and elections, and the situation of the municipality became clearer under the governors of İzmir, Abdurrahman Pasha, Hasan Fehmi Pasha and Kamil Pasha.


 
Document on the Establishment of the Municipality of Izmir

Mayors of Izmir and Their Activities
From 1868 until the Republican era, the mayors who served in the Municipality of Izmir transformed Izmir into a modern Westernized city with their infrastructure services. Although the available sources do not show us exactly who the first mayor of İzmir was, it is known that Hüseyin Rıfat’s Commercial Guide mentions the name Süleyman Bey among the first mayors of İzmir. Despite this, the first mayor identified in historical sources is Yenişehirlizade Ahmet Efendi, who became the mayor of İzmir in 1875.

 
In 1895, upon the resignation of Evliyazade Hacı Mehmet, Eşref Pasha was appointed as the acting mayor, and the municipality developed organizationally. During this period, it is known that the income and services provided by the Izmir Municipality were extremely limited, and Eşref Pasha tried to provide services by expanding the limited income opportunities.


 
Inauguration of the City Hall in Izmir
Following the proclamation of the Constitutional Monarchy, Uşakizade Muammer Bey, who became mayor in the July 1909 elections, was praised for his work. Mahmut Muhtar Pasha, who was appointed Governor of Aydın after Kazım Pasha’s short tenure, clashed with the municipal council over the opening of new streets and the division of municipal service areas (such as Buca) into new departments. The process continues until Muammer Bey is dismissed and resigns, and Ali Nazım Bey becomes the mayor.

Founded in 1895, İzmir Suları Anonim Şirketi started to supply water to certain points and public fountains in September 1898. However, the water problem related to the failure to extend the network continued until the Republican period.

The municipality under the administration of Ali Nazım Bey was formed in line with the instructions of the governorship, and after the municipal elections in 1911, Dr. Taşlızade Edhem, who received the least number of votes, was appointed as the mayor in an unconventional approach.

The new municipal committee, headed by Dr. Taşlızade Edhem, divided the city into municipal districts, and the municipal police regulations were adopted for İzmir after İstanbul.

The political conflicts that emerged as a result of the manifestation of the turbulent process that started in the Balkans in the local area of İzmir continued until 1913, when Nazım Pasha, who was appointed Governor of Aydın in 1913, appointed Evliyazade Refik Bey to replace Kantarağası Ali Bey in the new municipal election.


 
First Cordon After the Fire
In 1914, Rahmi Bey, an influential member of the Committee of Union and Progress administration, replaced Nazım Pasha, the Governor of Aydın, and his term of office in İzmir between 1913 and 1918 brought an atmosphere of stability.

In 1919, there was an effort to prove an ethnic majority in the municipal elections. Osmanzade Hacı Hasan Pasha’s mayoralty, which began in February 1919, was a period of political and social turmoil in the city and the Greek occupation. With the Treaty of Sèvres, the High Commissioner of the occupation forces extended the restructuring initiated during the occupation to the province without making any changes in the municipal administration.

During the occupation period, Eşrefpaşa Venereal Diseases Hospital was closed down and its doctors and administrators were dismissed; the hospital became an outpatient dispensary; the number of beds in Gureba Hospital (now the State Hospital in Konak) was reduced; Hacı Hasan Pasha, the mayor of the period, got on good terms with the occupation administration and received a salary increase; and when he heard that the Turks were advancing on Izmir after the August 30 Victory, he fled from his home in Güzelyalı to Lesbos on the gulf ferry.

Governor Abdülhalik Bey, who served temporarily after the occupation, and the municipal council, which was formed during his tenure, elected Şükrü Kaya as mayor by secret ballot; Evliyazade Refik served as mayor once again due to his short tenure as an MP.

As the 1922 fire exacerbated the difficulties and needs, the Takrir-i Sükun Law, which followed the Sheikh Sait uprising, brought a measure of stability to the Izmir Municipality.

After the 1922 fire, the municipality received the necessary equipment during the period of Uşakidaze Muammer Bey and the fire brigade staff was increased to 40 people.

