Hadar HaCarmel: Young people who believe in the neighborhood against an old and discouraged population

הDer HaCarmel was the center of Haifa!    With the establishment of the state, many immigrants came to Haifa and settled in apartments, which were empty. Little by little, the immigrants established themselves and began to purchase apartments in Hadar. Moving to the Hadar neighborhood in the 50s and 60s was a sign of economic success. During these years Hadar was the center of Haifa. The neighborhood had gardens and schools, large cinemas, shops and other services.

Migration to the Carmel Ridge

Over the years, additional neighborhoods began to develop on the Carmel Ridge and many residents began to leave Hadar and move up to these neighborhoods (the 70s and beyond). Since then, Hadar's demographic change began and little by little, an older population remained living in the neighborhood, alongside new immigrants, who continued to arrive and settle in buildings whose prices were decreasing, as a result of the migration to the Carmel Ridge.

The malls are changing the retail trade in Haifa

In the 80s, malls began to open throughout the city of Haifa (Panorama, Horev, Haifa Mall and finally the Grand Mall). Gradually the merchants began to be left behind. If until the mid-80s, Haifaites would come especially to Hadar, in order to shop on Herzl, Halutz, Shuk and Nordau streets, as the malls became stronger, the number of shoppers in Hadar decreased.

Culture in splendor    

The one who founded the Haifa Theater was the mayor Abba Khushi. The theater was built in Gan Binyamin, next to the Pevzner Library, which was already in operation. The theater immediately became the center of the city's cultural life. The first show was "The Taming of the Shrew" directed by Yosef Milo. Today the theater is managed with great success by Nitza Ben Zvi. Many of the city's residents subscribe to the theater, but even those who do not live in Haifa deserve to enjoy the theater's productions. Once a year, a festival of children's plays is held at the Haifa Theater, where children come from all over the country. During the festival, many children's plays are staged in the Haifa Theater and in other halls around the city, and at the end of the festival, prizes are awarded to the top plays.

From the 30s of the last century, at the same time as cinema flourished in the world, there was also a flourishing of cinemas in Hadar. The cinemas of the past were characterized by very large halls compared to today. On Halutz Street there was an Ora Cinema, on Hanaviyim Street there were the Armon, Atzmon and Miron cinemas. Armon cinema used to have a convertible roof and a taxi and falafel station with the same name was opened around it. Young people would gather in the entrance plaza of the cinema. In the 60s, Miron was a cinema for films only for adults, since at that time it was not possible to watch such films at home on TV, computer or mobile phone. In the 80s, at the same time as the shopping malls in the city flourished, the demand for Hadar's large cinemas decreased, and the cinemas slowly closed. Today there is not a single cinema in Hadar, compared to the past when the number of cinemas in the neighborhood reached 20.

Changes in public transportation arrangements

The real blow to Hadar was the change in transportation. In the past many buses came to Hadar. Those who wanted to take a bus or taxi to Kiryat, Acre, Nahariya and more had to get to Hadar and from there continued north. As soon as the central station was established on the Carmel beach and the central station near the Rambam Hospital was closed, the Hadar neighborhood ceased to be a significant transportation artery for those who use public transportation. This was a blow from which the Hadar neighborhood never recovered.

The Grand Canyon - the strongest blow to the retail trade in Hadar

The Grand Canyon opened at the beginning of 2000. In the years that followed, a change took place in the city, and Rupin Road, which previously had little traffic, became a major artery. Initially, the tunnels were built, which connect the southern entrance of the city to the Grand and Check Post, and then the Heroes' Road was opened. In addition, the government offices and the courts, which used to be in Hadar, moved to the Government Kiryat on Palem Boulevard in the lower city. Of course, even the years when Hadar was partially silent due to the preparation for matronship did not help the neighborhood.

The result is that from a neighborhood that used to be very central in terms of retail trade, Hadar has become a neighborhood that has a lot of stores, which stand empty without a tenant, alongside stores that are working, but not always successfully.

The young people discover Hadar

In recent years, there has been an attempt to restore Hadar to Hadar and open stores on Masada Street and near Talpiot Market. Young people, who came to Hadar as a result of urban projects, created a vibrant community around Hillel, Hess, Masada, Bar Giora and more and they are bringing new life to the businesses and places of entertainment in the neighborhood. They would like to see the neighborhood return to its glory days, even though most of them are not Haifa at all, and have no idea what was in the neighborhood in the past. Some claim that Haifa veterans and journalists create a bad name for the neighborhood because of what was there in the past, and do not see the revival and dramatic change in a large part of the neighborhood's streets.

