Lyons Cub Acquires Turkish Scheme

(PRWEB) April 20, 2005 -- The grandson of UDS founder Sir Jack Lyons has acquired a 150,000 sq ft hotel complex in Istanbul, Turkey of which he is planning a major mixed used scheme. Lyons and his partner; lawyer Farid Alizadeh's investment company Enstar Capital have paid nearly $6m for the site which is located adjacent to the famous Fatih Mosque. The Imperial Fatih Mosque, constructed between 1463 and 1470, bears the name of the Ottoman conqueror of Istanbul, Fatih Sultan Mehmet, and is the site of his mausoleum. Standing atop another of Istanbul's hills, its vast size and great complex of religious buildings - medreses, hospices, baths, a hospital, a caravanserai and a library make it one of Turkey's main tourist sites.

"We believe that Turkey will see enormous growth over the coming decade and we envisage that tourist numbers will also rise significantly. We also see Turkey as a key future member of a federal Europe," said Lyons.

Lyons said that he hopes development will commence in September with a mixture of retail, hotel, conference and residential being on the agenda. "We would be keen to acquire more property in Turkey and we hope that the market will further create opportunity for foreign investment." Lyons said.

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