[RBS] Fwd: Summary of Mem-3 Objections Hearings

[Ephrayim Naiman]

Dear All,

Below is a "brain dump" of the Objection Hearings held in front of the
Regional Planning Council (RPC), on Thursday, July 14th, against
"BS/186 Mem-3", a new project that Iriyat Beit Shemesh would like to
build on the south side of Hayarkon for 2,000 people.

    The RPC acts as a "judge" and will issue a "verdict" based on the hearings

For about 2 hours, people presented their personal objections to the
RPC.  Then another 2 hours of Objections were presented by Pinchas
Koven, the lawyer of record for Ephrayim Naiman and Yissachar Fried.
In reality Pinchas representing the 350 people who signed Objection
Letters (and really hundreds of other families as well).  Iriyat Beit
Shemesh and Misrad Hashikun then spent about 1.5 hours replying and
then there was a final hour of rebuttal from the residents.

The short summary is:

The objections were in large part listened to with respect and the
Misrad Hashikun answered many of the objections with professional answers.
There were dozens of points discussed and I hope that some of the
more major ones will be addressed by the RPC.
However, since this is also a political process - I have no idea if
that will happen.
I am not sure how long it will take for the RPC to issue its verdict.

If you would still like to help pay for these and other Objections
being filed against the faulty planning/building in our area, please
be in touch with me or Yissachar Fried (lfried at shemesh.co.il) - thank
you.

The fuller summary below breaks the objections up into 10 general areas.

Behatzlacha!

-Ephrayim Naiman
ejnaiman at gmail.com
========================================================

1. Mem-3?  Or Mem-3 and the rest of the new RBS projects?
Objection: We asked the RPC to not judge the objections brought
against Mem-3 by itself, but to judge it together with the 5 projects
currently being planned and built for over 50,000 people in the RBS
area.
Response: No response was given to this request.

2. Added Value?
Objection: With the expected 50,000 people to move in to the RBS area,
Mem-3 is only 350 units.  Therefore, there has to be a very large
"Added Value" for it to be worth "squeezing this small neighborhood"
into an area that is already teeming with wildlife, park areas, bike
paths, walking trails, archeological ruins, fauna, flora, incredible
views for 1/4 of the current RBS-A, etc.  Therefore our first and
foremost objection is to cancel the entire project.
Response: Sorry, we need to build more.

3. Education
Objection: As evidenced by many national and BS reports, the
educational system in R/BS is massively overstressed, with hundreds of
missing classrooms.  According to Iriyat Beit Shemesh, extra
classrooms will be built in the "new areas".  In point the fact, the
new areas barely have enough schools on their own, let alone to make
up for the lack in the rest of R/BS.  Mem-3 has 4 Ganim and no other
schools.  We requested from the Regional Council that they must first
ask Misrad Hachinuch whether the addition of 2,000 people in Mem-3
(plus the other new neighborhoods), fits within its "Tochnit Av" for
the greater BS region.  (E.g. Since most of the homes are "large", why
are only ganim being built?)  And to seriously consider adding an
elementary or high school in Mem-3.
Response: BS is currently building 100 classrooms, another 100 have
been allocated and another 100 in the pipeline.  And "besides", a
neighborhood of "only 350 families" is not eligible for a school, it
is too small.  I personally had the impression that the Vaada will
approach Misrad Hachinuch for their feedback - I certainly hope so.

4. Traffic
Objection: The entire BS area is is already burdened with massive
traffic jams both inter-city during rush hour (which gets longer every
month) and intra-city which is practically at a standstill during
school drop off and multiple pickup times during the afternoon.  Mem-3
has its own unique problems with Yarkon, new traffic circles, the need
for children to cross Yarkon (due to no schools in Mem-3), cross
traffic coming from route #10, traffic caused by thousands (yes,
thousands) of kids going to school on Yarkon, Mem-3, Luz and Gilo.
Plus the traffic from the heavy equipment during the building phase
will also cause extra issues.
Response: A number of solutions were discussed: A) a Pedestrian bridge
or tunnel to cross Yarkon. B) Not allowing building to occur on Yarkon
- but instead from within the valley. C) Only allow equipment to enter
Mem-3 from Yarden/Yarkon, not Luz or Kishon. D) Not to allow Mem-3 to
be built or populated until Route #10 is completed, including, at
least a temporary solution connecting it to #38.  Problems related
directly to #38 being a 2-lane road, were not directly responded to.

5. Security
Objection: During the building phase there are many workers that cause
untold amount of security problems within the populated nearby
streets.  A request to make stronger conditions to seal off the area
during the building phase was submitted.
Response: That is a police matter.

6. Air Quality
Objection: The building in the area, along with the rest of the
massive building going on at the *same* time, will make the air
quality unbearable.
Response: No response.

7. Public Buildings
Objection: There is a need for at least 1 shul for every 70 families,
yet the only shuls planned are above the Ganim, with no parking
access.  In addition, there is no Mikve - with the closest current
Mikve 1.5 kilometers away, straight up a very steep hill (from the
valley of Mem-3, up Luz on to Dolev or Lachish).  A single Ulam Sport for
the current 25,000 residents in RBS is pitifully small and another one
should be built.  Also a pool is lacking.
Response: That is how shuls are built these days and we don't allocate
more - sorry.  This area is too small to warrant an Ulam Sport.  A
separate area has been allocated for a pool (between the Matnas and
the current Ulam Sport).  In terms of a Mikve, the Iriya mentioned
that one is being built on Luz.  Our rebuttal on this latter point is
that it is "almost public knowledge" that the Mikve is being given
over to an Extremist Rabbi in the neighborhood - and therefore will not
available to the greater public.  And in any event, 3 mikva'ot for
5,000 people is still too little, let alone another 1,000 families
being added to RBS-A.  In our rebuttal, we also discussed
the promises of a pool not being fulfilled for over 10 years already -
and "we turn to you, the RPC, to not allow more building until these
basic infrastructure requirements are fulfilled".

8. Commercial areas
Objection: The general Yarkon area has no commercial area, with
horrible traffic/parking issue in the only Merkaz Mischari.  The
Gimmel-1 neighborhood, has commercial area smaller than the store
Yesh.  And the promised Merkaz Ironi Rashi (Ma'ar), was been stopped
in its tracks for so many years and not something that anyone can
count on.  Furthermore, *if* the Ma'ar were to be built, then
minimally, there should be some sort of connecting road to it from
Mem-3.  That way the 2,000 people do not have to go up to Yarkon, drive
west and then have to go back down in the valley to get to the Ma'ar.
BeGdol - more Mischar area is desperately needed!
Response: I don't recall any response to this - except that making a
western road to the Ma'ar from Mem-3 is topologically nearly
impossible and probably not wanted by the Mem-3 residents.

9. Quality of Life
Objection: This was a thread throughout all the objections and
encompassed many, many areas.
Over and over again we harped on the infrastructure collapsing right &
left all over R/BS and that more building will only *stagnate*
progress at this point.  And specifically the view is very unique in
the Mem-3 valley which will almost completely be destroyed.
Response: No specific answers.

10. Smaller Neighborhood
Objection: We presented an "Alternate Plan", cutting down 1/3 the
amount of homes, so there'll be less need for as many shuls, schools,
shopping area, parking, access to Yarkon, etc.  The homes should only
be accessible from within the neighborhood (not Yarkon) and the 4
floor height buildings on Yarkon should be cut down to zero, with
building only *into* the valley - thereby not blocking the current
view (which is up to the 5th floor on the northern side of Yarkon in
some places!).
Response: Thank you - but no thank you.

-Ephrayim Naiman
ejnaiman at gmail.com