The Bandabuliya sits right in the heart of Kyrenia. Built by the British in 1878 as Kyrenia's city hall, it was soon neighboured by an outdoor market. Later, parts of the building's interior were additionally converted into a covered market during winter months. Until the late 1970s, the Bandabulyia was sort of the "stomach of Kyrenia" with greengrocers, spice traders, butchers, and fishmongers hawking their products. As elsewhere, the arrival of supermarkets and the establishment of a new municipal market heralded the decline of the Banbuliya's days as Kyrenia's bustling market-place. After its final closure as a market in 1990, it declined into a municipal storage space for equipment and waste. Since then it remains waiting for a new life and purpose.