(haipo) – A story about a building - The Mount Carmel Hotel, or in its original name the Taltash Hotel, has been abandoned for about 20 years. It is located on Sea Road 103, one of the main roads connecting the center of Carmel to the seashore.
A brief history of the Mount Carmel Hotel
The hotel was established and managed by Miriam Matilda Taltash - the widow who immigrated from Vienna to Israel in 1927. The hotel opened in 1935 under the name "Teltash Hotel" and was built according to the plans of the architect Leopold Krakuer, also of Austrian origin.
In 1939, with the outbreak of World War II, the British, under the command of General Montgomery, expropriated the building and used it as a command college and headquarters of the British Army. However, even though the hotel was expropriated, Mrs. Taltash continued to operate it as a hotel until the departure of the British in 48. In the War of Independence, the hotel served as the headquarters of the "Haganah" during the battle for Haifa.
After the war, Miriam Teltash sold the hotel to a group of investors who operated it for a period of time under the name "Megiddo". Between the years 1956-84, the building was used as a convalescent home of Klalit Health Services under the nameBandori". Among the many events that took place at the hotel, in 1983, it was held there Haifa International Film Festival.
After 1984, another attempt was made to operate it as a hotel under the name "Mount Carmel". But even the new name did not help to strengthen its financial situation and in 2013 the hotel was closed. However, at least the name "Mount Carmel Hotel" endures to this very day.
the building
As mentioned, the building was designed by the architect Leopold Krakauer. It was designed in the international style (or Bauhaus) and is characterized by a composition of simple geometric bodies and clean lines. Upon its establishment, it quickly became an iconic building representing the international style.
The north wing, which stands out, consists of a rounded body, a sort of half cylinder whose front is decorated with a window - a film that gives a panoramic view of the sea and the Carmel slopes. This is where the hotel's dining room was located. A wide staircase partially wraps around the rounded body and connects the hotel garden with the dining room and the hotel lobby. The dining room wing was designed with a simple rectangular writing that created a contrast between it and the rounded wing.
In 1998, when the name of the hotel was changed to "Mount Carmel", an extensive renovation was carried out, according to the plans of the architect Ehud Shani. In this framework, additional construction and renewal and adaptation of infrastructures to the requirements of the period were carried out. Above the rounded northern wing, another floor was built, covered by a blue glass wall. A swimming pool was installed on the roof of this floor.
Leopold Krakouer (1890-1954), the architect of the building
Leopold Krakuer was born in Vienna and studied architecture at the city's high technical school. Upon immigrating to Israel in 1924, he began working in the planning office of Alexander Brewald , the designer of the historic Technion building, the Anglo-Palestine Bank branch in the lower city and more.
Karkuer's first independent work in Israel was the design of the dining room in Kibbutz Beit Alfa, which also has a round shape. Leopold Krakuer was among the first architects to bring to Israel the modern trend (the international style) that advocated maximum functionality and avoided formal decorations in every way.
In 1948, Krakuer was appointed a member of the professional committee of the "Committee on the Symbol and the Flag" that chose the state symbol - the seven-caned lamp. Besides being a prominent architect, Krakuer became famous as an artist, thanks to his charcoal drawings that were presented in many exhibitions in Israel and around the world.
Leopold Krakouer's architectural works include:
- The dining room at Kibbutz Beit Alfa (1932)
- The dining room at Tel Yosef (1933)
- Osishkin House Museum in Kibbutz Dan
- The Taltash Hotel (1935)
And what is the state of the Mount Carmel Hotel today?
The Haifa municipality declared the hotel building a "building for preservation". The promoters of the "White City" project, the Yuval Alon company, publishes in a series of signs surrounding the hotel site, eye-opening images showing the "preserved" hotel structure and a blooming garden around it.
As of today, the building is abandoned.
Hello David,
I was happy and even enjoyed reading your article about the Mount Carmel Hotel and it took me back 22 years.
The details presented in your article added a lot of knowledge to what I knew about the hotel where I studied as mentioned 22 years ago. During the time I studied there as part of the Ministry of Labor (a six-month course for hotel/nursing/hospital management) the hotel was called "Dvir Hotel" and was under the "ownership" of the Dan Carmel Hotel. As of today, every time I pass by this hotel, I feel a pinch in my heart about the abandonment of the hotel and its misery and it's a shame!
Thank you very much, Orna, you made my day!
You mean, most likely, a completely different hotel structure.
Why do you need a conservation building??? There are endless buildings for preservation, which are scraps that stand for many years, and there is no one to redeem them. They are not for use and no one buys them, for example, the casino in Bat Galim.
Thank you for your response. And to your question: a building is declared for preservation if it carries special cultural values, architectural, historical, etc. In Tel Aviv, the entrepreneurs discovered that a building for preservation can bring handsome profits, therefore the issue of preservation is promoted there both for the benefit of the company and for the benefit of the developer. Haifa still lags behind Tel Aviv.
Many thanks for a well-researched article.
If the building is abandoned for 20 years, why does the municipality preserve it? They should have sold the lot a long time ago to an investor who will do as he pleases with it. All the discussions and committees on the matter contribute nothing but procrastination.