Since 1923, municipalities have played a major role in the efforts to take concrete steps toward civilization that began in the Republican era.

In 1924, in an election held to renew the structure of the municipal council, the candidates of the People’s Party formed the council, and Uşakizade Muammer Bey was re-elected as the mayor of İzmir. The fire in the movie theater in Kokaryalı brought the conflicts in the municipal administration to the surface, Uşakizade Muammer Bey resigned citing his health, on December 8, former governor Aziz Akyürek, who was also a member of the council, was elected mayor. During the reign of Aziz Akyürek, regular working conditions were established in the municipality, the Hoizler Company commissioned a sewerage plan, a slaughterhouse was established through a Turkish company, an electric tramway was operated and an electricity factory was put into service in Darağaç.

Between 1925 and 1930, two more municipal elections were held in İzmir, Dr. Hulusi Alataş and Sezai Söker served after Mr. Aziz, and the press refrained from criticizing the municipality due to the effect of the law.

In 1930, Municipalities Law No. 1580 expanded the service area of municipalities and defined their duties in detail. With the new law, the municipal council is elected and Sezai Söker becomes the mayor. Due to falling municipal revenues as a result of the economic depression and the floods, it was a difficult period for Mr. Sezai, he resigned and Behçet Salih (Uz) was elected in his place in 1931.

Izmir Municipality, which was known to be in a state of bankruptcy at the time of its election, was only able to construct Gazi Boulevard between 1922 and 1930. In the 1930s, Izmir Municipality gave priority to opening streets, paving roads and sewage works in construction works.

The plan for the reconstruction of the fire area entered into force in August 1925 with the approval of the Izmir Municipal Council and the approval of the Provincial Administrative Council. By 1930, Izmir has a vibrant construction sector. The plan (Danger - Prost), which was put into effect in 1932, has largely disappeared from practice. The only construction in accordance with the plan was the arrangement of Cumhuriyet Square.

It is reported that the years 1928 - 1930 were unfortunate years for the Municipality of Izmir, as in the rest of the world, due to budget problems, and that some of the İş Bank debt could be terminated in 1939 and the Treasury debt in 1944 thanks to the work of Behçet Uz and Şükrü Kaya.

In the 1930s, Izmir Municipality gave priority to opening streets, paving roads and sewage works in construction works. The afforestation of roads, the transformation of old cemeteries into parks, the afforestation of Bahribaba Park, the construction of a small garden around Halkapınar Martyrs, the opening of Cumhuriyet Square and the Gazi Monument, which was ordered to Italy in 1929.

Behçet Uz, who was elected mayor three times in a row and served for 10 years, left behind an Izmir whose problems had been largely resolved by the time he was elected as a deputy. Although not within the framework of the Rene Danger plan, the fire zone had been reconstructed, the financial structure had improved, some swamps had been drained, cemeteries had been restored and green areas had been expanded, and the city had gained Kültürpark with the suggestion of Suat Yurdkoru.

When World War 2 started, the fire brigade concentrated on civil defense activities, but in the years 1929-1946, statistical data mentioned the success of the fire brigades and the financial order.

Between 1939 and 1945, Izmir Municipality did not run a deficit in its budget, but minimized its development activities.
In the 1938 five-year work plan, the issue of draining the swamps pushed İzmir into the field of malaria control from 1946 onwards, and sanitary inspections, which accelerated with the Sanitary Hygiene Law and Behçet Uz, became effective with the Sanitary Police Instructions, which remained functional until 1985.

In 1913, water services started with the use of water pipes to bring water to the city, reaching a network of 24 thousand meters in 1941. In 1944, a joint administration was established with the purchase of the concessioned water company and its transfer to the municipality, while the slaughterhouse, gas, and bus enterprises were managed as administrations with annexed budgets. In 1945, these administrations were incorporated under a single umbrella as Eshot, and became operational as electricity, water, gas, bus and tram services.
The administration of the fair, which had been carried out by the Ministry of Economy, was transferred to İzmir Municipality in 1940 under the name of Kültürpark and Tourism Directorate, İzmir International Fair.

