City plans to uncover Kashkar-Aryk

TALAS — The city government plans to reopen the covered sections of the Kashkar-Aryk, the spring-fed canal that runs through the northern part of Talas, and turn them into a landscaped watercourse, officials of the city's architecture department told the council yesterday.

The Kashkar-Aryk rises from springs at the foot of the river terrace below the Old City and flows for about five kilometers through gardens and orchards to the Talas. Its name is traditionally explained by Kashgari gardeners who settled beside it in the 19th century. Sections were covered over in the 1970s, when the canal was put into concrete culverts beneath new streets and courtyards.

Under the plan, the culverts would be removed in stages and the channel lined with stone, with footpaths and trees along its banks. The officials did not give a cost or a timetable, saying both would depend on surveys of the culverts and of the springs, whose water would be tested by the Municipal Water Authority.

Several council members welcomed the plan. Others asked whether residents whose yards and garages now stand above the culverts would be compensated. The department said it would consult them before any work began.