The planned Israeli city of Harish was supposed to be a mixed city. Its initial residents were secular and Zionist Orthodox and the expansion from a tiny several hundred strong community into a full-fledged city was supposed to follow a similar population makeup, but with the addition of haredim into the population mix. But then the Sefardi haredi Shas Party took charge of the Housing Ministry and all that quickly changed. Housing tenders were illegally skewed to favor haredim. 1,500 haredim bought new apartments in the city as secular and Zionist Orthodox Jews were largely locked out of the bidding process. Ministry officials lied to Knesset and to Harish residents. And suddenly, the new Harish was about to become a haredi city – until now.
A September 2012 secular protest against the haredi takeover of Harish
Haredi Takeover Of Planned Israeli City Blocked
Shmarya Rosenberg • FailedMessiah.com
The planned Israeli city of Harish was supposed to be a mixed city. Its initial residents were secular and Zionist Orthodox and the expansion from a tiny several hundred strong community into a full-fledged city was supposed to follow a similar population makeup, but with the addition of haredim into the population mix.
But then the Sefardi haredi Shas Party took charge of the Housing Ministry and all that quickly changed. Housing tenders were illegally skewed to favor haredim. 1,500 haredim bought new apartments in the city as secular and Zionist Orthodox Jews were largely locked out of the bidding process. Ministry officials lied to Knesset and to Harish residents. And suddenly, the new Harish was about to become a haredi city.
But Shas lost control of the Housing Ministry after the last election and now it seems haredim will no longer control Harish.
On Tuesday, the National Building Appeals Committee reportedly accepted an appeal which will compel modifying building plans in Harish to reflect the fact that Harish is not a haredi city.
Those changes will reportedly include taller buildings which will no longer be limited to five stories in height, additional parking spaces, construction of underground parking lots, more shopping centers and entertainment venues.
Under Shas control, new apartments were designed almost exclusively for large haredi families while public spaces, like parks and theaters, were eliminated or greatly limited as were parking spaces and other amenities non-haredim expect.