The Tower in Safar Square - plans, transportation, density, objections

1. About 100 residents of the neighborhood and other neighborhoods adjacent to Moriah axis participated in the meeting this evening.
   Committee member Dr. Dror Tsernik presented the activity so far and the outlook for the future regarding the objections.
   The chairman of the Carmel Forum, Rami Chen, presented the project, and the extreme benefits and concessions that the municipality granted to the developer, and the significance for the residents of the neighborhood and the city council.
   The entrepreneur was invited to speak, and explained that this is a modest project that contributes to the environment.
   The architect Shmuel Galbhart was invited to present his position, and explained that the differences of opinion between the developer and the residents stem from the fact that the residents were not involved in the process.
   Yaron Hanan was invited to present the Greens' position regarding the excessive construction reinforcements in Haifa.
   A number of residents expressed during the assembly their indignation at the conduct of the authorities towards the entrepreneurs, and at the helplessness they feel.
   The CM conducted a poll among the participants regarding public participation in determining the nature of the neighborhood. Almost all participants voted in favor of public participation, and one participant abstained.
   62 residents wrote letters of objection and signed them in the presence of an attorney. 12 residents who could not attend asked to be allowed to submit objections at another time.
   The additional deadline for submitting objections as well as for improving objections signed today is Sunday, the 19th of the month, between the hours of 19:00 and 20:00. Please call me for coordination.
   3 residents asked to join the action committee.

   Link to the invitation sent ahead of the conference:

   • The tower in Safar square: invitation to a meeting of residents in Moriah district 13.5.2013/XNUMX/XNUMX

   This message is on behalf of the "Residents to Save the Moriah Axis" committee.
   Message editor: Avi Harel - phone 054-453-4501
   To sign the petition click - http://www.atzuma.co.il/haifa1
   If you received this message twice, you may have already signed the petition. Forgiveness is with you.

2. The whole idea of ​​approving in this place a tower that includes residential and commercial floors exceeding 10 floors is unacceptable. If this is the size of the project in the future, it is environmental damage and a dangerous precedent for the rest of the Moriah axis.The height of the residential and commercial buildings along the entire length of the ridge line must be adjusted to what we previously agreed to in the center of Carmel: only 9 floors.

3. May 11, 2012
   

   The main points of the discussion in the district committee on May 9, 2012 regarding the tower of Kachar K. Book

   
   Written and edited by representatives of the committee "Residents to Save the Moriah Axis"
   At the committee's hearing, the architect from the office of Moshe Tzur (representing the developer) presented alternatives to the tower plan, as requested by the district committee (of the Ministry of the Interior), and the representative of the city engineer explained why the city supports exceptions to the policy documents. The discussion was open to the public. Despite the appeal of the Carmel Public Forum, the district committee did not forward the revised plans to the residents for review prior to the discussion. About 30 residents of the neighborhoods bordering the Moriah axis exercised their right to hear the course of the discussion. The discussion took place in a good atmosphere and without interruptions, and it was evident that the developer's representatives wanted to convince the residents' representatives to remove their objection. At the end of the hearing, before the line of judgment, the chairman of the hearing allowed the representatives of the residents to express their position. This is in contrast to the local committee (of the municipality), which at no point allowed the representatives of the residents to express their opinion.

   At the beginning of his speech, the architect presented additional alternatives, according to the demand of the district committee, which corresponds to the construction policy documents in the Moriah axis. Among the alternatives that were presented were the two original alternatives (22 floors and 14 floors) and three additional alternatives, including a 6-story and 9-story building, which are in accordance with the construction policy documents in the Moriah axis. The architect repeated the fraud exercise from last year, according to which it is alleged that building to a height allows for the addition of public areas. The committee rejected his explanations on this issue. He also repeated the slogans about icons in architecture, which captured the heart of the mayor, without explaining why an icon must be tall. In addition, it seems that the developer realized that he could not mislead the district committee regarding the construction for young couples, a procedure he followed in the local committee.

   As in last year's debate, this time as well The architect tried to convince that it makes sense to look at the lot as if it were 2.5 dunams in size (which allows massive construction by 250%), since in the past, (before the expropriation processes for road needs), the area was indeed of this size. Strangely, the representative of the municipality showed support for this unprecedented exception, and made it clear that the support is spot-on, for this specific project. Her words implied that the municipality has no intention of allowing such a strange calculation method for all residents. It seems that the state auditor's report that dealt with the issue was not understood: the dogs are barking, and the convoy is passing.