In the 1941 - 49 period, Reşat Leblebicioğlu and Hulusi Selek served for a short period.
Although there was only one election between 1950 and 1960, the mayorship of İzmir continued with Rauf Onursal, Selahattin Akçiçek, Enver Dündar Başar, and Faruk Tunca, Sefa Poyraz and Enver Saatçigil. Rebi Başol, who rose from deputy governor to mayor, drew attention with his practices such as giving title deeds to slums, providing services and reducing transportation fares.

From 1950 onwards, the DP era’s dominant urbanism approach led municipalities to implement practices that were sensitive to populist tendencies. The demolition of Sarı Kışla was completed in 1959-60 within the scope of the zoning plan arrangements, which were first voiced by Rauf Onursal in 1951 and which were created and amended several times in meetings with architects, including Le Courbisier, within the scope of the arrangements including the Konak site. This was a period when priority was given to road works and the Varyant Road was opened to transportation in 1952.


 
The areas surrounding Naldöken and Karşıyaka, and the valleys beyond, became slum areas from the 1960s onwards. Car repair shops and scrap iron shops on Gazi and Fevzipaşa Bulvarı are removed by Burhanettin Uluç, governor and mayor during the 1960 military intervention period, and slum inspections are increased. Rebi Başol, who was appointed mayor in 1963, also took a lenient approach to slums.

In 1963, it was announced that municipal elections would be held for the first time and Osman Kibar won the election. Serving between 1963 and 1973, Osman Kibar worked for the asphalting of streets and avenues. By the time of the ‘73 elections, the number of squatters in the city had increased. With this election period, municipalities become intensely politicized.

In 1972, there were 12 municipalities in Izmir. 

It is stated that the shortage of drinking water in İzmir caused Osman Kibar to lose the election. The water shortage that started in the 1960s was tried to be overcome with the supply of Emiralem, Halkapınar, Bornova Çimentaş and Menemen sources.


 
Between 1973 and 1980, İhsan Alyanak and the other city municipalities in office shaped their work with a democratic, participatory, productive, organizing, directing, united and autonomous municipality approach. The projects of the previous mayor Osman Kibar continued to be implemented. 

In order to solve the traffic problem that started in the city around the same time, Kemeraltı was about to receive its share of the road opening, expropriation and demolition works within the scope of transportation planning in the 1970s-74s and 1980s. The construction of overpasses in Konak and Bayramyeri, obtaining storage space for minibusses and buses by filling the sea in Konak, Tanzim Sales, social housing constructions, and the acquisition of title deeds for squatters, which emerged out of social and political needs, were some of the activities of the period. 

During the September 12 coup d’état, Eshot director Cahit Günay was appointed mayor by the Aegean Army Martial Law Command, the kiosks scattered along the main streets of the city, the casinos, amusement parks and cafeterias extending from the coastal road to Bostanlı were demolished, the construction of the Mustafa Kemal Coastal Boulevard was started, sales on sale were increased, the surrounding municipalities and villages were connected to Izmir with the metropolitan city application that started in 1981, 80 percent of the work on the Izmir Great Drinking Water Project was completed, the construction of the Konak Ferry Pier started, the zoning regulation was issued, and the institution quickly found its place with the completion of its current building.

Upon Cahit Günay’s resignation in 1983 (there are opinions that he did not get along with the military administration), Ceyhan Demir was appointed in his place.

In 1984, with Decree Law No. 195, it was decided to establish metropolitan municipalities in Istanbul, Izmir and Ankara, and central district municipalities in the districts within the boundaries of metropolitan cities. In the same year, Law No. 3030 on the Administration of Metropolitan Municipalities was adopted and its terms of reference were defined. 