Thank you very much for the support. The building was declared for preservation because of its architectural and historical value. It is abandoned because the formula for squaring the circle has not yet been found.
Congratulations on the article and especially the respectful and caring discourse in the comments.
1. In light of the large number of buildings that have been abandoned over time, and the great desire of the public to change, develop and create a fundamental change, both in appearance and in Haifa society.
I will suggest:
The establishment of a HL committee, all of whose members will act on a full volunteer basis, through the movement for the revival of Israeli society and leadership.
that you can help and promote these important issues in front of the residents, the municipality and the other other factors in the State of Israel.
2. Without any political connection/preference, I am certain that it is possible to produce a substantial and serious change for the benefit of the preservation of the buildings, the residents, the visibility and the use.
*There are many philanthropists who would be interested in helping, financing and creating.
blessed week
Danieli Barak
Thank you for your response. Solving the problem of the abandoned buildings is extremely complicated, various costs, economic interests and public interests are involved here. A projector is needed that will include all the elements, but the Haifa Municipality has so far not demonstrated the will and ability in this regard.
Thank you for your response. Your ideas are interesting, but the list of buildings to be preserved is determined according to professional criteria by the municipality's preservation department. Behind the majority of these buildings are private owners, who have rights and economic interests. It does not depend so much on a public committee with a good will to change reality. The issue is complicated and the solution is found when the private interest and the public interest find a compromise. See many of the buildings in Tel Aviv.
From your drawing it looks like there are additional floors above the hotel. It will be complicated to do because it will be necessary to drill foundations from inside the hotel or make a bridge structure supported outside the hotel.
From an architectural point of view, building to a height will hide a significant part of the hotel.
Thank you for your response. Indeed, 2 floors were built above the rounded block, but there is no problem in destroying them. It is not clear to me which bridge is needed and for what purpose...
You wrote that the Megiddo Hotel Teltash was opened in 1935. I was happy to read that my engineer father Ernest Grinold on Laretz in 1933 opened a Constasia office and the hotel was one of his first works in Israel. After my father's death, I transferred the originals to the office of the Council, "Techan Shumhan" from engineer David Blank, who was also later involved in the planning of the additions.
Thanks for the fascinating information, have a nice week!
What is known about the Feldman Hotel in Mount Carmel (destroyed). thanks
The Tower of the Prophets, the Horeb Center, the casino in Bat Galim, the customs house, the Egged station building in Bat Galim, the Mount Carmel hotel, also part of the Talpiot market building that is currently being renovated. Some of the buildings in Haifa are desolate, testifying to the decline of the third largest city in Israel. Let's hope that the new mayor, Mr. Yona Yahav, will restore the buildings and their status. Haifa.
Thank you for your response, but to put the Horev center and the Mount Carmel Hotel in one basket?! Clearly unjustified! I agree with your hope, have a good week!
Our dear Haifa and more years go by and more mayors make a tour of Haifa for a few years and there is nothing new under the sun what a sad pity
The menorah has the seven reeds, and not as you wrote! Please, take care of the Hebrew language, I did not continue reading the article because of the above error.
Thank you for your comment, sorry for the mistake - it will be corrected tomorrow. Then you can come back and read the article. Good week!
Wow, I worked as a hotel waiter in the 90s...
What a small world!
It breaks my heart to see the only city in Israel sitting on a mountain and Haifa is simply fading year by year. Intersections are crumbling. A market without joy and noise. Wild trees and bushes on every corner. No education. No work. No young couples and it seems that the city fell asleep a long time ago and someone forgot to wake it up in time for 2024. I am new here in Haifa.
Let's just hope that it will be renovated and preserved, and will not suffer from many additions that are not in the spirit of the original. We have too many abandoned buildings.
Thank you for your response. In this issue, the public fight against the entrepreneurs is going on. See related articles on the website. Shabbat Shalom!
was there a hotel on de're'ch ha'yam called "shoshanat ha'carmel" or "lev ha'carmel" when i was in high-school there was a student that his family owned the hotel.
I guess you mentioned another hotel, not far from this one
It is really a shame that it is not possible to restore and renovate the building and build a preserved hotel building with a garden.
I really like your articles, but not this time!!! If you write..."The promoters of the "White City" project, the Yuval Alon company, publish in a series of signs surrounding the hotel site, eye-opening visualizations in which the hotel structure can be seen "preserved" and a garden blooming around it."... then you should also point out that the simulations are not close to the plans , that the blooming garden in the back will become an 11-story building and nothing will be left of the blooming garden in front because it will become an entrance to a parking lot and a swimming pool, and that the Yuval Alon company claims that it is not it at all but the Mediterranean Towers even though there was no transfer of ownership in Taboo.
Thank you for your comment and thank you for supporting my articles. I remind you again that in this section I deal with the story behind the building and not with a review of various construction plans. The controversy surrounding the site's construction plans was addressed and received exposure in another section. Shabbat Shalom!
And what about a few words about the struggle of the residents of Haifa and the mayor against the unruly company that doesn't comply with the renovation agreements with ridiculous excuses and invents crazy plans for the building?? We deserve a commendation.. I was expecting praise and mention.
Thank you for your response. This section tells the stories of the buildings only. The public struggle surrounding the hotel building received updated exposure in another section. Shabbat Shalom!