Migdal Armon is an office tower that was built on the site of the former "Armon" cinema, located at 18 Hanaviyim Street, in Hadar HaCarmel.
"Palace" cinema
The Armon cinema was inaugurated in 1935. It was one of the largest operating in Haifa and had a unique architecture. The owner of the cinema was the businessman Moshe Gridinger (we will tell about him later).
This cinema was one of the most luxurious in Haifa and was known for its opening roof. The cinema had 1800 seats, apart from luxury viewing booths on the grandstand level. The designer of the building was the Haifa architect Shmuel Rozov which combined elements of the international style with elements of the "Art Deco" style.
The cinema closed in 1987. In 1995 the building was demolished and the construction of the current office tower began according to the plans of the Haifa architectural firm Y.Y. Garnet
The Gridinger family
As mentioned, Moshe Gridinger, owner of the Armon cinema, immigrated to Israel from Romania. He started his career in the movie business when he joined the "Ein Dor" movie theater in the lower city. After that, he built the "Herzliya" cinema, followed by the magnificent and very popular "Palace" cinema at the time among the Haifa public.
Moshe Gridinger's grandsons, Moshe and Israel, are the controlling owners of the "Israel Theaters" company. In 2019, the Cineworld company controlled by the Gridinger brothers purchased the Canadian Cineplex, thus becoming the largest in the world in terms of the number of screens it owns.
Palace tower
The construction of the tower was completed in 1998, as mentioned according to the plans of the Haifa architectural firm Y.Y. Garnet The tower has 20 floors and at the end of its construction is considered one of the tallest towers in the north. But, over the years, the towers grew taller and taller. As of 2019, Migdal Armon is only the 18th tallest in Haifa.
The first three floors, starting from the entrance level in the Prophet's Square, are intended for commerce and the rest of the floors for offices. On the top floor there is an observation deck from which you can see, on days of good visibility, up to a distance of about 60 km. In 2011 the tower was sold to the Migdal company and in 2021 to the Realty fund, which still owns it today. Recently, the Realty Foundation increased its involvement in community life by organizing various social events, and the foyer also underwent renovation and renewal.
Adequate visibility:
The exhibition of my paintings, "Haifa Nostalgia - the cinemas of the past", accompanied by the fascinating historical explanations of my friend Yoram Katz, is currently on display in the lobby of the tower.
Y.Y. Granot, the architects of the tower
Yaron (1951) and Yael Garnot (1952) founded their planning office in 1982. Both graduated with honors in architecture at the Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning at the Technion. Their office is proud of decades of experience in accompanying and planning projects in diverse fields, including academia, residences, office buildings, movie theaters, and more.
The projects in Haifa include: the Faculty of Computer Science, the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, student dormitories (on the Technion campus) and the "Yes Planet" movie theaters in "Lev Nemfaretz" - when Uzi Gordon was the architect of the entire building - and of course Migdal Amron in Hadar Carmel.
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Haifa Palace Cinema One of the houses the beautiful cinema the neighborhood the bringers was an example of imitation Dizengoff the street square today it is a Salam area the beautiful neighborhood the center of Haifa has become a location for criminals....what a shame I grew up there in the good old days of Haifa
As a child I saw quite a few movies in the Palace Cinema. Both Ora and Amphi. Three cinemas in Hadar neighborhood. there were times.
The legendary 'Palace' cinema Who wasn't there Mike Brant appeared there Frank Sinatra The tremolos The marmalade A lovely cinema A great time during the break We'd take a ticket We'd go eat a bun in a hot dog or A falafel dish and a cut glass There were times ♥️♥️♥️
The "Palace" tower is something special and interesting Dr. David Bar On
Good and blessed Shabat for every one.
When the cinema closed in 1987, it was replaced by the high way club, which later changed its name to the mythical "second city".
The closing party of the club was with hammers that could break the club.
what hammers??
Made up story!