In the March 25, 1984 local elections, Burhan Özfatura is elected mayor of the main city. Izmir Zoning Regulation is adopted based on the Zoning Law No. 3194, which entered into force in 1985. The revision of the master plan for the whole of Izmir is carried out, mass housing areas are opened for fixed and low-income people, Aykome is established for the coordination of infrastructure services, and Ukome is established for transportation. Projects such as the Grand Canal Project to save the gulf from pollution, Meles projects, projects for Işıkkent and Gökdere areas, signalization system, construction of intersections with bridges and multi-storey car parks, transportation master plan, arrangement of garbage dumping areas, placement of glass bins, implementation of the regulation on infected hospital waste control, recreation area between Bostanlı and Alaybey, construction of sports facilities were put into practice. 

In the March 1989 elections, Özfatura was replaced by Yüksel Çakmur. During this period, the problem of peddling was tackled, public transportation became modern and auditable, the parliament was opened to the public, public buses and minibusses were abolished, the city became an EXPO candidate, IZSU IT infrastructure was started, the light rail system phase 1 works were started, the foundation of the Izmir metro was laid, the fertilizer factory, which had reached the end of its life, the foundation of meat integrated facilities was laid instead of the slaughterhouse. Phase 1 of the light rail system, laying the foundation of the Izmir Metro, closing the fertilizer factory, which has reached the end of its life, laying the foundation of meat integrated facilities instead of the slaughterhouse, removing the buses making the last stop at Konak Square, the smart card project, pedestrianization works on the inner city streets, and the establishment of a computerized signaling system; as well as good practices such as Galleria, Karşıyaka multi-storey car park construction and piled road projects have also provoked reactions. 

Between 1994 and 1999, Burhan Özfatura served for the second term. Özfatura completed the projects that he had started in his first term but failed to complete during the term of Yüksel Çakmur, and carried out mass housing projects, the Grand Canal Project, rail system and zoning plan works. 

The winner of the 1999 local elections, Ahmet Piriştina, Alsancak Port Turan urban design competition and master zoning plan for the port area, new zoning regulations, e-municipality preparations, photogrammetric digital map construction and project revision, the completion of most of the works on the Grand Canal, the application from the Meles Delta, the gulf coastline arrangement, flood prevention, earthquake scenario, protection of water resources, greening, development of sea transportation, transformation in transportation and applications for transportation integrity, maintenance of the subway system, cultural venues, historical texture and landscaping, especially Cumhuriyet Square. Although he passed away following a heart attack shortly after he was elected for a second term, he continues to make a name for himself. 

After the death of Ahmet Piriştina, who was re-elected as mayor for the years 2004 - 2009, the governor of the period called a meeting of the Izmir Metropolitan Municipality Assembly to elect a mayor in accordance with Article 93 of Law No. 1580, and Aziz Kocaoğlu was elected in two rounds of voting. During his 14-year term of office until 2019, while completing the projects of the previous period, the new fairground, Metro, tramway, Sasalı Natural Life Park, cultural workshop, Mediterranean Academy, completion of Ahmed Adnan Saygun Art Center, smart traffic systems, recreation areas, Buca Social Life Park, modern ice rink, car parks, multi-purpose halls, renewal of Balçova Cable Car, inclusion of Havagazı Factory in life, Peninsula, Gediz Bakırçay Basin development plans, support for local producer cooperatives, school milk project, agricultural support activities, inclusion of tram in the transportation system, renewal of the hospital, opera house project, as well as disabled studies and social service issues. 

With Law No. 6360, which entered into force in 2012, Metropolitan Municipalities underwent structural changes in terms of administrative, financial, political and zoning regulations, and restructuring processes came to the agenda. In line with the strategic plans prepared in many areas, the metropolitan area environmental layout plan and regional master development plan are prepared, urban transformation, development and renewal projects, coastline renewal, city squares, urban information systems, gulf rehabilitation project, treatment facilities, modernization of slaughterhouses, opening of bicycle paths, renewal of ferries, continued development of the Metro and suburban system, construction of district and district terminals are carried out. 

In the 2019 local elections, Mustafa Tunç Soyer was elected as Mayor. 
Dr. Cemil Tugay was elected as Mayor in March 2024 local elections

Source 
Erkan Serçe - 150.Yılında İzmir Belediyesi Tarihi 1867 - 2017 Cilt I -II /Apikam Yayını