Haifa, La Ville
Downtown
et/and
Campus HaNamal
Downtown
et/and
Campus HaNamal
L'ancien centre commercial de Haifa concu au temps du mandat britannique par l'architecte Fritz
Korenberg est en processus de rehabilitation: deja, a cote d'une nouvelle branche de l'Universite de
Haifa, des Colleges Academiques Tiltan et Carmel, de residences universitaires, on trouve dans le
Campus du Port l'un des meilleurs restaurants d'Israel, des pubs branches, un marche des plus
animes, des coins pittoresques et bohemes, tout pres de la Place de Paris
Le Campus du Port est a quelques minutes de marche du centre administratif et commercial de Haifa
Il est desservi par la Metronit (Nord-Sud) et de nombreuses lignes d'autobus, une station de train
(ligne Naharyiha-Tel-Aviv-BenGurion), la Carmelit qui monte vers Hadar et le Carmel
Korenberg est en processus de rehabilitation: deja, a cote d'une nouvelle branche de l'Universite de
Haifa, des Colleges Academiques Tiltan et Carmel, de residences universitaires, on trouve dans le
Campus du Port l'un des meilleurs restaurants d'Israel, des pubs branches, un marche des plus
animes, des coins pittoresques et bohemes, tout pres de la Place de Paris
Le Campus du Port est a quelques minutes de marche du centre administratif et commercial de Haifa
Il est desservi par la Metronit (Nord-Sud) et de nombreuses lignes d'autobus, une station de train
(ligne Naharyiha-Tel-Aviv-BenGurion), la Carmelit qui monte vers Hadar et le Carmel
College Carmel
Carmel College
Carmel College
Tiltan College for communication and Design
College Tiltan pour le Design et la Communication
College Tiltan pour le Design et la Communication
Universite de Haifa
Haifa University
Haifa University
HaNamal 24, Gourmet Restaurant
The ancient Haifa Commercial Center that was conceived during the British Mandate by the architect Fritz Korenberg
is undergoing thorough renovation and gentrification : already, next to a new branch of Haifa University, and of Tiltan
and Carmel Academic Colleges, students dormitories, one can find in the Port Campus one of Israel's finest
restaurants, lively pubs, a market, picturesque and funky places, just next to the Place de Paris
The Port Campus is a few minutes walk from Haifa's administrative and business center, just next to the Matronit
(North-South mass transportation), various bus lines, a train station (Naharyiha-Tel-Aviv-BenGurion line) and the
Carmelit subway that climbs towards Hadar and the Central Carmel
is undergoing thorough renovation and gentrification : already, next to a new branch of Haifa University, and of Tiltan
and Carmel Academic Colleges, students dormitories, one can find in the Port Campus one of Israel's finest
restaurants, lively pubs, a market, picturesque and funky places, just next to the Place de Paris
The Port Campus is a few minutes walk from Haifa's administrative and business center, just next to the Matronit
(North-South mass transportation), various bus lines, a train station (Naharyiha-Tel-Aviv-BenGurion line) and the
Carmelit subway that climbs towards Hadar and the Central Carmel
| . |
From Haaretz 18/02/2008
Neighborhood renewal, or urban waste?
By Shani Shilo
Driving along Independence Street in the lower city of Haifa, you see sign after sign
trumpeting the future inauguration of this or that college in the future Port Campus.
In most cases, the buildings marked for development house nothing but pigeons and fleas.
This neglect doesn't exactly scream of an inspiring project designed to change the face of
Haifa and renew the dilapidated neighborhoods at the bottom of the mountain. But though
investment may be slow, the Haifa municipality truly is devoting major resources to the future
campus - at the expense of the Hadar Hacarmel neighborhood, which remains in the rear.
Haifa mayor Yona Yahav told TheMarker Real Estate in August 2005 that within a few years,
the lower city would become a buzzing center, proudly housing faculties from the Technion
and Haifa universities, alongside a selection of colleges.
The campus is the city's solution for a tedious problem: the empty buildings in the area that
once provided services to government institutions but whose offices moved to new edifices in
Kiryat Hamemshala. Hassan Shukri Street is an example: once it housed many a government
building, such as the local offices of the Interior Ministry, the court house, and city hall. But
with the inauguration of the government complex, the offices emptied and now stand innocent
of sapient life.
Architect David Gershon believes that the city's choice to invest in the lower city, while
ignoring Hadar - which is also studded with empty buildings - is like giving an organ
transplant to a patient with a fatal condition, while ignoring the needs of another patient who
needs that organ and whose chances of recovery are good.