One of the debates is about criminality and personal security. Residents who live in Hadar do not deny that there are drugs and brothels in the neighborhood, but say that these problems exist in all neighborhoods of the city. According to them, no one is excited about escort girls who receive clients on the ridge, but disgrace the good name of the thing because of the exact same phenomenon. What cannot be ignored is that Hadar has foreign workers (mainly Sudanese) and associates in large concentrations, which is less visible in other neighborhoods.

A local initiative to raise awareness of the neighborhood

Recently, residents of Hadar organized open houses independently. This gave reinforcement to the feeling of young people in Hadar, that if they continue with the initiative, they will succeed in improving the image that has been given to the neighborhood, in their opinion unjustly.

At the same time, one cannot ignore the processes that have passed through the neighborhood from the 80s of the previous century until today. In the 80s, many teenagers and young men who lived in Carmel, in the mansion and in the Neve Shanan had relatives in Hadar. Many would come to the Mashbir on Yona Street, to the courts or to the municipality on Hassan Shukri Street, and of course to the book week that was held in the memorial garden for decades.

Over the years all these attractions have disappeared. Today you can go to Mishbir in Grand. The book week has not been held in the traditional format for years and certainly, it is not spectacular. The employment office, the courts and more, also left the neighborhood. Not to mention that according to publications in the neighborhood there are 36% immigrants from the former Commonwealth of States, 24% Arabs and the rest an old population. Which means that if 30 years ago many people would come to visit their grandparents, who lived in Hadar, today Hadar mainly has retirement homes and a young population (Orthedim, Arabs, former new immigrants and an older population).

Time will tell in which direction the Hadar neighborhood will move forward. Will the municipality's plans to bring back the Hadar succeed, beyond the nice words and the plans with non-Haifian architectural firms, will the municipality be willing to invest large sums of money (as was invested in the renewal of the downtown) in the Hadar neighborhood? Will the young people who come to Hadar from other neighborhoods in the city and outside of Haifa succeed in attracting more strong populations over time or when they raise families and see the kindergartens and schools in the neighborhood will they move on and leave Hadar?

Real estate prices in Hadar Carmel

According to the Madlan index, a second-hand 2-room apartment in the neighborhood will cost 508,000 NIS, while a 3-room apartment will cost 590,000 NIS. The rent for 2-3 bedroom apartments is about 2,000 NIS. In recent years housing prices in the neighborhood have risen, and if 5 years ago you could find apartments for less than half a million, today it is very difficult to find a 3-room apartment for such a price.

Hadar community

Those who follow the residents of Hadar in the Facebook groups cannot help but envy the sense of community and the mutual support between residents in the neighborhood. It starts with mutual help and ends with joint meetings on one of the roofs or in the house of one of the residents of the neighborhood. One of the streets that stands out for its young atmosphere and solidarity among the residents is Masada Street. Cafes, ice cream parlors, second hand shops and more are scattered along the street. There is also a significant amount of students in the neighborhood, who rent an apartment in Hadar and receive a discount of several thousand NIS from the municipality in exchange for community activities. An examination shows that about half of the students in the program stay to live after the program ends.

historical buildings

Talpiot market - was established in 1940. Today there is a great resurgence of commerce and restaurants in the vicinity of the market. The municipality announced that it is looking into how to renovate the building and give an additional boost to what is calling around the market.

The Fund House - a commercial center established in the 30s. The Foundation House has shops and offices above them. In the 90s, Yahav also, being a member of the Knesset on behalf of the Labor Party, had an office there.

The Garden of Remembrance - commemorates the martyrs of 2008.