   Also, the developer came back and presented the plan for a parking lot under public roads. According to the developer's proposal, the parking lots that currently serve the residents of the neighborhood will be replaced by a lot that will provide 100 paid parking spaces during the day by private parties. In an attempt to put pressure on the committee to approve the original 22-story alternative, the architect explained that the developer's proposal for public parking (for a fee) does not apply to the 6-9 story alternatives.
   The representative of the municipality explained that the municipality goes out of its way to support the project, because it wants to solve the parking shortage along the axis by means of underground parking lots in Square K. a book and in the Shavit cinema area. The representative of the municipality was not able to answer the question of the chairman of the district committee and the residents:
   1. How many parking spaces are canceled because of the project - we estimated about 25 parking spaces in Rehovot K. Safar, Ayalon and Moriah.
   2. Why didn't the municipality ask to transfer the parking lot to its ownership and thus guarantee the prices of a municipal parking lot, free parking for the residents of the area, and operation during all hours of the day.
   3. Why does the municipality not regulate the rules for operating the parking lot so that they reflect the public good.
   The municipality was not asked, nor did it explain why it cannot demand the operation of a parking lot even for the 180% relief, and how the municipality will be able to guarantee parking for residents even at night, and how it will manage the roads above the parking lot.
   The transportation expert on behalf of the developer casually repeated the plan presented in the previous discussion, which proposes two-lane traffic on the section of Kiryat Safar Street. The expert went beyond his duty by presenting numbers according to transportation standards, but did not present an analysis of the problematic nature of two-way traffic, in combination with an entrance to the parking lot controlled by a traffic light, and the significance of a security audit at the entrance to the parking lot during the hours of student transportation to the Reali School About the traffic on Moriah Street. The developer's representatives commented that the transportation problem on the Moriah route will be solved after the plan to prioritize public transportation in the Carmel Ridge is implemented, but there was no reference to the questions of when the plan will be implemented, what will happen until it is implemented, and how the priority for public transportation can prevent traffic jams in the square area. To the best of our understanding, The committee has not yet gone into the thick of this issue, which in our opinion is the most critical in the entire plan, regardless of the alternative that will be chosen in the end.
   The architect casually addressed the environmental issues, including winds in the area of ​​the tower and shading to the neighboring houses to the north of it. The committee did not devote an in-depth discussion to this issue, which is critical for the residents of the houses next to the tower. The discussion on transportation and the environment referred to this project only. The developer is not required to come up with a plan that addresses these aspects for all of the focus of Kachr K. Book.

   The committee allowed the four representatives of the residents to express their position: PProf. Gedaliah Shelf, a resident of Ayalon Street, clarified that the transportation problem today is a catastrophe, and that the implementation of the plan will worsen it and bring it to the level of a disaster. Dr. Dror Tsernik, a resident of D'Israeli Street, spokesman for the "Residents to Save the Moriah Axis" committee, emphasized our displeasure that the municipality is not interested in the opinion of the residents, and in fact ignores their needs. It is clear to us that there are conflicts of interest between the residents and the developer, but the group of The municipality with the developer, against the residents and against the environmental and public interests testifies to the weakness of the municipality. Dror cited the claim of the "Adam Teva and Din" association in a similar case - that "residential towers should not be allowed in areas where there is no outline plan", which is the case in this area. Rami Chen , secretary of the Carmel Public Forum, noted the need to discuss the implications of the plan on infrastructure issues. Architect Shmuel Gelbart expressed surprise that the municipality encourages massive construction precisely in areas that are already built, contrary to the official national policy, to direct massive construction to areas that are at the beginning of construction. (such as on the slopes Carmel near Castra)

   During the summaries, the deputy mayor, Mrs. Hadva Almog, called the neighborhood representatives to meet with her to coordinate expectations. In her reading there was not even a hint that she intended to change the municipality's position regarding the project.
   In conclusion, it is evident that the developer already understands that it will be difficult for him to ignore the interests of the residents, but he still continues with exercises of keeping an eye on the issues of public spaces, parking and transportation. In our estimation, the presence of the residents' representatives had an effect on the conduct of the discussion, and it seems that unlike the local committee, which ignores the interests of the residents of the neighborhoods bordering the Moriah axis, the district committee tends to listen and take them into account.
   For questions, clarifications and contributions, you can contact:
   Avi Harel 054-453-4501 [email protected]
   Dr. Dror Cernik 052-830-5999

4. The continuation of the fight over the plan for the 22-story tower in Kiryat Sefer Square
   Invitation to the district committee discussion - on Wednesday 09/05/2012 at 10:30
   At the Ministry of the Interior - "The Missile Building", Palim St., on the fourth floor
   Come one and all! Your presence makes an impact!
   http://www.atzuma.co.il/haifa1" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
   The Action Committee to Save the Moriah Axis is happy to share and update you on the progress of our fight against the plan
   For the construction of a 22-story building in Sefer Square, which will cause serious transportation problems and harm the quality of life
   of the residents of the neighborhood.
   The residents' committee to save the Moriah axis represents residents of residential neighborhoods in the axis area, who are interested
   In the development of the Carmel ridge while maintaining the character of the construction along the ridge. The committee opposes plans for development no
   Proportional to the Moriah axis. The committee includes volunteers who live in the neighborhood.
   1) So far we have managed to collect about NIS 30,000, which is about a third of the expected cost of a lawyer's NIS,
   and a transportation expert and other experts. We collected about 2,000 signatures of people who oppose
   for the project. You can sign (over a thousand signatures there) on the petition website
   http://www.atzuma.co.il/haifa1" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
   2) We participated in all the meetings of the local committee of the municipality as well as in the meetings of the district committee and we also expressed our positions before the various committees.
   3) We contacted the state auditor and as a result, in the latest report, the auditor strongly criticizes
   The Municipality of Haifa in the fields of planning in general and regarding the Kiryat Sefer Tower in particular.
   We ask the residents of the area to raise a donation, because the money we collected is only a small part of the total
   the expenses necessary for the court hearing.
   Also, we would be very happy if more people are willing to turn Nablus and volunteer for the joint effort in the activities
   The difference in this struggle.
   To join the fight and make financial donations, you can contact:
   Avi Harel, phone 054-4534501
   Dr. Dror Tsernik, phone 052-8305999
   By email [email protected]
   http://www.atzuma.co.il/haifa1" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

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