In the last fiscal year that ended in March, more than 14,000 cases of construction violations were investigated by the judiciary and orders were issued for the demolition of over 60% of the illegal buildings in the capital; however so far only 5% have been demolished, according to Abolfazl Qanaati, a member of Tehran City Council (TCC).
Referring to the seven-story Alaeddin Shopping Mall located at the intersection of Hafez and Jomhuri Streets in Tehran, he said the Tehran prosecutor general had ordered in early 2015 to demolish two illegally-constructed floors (basement and seventh floor) at the premises.
But the deadline was later extended to October 2016 by the court on the request of the owner, the Persian language newspaper ‘Etemad’ reported.
The mayor of Tehran Municipality District 11 was asked to supervise demolition of the extra stories but so far to no avail. According to Article 100 of the municipality law, when demolition doesn’t take place within the stipulated period of time, the TM can intervene and pull down the illegal structures.
Qanaati said unfortunately the directives are ignored by the TM and the weak enforcement of building bylaws is indeed prompting illegal constructions.
The shopping mall is a hub of independent mobile phone retailers in the capital for the past 20 years. Each floor of the building is packed with small businesses selling all sorts of phones and accessories.
The building safety became a serious issue in recent years, after its owner added extra retail space on the roof and in the basement.
According to experts, the building is a threat to its occupants, and the extra floors should be pulled down at the earliest.
