The Economic Society for Haifa is launching a tourism forum, with Haifa experts and with the cooperation of the residents, to promote the Haifa economy. The forum is part of a work plan for the participation of Haifa experts and residents in the fields of tourism, high-tech, small and medium businesses.
A new project of the Economic Society for Haifa
The Economic Society for Haifa is embarking on a new project of think tanks with practical abilities with professionals and residents of Haifa who are experts in the areas of growth - tourism, high-tech and biotech, and small and medium-sized businesses, whose ultimate goal will be to formulate a plan to promote the economy of the city of Haifa.
The purpose of the think tanks is to hold consultation and learning sessions with the help of the participation of experts living in the area, and the exchange of opinions to promote the city's economy. The purpose of the process is to build a position paper which will be the basis for the projects that the Haifa Economic Society will initiate as part of the work plan for 2025. The experts invited to the process are completely voluntary.
The first meeting
The first meeting on the topic of promoting tourism as an engine of economic growth in the city took place this week, at the offices of the economic company in Haifa, led by the chairman of the economic company, Rani Bender, the company's CEO Or Shaf, and Moti Meir, the company's business development manager.
The think tanks accompanied by Tega Consulting, which specializes in process management and consulting for organizations, led by Tali Gazit and Gal Zilberstein will meet on a regular basis and discuss the current situation in the field, gaps and challenges, questions and barriers, possible courses of action and recommendations for applicable projects. Each team will include participants who represent their field of expertise thinking that the inclusion of people from the area who live in the field will greatly contribute to the success of the process which will last about forty months, during which the think tanks will also consult with residents who are interested in expressing their opinion.
Rani Bender, Chairman of the Haifa Economic Society:
The first thing that is required in doing this is to hear the area, which is why we share the Haifa experts and the residents. Tourism is a significant economic engine for the city's economy. This week I met with the Ministry of Economy and Tourism, everyone is waiting for us to start moving the processes. We also have full support and backing from the director general of the municipality Gadi Margalit and the mayor Miona Yahav, to march Haifa forward also in the field of tourism.
Or Shaf, CEO of the Economic Society for Haifa, who opened the event:
Haifa has a huge potential in the field of tourism and natural resources such as the beaches and valleys that we need to leverage. There is no reason why the city will not become the leading tourist city in Israel for both domestic and foreign tourism. We need to cooperate together, and promote the common goal of everyone sitting around the table: economic and touristic development of the city of Haifa.
The think tank was attended by:
Yossi Shalom, Deputy Mayor, holder of the Culture Portfolio and Chairman of Athos, Yossi Ani, CEO of Medatech Haifa, Dr. Galit Rand, Haifa Municipality, Strategy and Research Directorate Headquarters Unit of the Economic Company Zohar Rom, Spokesperson for the Port of Haifa, Area Manager The cruises and the opening of the seafront, Yotam Yakir, Director of the Museums in Haifa, Atia Esmaoui, CEO of the Botanika Hotel, David Barry, a Haifa entrepreneur and the owner of the Schumacher Hotel in Haifa, Lior Alfasi, Director of Cruises on the Pacific Coast, Uri Flex, an expert in maritime tourism, Yotam Holtz, a restaurateur, Vared Fern, a culinary entrepreneur from the Talfiot market, Shiri Weitzner, the owner of the Chai Fait blog, Michal Sani, a project manager at the economic company, and Andrea Suidan, an expert in the field of wine and a business owner in the field.
All initiatives are welcomed as long as they do not harm the quality of life of the residents. Unfortunately, there is no listening ear, for example, to the issue of the terminal in the port. The noise it produces for the residents of the area is not only unusual but also violates the rest hours law.
I have contacted the municipality and the financial company several times, in a face-to-face conversation with Yossi Shalom (at a meeting of the MTI), there is no voice and no answer. I choose not to present here what Yossi answered me... because it was not an answer from a caring elected official.
Want a tourist city but:
- Haifa's coastal strip, full of hazards, is not cultivated
- There are no breakwaters to prevent the retreat of the sand on wide beaches.
- Excess parking lots for private cars instead of expanding promenades and improving public transportation.
- There is no collection of payment for the parking resource on the beaches - a joke of failed municipal management.
- No construction of a marina in Bat Galim in front of Rambam = a coastal city with its hands tied behind its back.
- The municipality works with branding and advertising offices instead of product and urban design managers.
- Master plan for bicycle paths = dust in drawers. not implemented
- Master plan for hiking trails in the valleys = raises dust in drawers. not implemented
- Chiat orchard renovation plan as a tourist site = raises dust in drawers. not implemented
– The staircase district plan for renovating staircases = raises dust in drawers. not implemented
How do you want to succeed like this?
Why do you need a group photo and panels, you need to do it.
Listen dear friends. In Haifa, there are experts in expert committees, in position reports and in hiring the services of consulting offices. 15 years ago they brought here the best of the world's consultants, in 2007 they brought Ernst & Young who wrote position reports, consulting, direction, development, marketing, branding. We were in this movie. AFTAH with tens of millions of NIS spent on consultants and forums and learning tours and flying experts and publishing marketing brochures could have already renovated the entire outdated Bat Galim boardwalk with this money.
They come, see beautiful presentations about what Barcelona is doing and what Rome is doing and what kind of marketing Athens has done.
The basic problem cannot be fixed in Haifa: severe distortions of hundreds of millions of shekels for budgetary pensions of the municipality's retirees and 400 senior officials in some 30 municipal departments, half of which are doubled, instead of the money going to development and returning to the resident and being invested in the city's infrastructure and buildings and maintenance.
Do a little experiment:
Get out of the train stations from Haifa and look around. Is there dirt rolling on the roads. Is there regular advertising on the bridges and at the bus stations, or have they not been advertising for a long time. Are the sidewalks broken and without lighting at night? Are there vehicles parked and blocking sidewalks or is there enforcement and poles that prevent. Do you see new public buildings or do you see very old buildings.
Are the roads leading to the train station potholed or recently paved.
After you do this little exercise in Haifa the Carmel Beach, Haifa Bat Galim, Haifa Hasmona and the heart of the bay you will understand why tourists skip Haifa better than any committee of experts. In order not to skip activity in the city, it must first of all be a city with activity.