The Medatek (the old Technion building) - The Medatek (Science Museum) attracts visitors from all over the country. The Madatek management is aware that it is located in the heart of the Hadar neighborhood and sometimes offers free or reduced price entry to residents. Next to the museum is Binyamin Garden, which residents claim has been neglected for years. In recent years the garden has been renovated and is now used for activities for the benefit of the residents of the city and the neighborhood.

schools and kindergartens

According to the residents of Hadar, compared to all the other neighborhoods in the city, where there is a school attended by all the children of the neighborhood, there are no public educational institutions in Hadar. There is a branch of the Reali in the Hadar neighborhood, but only those who are willing to pay the tuition and are accepted to the school can send their children to the Reali. There are Haredim and Arabs in the neighborhood, and each group has educational institutions and kindergartens. Those who wish to send their children to state education and before that to municipal kindergartens will have a very difficult time.
In the past there were many schools in the neighborhood, which were closed over the years. There are schools in Hadar at a very high level of the church and the ultra-orthodox movement. In 2009, the Ma'ale Carmel school, which was adjacent to the Baha'i gardens, was closed after a very hard struggle by the parents, who were very satisfied with the school. The students, who studied there, moved on to study at the Tschernihovsky school in the French Carmel. Today, the Leo Buck (Elementary) School operates in Hadar.
In 1913, the old Technion was established in Hadar (in the building that today serves as the Medatek). Over the years there were colleges and schools in the neighborhood, which were closed or moved to Neve Shanan (the Technion) or to Carmel.

big projects

Several years ago, the municipality did a huge renovation on Hillel Street. Residents of the neighborhood and local politicians fought for the renovation, which was very expensive, to get started, and in the end the street was renovated. Until that renovation, the condition of the sidewalks was so bad that the elderly population and of course the disabled could not walk on the street without endangering themselves. During the renovation period, it was not possible to park on the street, but the end result was worth it all. The street was upgraded, the sidewalks were renewed and so was the road.
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The student village - The Municipality of Haifa and the University of Haifa are responsible for the project, which aims to strengthen the Hadar population. Local residents of Hadar occasionally raise the question of whether the municipality's financial investment in these students pays off at all, and how many students come to Hadar thanks to the project, and really stay to live there. According to the municipality, half of the students stay to live in Hadar even after graduation.

Delinquency in splendor

There used to be a station for distributing drug substitutes on Hagafen Street, and some of the users continued to use after that. Mayor Yona Yahav moved the station to Shemen beach, and according to shopkeepers in the streets this resulted in a great improvement in the situation.
According to the residents of Hadar, the neighborhood has a bad reputation, therefore despite the great improvement in terms of crime in the neighborhood, people still believe that there are many more cases of violence in the neighborhood compared to other neighborhoods in the city. In contrast, other residents of Hadar believe that it cannot be ignored that there are parts of the neighborhood where the sense of personal security of the residents is low.

The truth, as in many cases, lies in the middle. Police reports indicate that there are drug labs and drug stations throughout the city, and there are quite a few buildings in Carmel and the estate that have apartments where drugs are sold. Even if you check the murder and rape cases in recent years, you can see that besides serious crime in Hadar, you can find very worrying data in many neighborhoods in the city.

Drugs in Haifa - more articles

There are those who point out certain streets with great pride when there are severe noise hazards at night, there is a fear of contacting the person making the noise, because it is not clear what the reaction will be. In addition, it was recently announced that the police suspect that the fire of an apartment in a residential building in the neighborhood was arson because of alleged criminal elements.
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In recent years, the police have been doing everything they can to reduce crime in the neighborhood. For this purpose, Hadar has police officers whose goal is to maintain order and reduce crime. In addition, the Hadar neighborhood is covered with cameras, and if there is a break-in or other crime, the cameras can be used to capture the suspect as quickly as possible.

Transportation in Hadar

Carmelite - In 1959, the line of the Carmelite was excavated, connecting Hadar with the center of Carmel and with the lower city. For many years the Carmelite did not operate, and it returned to work in 1992. In December last year, a fire broke out, shutting down its activity for a period of about a year.
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The residents of Hadar enjoy the Carmelite very much, because beyond the fact that it connects Hadar with Carmel and the lower city, it also offers several stations in the Hadar neighborhood itself (near Bnei Zion, on Masada Street and on Haneviim Street).

Link to all articles on the Carmelite

In Hadar, the matron operates that connects the neighborhood to Check Post and Carriages. The construction of the matron tracks took several years, and according to shop owners in the neighborhood they suffered a heavy blow, which also led to the closing of several shops. Regarding the matron's activity today, opinions are divided. There are those who enjoy the unique route assigned to her. In contrast, there are those who claim that the density inside the matron is sometimes impossible. Other residents are not happy that bus lines, which they used to use in the past, were canceled because of the Carmelite.

| project Haifa neighborhoods - Michal Yaron presents the unique characteristics of each neighborhood in the city