Minchat residents in Jerusalem: TMA entrepreneurs threaten to harm the character of the neighborhood, filed an objection to the permit application for the TMA 38 project on HaMetriya Street in the city
Residents of the Minchat neighborhood continue the fight against TMA 38 entrepreneurs who threaten to harm the character of the neighborhood.
Minchat (Old Malha) is a historic neighborhood whose alleys were at the base of the neighborhood that included the houses of the Arab village “El Malha” which was abandoned during the War of Independence and later inhabited by immigrants from various Diasporas. The neighborhood is characterized by old residential buildings with low traditional Arab construction and most of them are very old buildings with one housing unit. The neighborhood has been marked as part of the “historic city” in the municipality’s plans and as a site for preservation in the comprehensive outline plan for Jerusalem 2000 that is being prepared.
As part of the permit application, the developer requested the demolition of a 2-story building that includes 2 housing units at 23 HaFatriya Street and the construction of a 4-story building above the parking floor and warehouses that will include 8 housing units.
Residents of the neighborhood argued in opposition that the permit application should be denied for a number of reasons. First, the residents claim that the incentives provided under NPA 38 do not apply to the buildings since they are two residential buildings in a common wall, where one of the buildings does not have a building permit and it has not been proven that it was built legally before 1980 and the other building was built after 1980. Constructive certificates that it meets all relevant building standards. Therefore, none of the buildings is entitled to the NAP incentives or additional rights under Plan 10038 (the renewal plan under the Jerusalem Municipality’s NAP). From 400 square meters and 2 floors high and according to the provisions of Plan 10038 is not eligible for incentives because its surroundings are of ground-level construction.
But the main argument focuses on the fact that the building is in the “historic city” area and that the application should be rejected because the scope of construction requested therein, including the building volume, plan, height and number of housing units, substantially deviates significantly from Plan 3718 and 10038 .
Adv. Dikla Musari Tal and Doron Tal point out that Plan 3718 approved in 1996 is a unique plan that aims to preserve the unique historical values of the Minchat neighborhood and its rural character, while establishing rigid building regulations that can not be deviated from, reducing construction areas, leaving minimal density ( Between 1 and 2 units per lot only) and ground-level construction (up to no more than two floors) in all the lots in the neighborhood. In view of this guiding motif, the plan established sharp and clear provisions regarding the construction options in each plot and lot, and also determined that a deviation from the plan provisions in relation to the construction regulations set forth therein, including additional floors, additional building height, reduction of spaces or increased construction areas will constitute “significant deviation”. In law. Therefore, the required construction permit for the passage of the neighborhood and one of the most viewed plots in it, will nullify the values and uniqueness of the neighborhood, will forever change the character of the preserved historic environment, and will set a dangerous precedent for offensive construction that overrides the unique architectural and historical values of the historic village.
It should be noted that this is not the first objection filed by the residents of the neighborhood in their struggle over the character of the neighborhood. In March 2021, the residents objected to the TMA 38 project, which developers tried to promote on another building in the neighborhood. And they are also contrary to the conservation values of the place. Following the opposition the application was suspended.
The lawyers claim that the Jerusalem municipality should have put an end to attempts to promote construction in the neighborhood through TMA 38 “Preserving the character of the neighborhood as part of the historic city is of great importance from an urban-local and even national point of view. The local committee is working on a conservation plan that will include the neighborhood buildings. In the interim period until the plan was approved, it was appropriate to stop the construction projects in the neighborhood under NAP 38, through notices under sections 77 and 78 of the Planning and Building Law, which would freeze the possibility of issuing building permits until the plan was approved. The applications submitted and promoted by the local committee did not meet the threshold conditions for the application of the NPA and Plan 10038 at all.
It should be noted that the permit application was also objected to by the Council for the Preservation of Heritage Sites in Israel. This plan also appears in the new master plan 3718 which sets out the principles of preservation in the neighborhood and sets a prohibition on considerable deviation.