Between the mountain and the sea
The Bat Galim neighborhood is at a crossroads. On the one hand, there is an attempt to renovate the old buildings and do urban renewal in the neighborhood. On the other hand, the Bat Galim neighborhood sits on the seashore in a flat area and is convenient in terms of public transportation, and it is important to maintain these strengths when renovating and rebuilding Bat Galim.
The Bat Galim neighborhood is one of the oldest neighborhoods in the city. The first houses in the neighborhood are from the early 20s. The railroad runs through the neighborhood, and you can also find the largest medical center in the north - the Rambam Hospital. The beach in the neighborhood is especially suitable for kitesurfing, windsurfing and wave surfing, because of the proximity of the mountain to the sea, the topographical conditions of Rosh Carmel and the shallow reef, the waves are high perfectly.
Over the years, the residents of the neighborhood enjoyed the extraordinary proximity of their homes to the seashore, but at the same time they used to complain about the severe neglect of the neighborhood in the face of municipal investment in other neighborhoods. Today there are activists in the neighborhood who are trying to promote the neighborhood both environmentally and socially.
Real estate in Bat Galim:
The Bat Galim neighborhood is at the beginning of a very significant period for the neighborhood. Many of the buildings in the neighborhood are very old and the municipality has announced its intention to carry out urban renewal projects in several central streets in the coming years. These are projects that will be built over several years.
Apartment prices in the neighborhood have risen sharply in recent years. Today, according to the Madlan index, the average price of a 3-room apartment in the neighborhood is around NIS 850,000, and a 4-room apartment can reach about NIS XNUMX million. The neighborhood enjoys proximity to a train station, is level, and has relatively convenient public transportation. In addition, there is Of course, it also has a beach and a promenade.
Evacuation at the Navy Yard: One of the initiatives for the development of the neighborhood is the initiative to evacuate the Navy training base. The plan to vacate the BHD and a basic plan for building the neighborhood in the area that will be vacated, are plans that have been in the process for about 15 years and more, but in order to realize this plan, an alternative to the location of the BHD and a realistic plan for its evacuation must first be found. This program is not yet in advanced stages and there is no target date for its implementation.
Evacuation of the BHAD - publications from 2012:
Bat Galim Casino: This is a building that has been used for community and leisure activities since the 30s. The original building attracted a lot of Haifa revelers, but today a concrete skeleton similar to the original building stands in its place. The building is owned by Gili Dankner, who also owns the petrochemical plant Dor Chemicals, in Haifa Bay. The skeleton of the casino, which has stood as a stone that has not been turned for decades, is a focus of controversy surrounding the question of which building strengthening program can be applied to it (because of the year the building was built), whether to add floors to it or destroy it and return the land to the public as a coastal promenade. Along with the fight in the subcommittees and planning, there are council members and residents who believe that the casino should become a public building for the benefit of the residents of the neighborhood because it is one of the symbols of the neighborhood. According to them, it does not make sense for the historic building to become an apartment building, from which the developer and his partners will profit, when those who have to leave such an unusual building are the residents.
Education:
The elementary school in the neighborhood is the Aliyah Anthroposophical School, which is in its second year of operation. The school operates according to the anthroposophical method and about 160 students study there. The person responsible for establishing the school is the founding director Dr. Itai Paz who, with the help of the municipality, turned the Aliyah school, which had only a few dozen students, into a school that attracts students from other neighborhoods in the city alongside the majority of students from the Bat Galim neighborhood.
This year, gardens operating with an anthroposophical approach were also opened in the school complex, which were in great demand. The municipality's goal is to help promote the neighborhood by turning the school into a community center for the residents during school hours and after.
The nearest six-year school is Urban School A in Kiryat Eliezer. There are students from the neighborhood who also attend regional classes at one of the other six-year schools in the city.
Entertainment places in the Bat Galim neighborhood:
a restaurant - One of the oldest restaurants in Bat Galim, serving the public for nearly 40 years. The restaurant has fishermen who every day bring fresh goods, which they fish not far from the restaurant.
Shwatina and above it an Italian restaurant - Located in the lower cable car, at the western end of the Bat Galim Promenade
wave bar, Cooperative Cafe - Bar, established in the neighborhood by a non-profit cooperative association to promote community life. In the bar you can enjoy musical performances and lectures along with food and drinks at reasonable prices.
