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Background and threats to the ridge
The Armon Ha-Natziv (Palace of the British High Commissioner) ridge is among
the most sensitive spots in Jerusalem outside the Old City walls, together
with the Mount Scopus and Mount of Olives ridge.
Each of these ridges has cultural and religious value to the three monotheistic faiths. The Mount of Olives area contains Gethsemane, the Jewish cemetery and the Golden Gate (Gate of Mercy). Located on the Armon Ha-Natziv ridge is the Hill of Evil Counsel, holy to Christians. These two spots have the best views in all of Jerusalem. Nothing was built on the Armon Ha-Natziv ridge under the Jordanians. After the city was re-united in 1967, a number of plans were proposed for development and construction there but the only one which came to fruition was the Promenade. In the 1970s, in accordance with Plan Ayin-Mem/9, which defines the visual basin of the Old City and its surroundings, permission was granted to build a special housing project on part of the ridge. Following an obstinate struggle by the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI) and the Pro-Jerusalem Committee, the plan to build prestigious housing was rejected on the grounds that the view from the ridge is "public property". The Israel Lands Authority agreed to relinquish this highly valuable real estate for the sake of the common good. A plan proposed for the eastern side of the ridge by the developer Abud Levi also came to naught. Instead of these plans, the Armon Ha-Natziv Promenade was built, comprising four sections at present (the first being the Haas Promenade, the second the Sherover, the third the Trotner, and the last the Goldman Promenade currently under construction at the edge of the Arab village, circumventing the forest and terminating at Mishkenot Ha-Ro'im). The neighborhood of East Talpiot was also meant to extend to part of the ridge, but in order to keep the skyline free of development and protect the view of the Old City and its visual basin it was decided to move the neighborhood off the ridge and conceal it to the south. In the 1980s there were several plans to build hotels on the ridge but they were transferred elsewhere in the city, to the Mandelbaum Gate area. Over the years, despite the fact that the ridge remained undeveloped, it took on a special significance. The Ayin-Mem/9 plan included the Armon Ha-Natziv ridge but excluded several parts of it (primarily areas designated for foreign embassies or agricultural land not under the plan's authority). There are now plans for massive construction on the Armon Ha-Natziv ridge, including a large number of tourism and sports complexes: |
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Armon Ha-Natziv
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The Sela Observation Tower
This observation tower is planned to reach a height of 150 meters on the
highest point of the ridge (792 m. above sea level). It would diverge
dramatically from the city's scale. Jerusalem's proportions have a certain
harmony, expressing its spirit and its morphological character. The tower's
height would constitute 20-25% of the height differential between Tel Aviv
and Jerusalem.
Many architects and city planners believe the tower would overwhelm the area and that it would be visible from every spot in Jerusalem. The tower is planned for a spot that is holy to over a billion people: the Hill of Evil Counsel. At a time when we are seeking the world's consent to our sovereignty in Jerusalem, building such a tower on this hill is a provocation. The tower is also planned to be virtually adjacent to the East Talpiot Community Center. This is a unique structure which was awarded the Rechter Prize for Architecture. It was designed by the well-known Mexican sculptor, Graetz. The tower would harm the neighborhood by inflicting traffic, pollution and radiation on it. It would be partly built on land designated for the second phase of the neighborhood park, land which includes the longest segment of the Herodian stone tunnel bringing water from Hebron to Jerusalem. |
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Armon Ha-Natziv
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Tourism complexes
More than ten hotels are planned for the ridge, in three complexes. Four
hotels in one of the complexes have been approved by the District Committee
for Planning and Construction in Jerusalem, and are currently under
administrative petition by the SPNI after its appeal was rejected by the
committee. These four hotels alone are to contain 1650 rooms, about a
quarter of the total number of hotel rooms in all Tel Aviv. This plan also
provides for high-rise building. The site chosen for this project is the
Rachel Yanait Ben-Zvi Teaching Farm, established in 1928 as the only
institution of its kind for training young female immigrants to work in
agriculture, and the Arab Girls College - both structures earmarked for
conservation because of their character and historical significance.
The other two complexes have not yet reached the stage of detailed planning, nor have they begun the statutory approval process. However, two other hotels have been approved for the area: one designed by the architect Yehonatan Shiloni on the eastern section of the ridge, and a hotel belonging to Mrs. Gita Sherover on the western section.
The cable car
The cable car plan has been designed by the architect Yehonatan Shiloni. It
is to originate on Naomi Street in the Abu Tor neighborhood and pass over
the Shalom Forest in the direction of Mishkenot Ha-Ro'im near the Goldman
Promenade, currently under construction. This plan will disrupt one of the
most important attributes of the area: its visual and environmental
stillness (notwithstanding its description by a member of the district
committee as "a monotonous and melancholy landscape").
For the time being, the cable car plan is on hold due to the caveat put to the mayor by the Goldman Fund, namely that it would not build the Goldman Promenade if the cable car plan is approved.
The Sephardi House
Architect Moshe Safdi's plan for the eastern section of the ridge includes a
structure intended to serve the Sephardi community (descendants of the exiles from
Spain and Portugal).
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The Subjects |