The Prime Ministry's Housing Development Administration (TOKİ) found a 7-kilometer-long historical town beneath the slums that it demolished in Nevşehir as a part of an urban transformation project.

TOKİ President M. Ergün Turan said the administration stopped construction work after a historical underground town was unearthed in downtown Nevşehir. The town is said to be the largest and the most ancient settlement in the world that has been found as a result of urban transformation work. According to Turan, TOKİ and the Nevşehir Municipality stopped construction work despite spending TL 90 million ($30.6 million) on it so far, and agreed to protect the historical site, which sheds light on the history of Anatolia.

The urban transformation project, which was being conducted with joint work between TOKİ and the Nevşehir Municipality, was aimed at renovating the Nevşehir Castle and its surroundings. The newly found town has been declared a third degree archaeological site in which there are 7-kilometer-long tunnels. The Nevşehir Municipality has initiated work to turn the historic town into a gain for the city.

Turan said they have found historical texts while conducting urban transformation projects, and added that the historical site revealed documents that lead to the revision of the existing knowledge of history in the city.

A historical underground Orthodox church has also been found in Nevşehir. Turan said the church is very significant for the history of world Orthodoxy, as it is one of the largest underground churches found in the Cappadocia region.