Dolphin Restaurant - An old restaurant that serves seafood.
Milhouse Cafe – a cafe with a special atmosphere
O-Ran Horowitz, a young woman from Haifa, with a background in design, coffee and cooking, moved to Bat Galim about three years ago. Out of her love for the neighborhood and for Kisama, she founded "Millhouse Cafe", a cafe with a special atmosphere.
Milhouse Cafe, located in the center of Sderot Bat Galim, was designed in a European style while taking care to preserve the appearance of the historic building. Since it opened two months ago, it attracts many residents of the neighborhood and even outside of it, who find it quality coffee and excellent sandwiches, along with a pleasant atmosphere, good music and an inviting design.
Milhouse Cafe is open Monday-Saturday from morning to afternoon.
Challenges:
The Bat Galim neighborhood, like the other coastal neighborhoods, is facing urban renewal projects. In Haifa in the 20's and 30's of the last century, the neighborhoods on the mountain seemed to have potential, and the neighborhoods on the seashore became as a result neighborhoods for a population from a low socio-economic status. Over the years Haifa realized the mistake, because in every other city in the world that lies on the seashore, the most expensive houses and the most prestigious neighborhoods are precisely the ones that kiss the waves.
Compared to the other coastal neighborhoods, the houses of the Bat Galim neighborhood reach almost to the seashore. On several streets in the neighborhood, you can find houses only tens of meters apart, which is very rare to find in the entire country. In recent years, environmental quality movements have been working to have the beaches declared by legislation as belonging to the public, and therefore there is a struggle every time a contractor or developer wants to build or do a TMA for a building that is within touching distance of the seashore. Each such building is discussed by the Municipal Conservation Committee, usually by members The council on behalf of the Green Movement of Haifa, Avihu Han and Yron Hanan.
Elimination of the "Marina" program
In the years 2000 - 2007, a civil struggle was waged to dispose of a huge real estate project in the sea, in front of the Bat Galim beaches. The real estate project is also known by its name "The Marina Plan", even though it mainly involved massive construction in the sea and the portion of the marina was extremely small. This plan dealt with the drying of the sea from the Navy Yard to the Sea and Lake Research Institute, about 2000 meters long, when the planned drying was 400 meters deep into the sea, around Rosh Carmel.
A tremendous civil struggle, with extensive participation of the residents of the neighborhood, resulted in the cancellation of the plan, in which 74 million NIS were invested until its cancellation, according to the following breakdown: 20 million NIS were invested in the planning of the marina, by the Haifa Economic Company. About NIS 54 million was invested in the construction of the Allenby Interchange, which was intended to lead a two-lane gravity into the marina. Its construction was stopped by a court order and ended with the completion of a modest descent into the neighborhood.
The surfers' club - abandoned since 2010
The surfers' club and the diving club have operated in the Bat Galim neighborhood since the early 90s. In 2010, the municipality of Haifa demolished the club, in order to complete the Allenby interchange
When the club was destroyed, the Haifa municipality announced that a modern club would be built under the interchange. However, the Allenby interchange was completed in 2015, a skeleton of a surfer club was built underneath and since then no budget has been found to complete the club.
This beach, considered a surfing gem, has been abandoned without activity since 2010.
A fight for the neighborhood's character
These are critical days in the Bat Galim neighborhood, and both the municipality and the residents understand that there is now a struggle for the neighborhood's appearance. It is important for the residents, along with the urban renewal, to preserve what is special and unique about the neighborhood. Bat Galim is not a normal neighborhood and its residents do not want to resemble the rest of the city's neighborhoods, since this neighborhood has its own attractive factors. Those who live in the neighborhood benefit from a train station, which allows easy access to the MTM and the center of the country. Bat Galim's beach allows you to dip your feet in the water a few moments after locking the door. The neighborhood has ancient buildings from decades ago, which can be renovated and maintain their beauty and nostalgic value. Time will tell if the municipality and the residents will succeed in joining forces and with the help of contractors and entrepreneurs to promote the neighborhood and make it a good place to live and raise children.
| project Haifa neighborhoods - Michal Yaron presents the unique characteristics of each neighborhood in the city