"The lower city is dead, but Hadar is still in the process of dying, and could be improved
through investment," he says. "Herzl Street is still active, there are residential areas, there are
schools. It would be easier to save it."
Meanwhile, completely divorced from whatever the city means to do in the lower city, the
university went ahead and found buildings and dormitories for students in Hadar, Gershon
continues. "Efforts are becoming scattered. This one is promoting the Port Campus idea and
the other is promoting Hadar. Each is pulling in the direction that suits it," he says.
Haifa is not an easy city to plan. Its topography, and the development of its new
neighborhoods, have created a patchwork city in which one part has nothing to do with the
other. The most extreme example is the absence of a clearly defined "downtown" - city center.
That is a serious deficiency for what's supposed to be a metropolitan center. The dissociation
between the city sections makes it almost impossible for investment in the lower city to climb
up the mountain to Hadar.
"It's easy to state that a solution is needed, but the solution for Hadar would be complicated,"
Gershon says. "A master plan is being prepared for Haifa, but at such a low-definition
resolution, you can't really see Hadar's problems in detail. Hadar isn't a single unit and
because of that, the master plan can't go deep, creating a program for saving the
neighborhood."
He feels that the city has no choice: "It can't leave a black hole. It doesn't need to handle the
whole of Hadar. It would be enough to take one segment and to do various renewal works
there. Possibly the success would be so great that it would seep into the adjacent areas."
A few years ago, the city of Haifa commissioned a plan to save Hadar. The planning team was
led by architects Amir Mann and Ami Shenar, who worked with Prof. Yona
Ginsburg-Gershoni and Dr Gustavo Mesch, who addressed the social issues. Yet for various
reasons the plan was shelved, leaving little trace of actual progress behind.
Shenar, a partner in Mann-Shenar Architects, says that the final report was delivered in 2003.
Its concept was to improve the standard of living in the urban environment. "As part of the
plan we thought to revolutionize transportation in Hadar. We suggested removing some of the
bus lines from the area and turning Herzl Street into a pedestrian walkway, following which a
light-train system would be built."
He stresses that they weren't suggesting pies in the skies. They didn't mean to turn Hadar into
a Holy Land version of Boston or Madrid. "Most of Hadar is built-up and privately owned.
You have to grant incentives to renovate," he says, by which he means - extra building rights.
That is how Tel Aviv renewed its city center, Shenar points out.
"Hadar Hacarmel is where the center of Tel Aviv was 30 years ago," he says, and what made
the difference was the small things - regulating the schools and kindergartens, building and
improving public gardens and playgrounds, and so on.
The plan for Hadar indeed includes strengthening educational and cultural institutions, giving
building owners more building rights in exchange for prettying up their dumps, and finding
solutions for the empty buildings, such as the ones on Hassan Shukri Street. Namely, turn
them into cultural centers.
That's the plan. The practice is nonexistent. There are pinpoint efforts to fix up this or that
street, but barring filled potholes, Hadar just deteriorates from dilapidated to drecky.
"It's a missed opportunity for urban renewal," Shenar chides the city chiefs. "Hadar is a
beautiful place" - halfway down a dramatic mountain overlooking the blue-green
Mediterranean Sea - "and it boasts modern building in stone, and a great deal of Bauhaus
construction. But throughout the years nobody branded the Hadar as part of the city center."
Which, geographically, it is.
Shmuel Gelbhart, architect and city planner, is head of engineering at the Haifa municipality
and also chairs its planning and building committee. He admits that any improvements to
Hadar have been confined to the cosmetic. "Roads are fixed here and there, but it's clear that
the main effort is being devoted to the lower city. It seems that it's hard to raise two flags at
the same time," he says.
One reason for targeting the lower city was high hopes of building a light-train system, which
could leverage the whole area, Gelbhart says. Hadar just got left behind.
He doesn't believe that the plan formulated by Shenar and Mann will change Hadar's
situation, either. All they'll get is the same grubby Hadar, but more crowded (because of
landlords adding more stories to their buildings).
What the neighborhood sorely lacks is open space: "It has only 0.7 square meters of open
space per person," Gelbhart laments. "That's more crowded than Gaza. The policy statement
suggested that children play on the rooftops."
And if the city were to renovate the houses, and add high-rise residential towers, that wouldn't
bring more the prosperous segments of society to the Hadar, Gelbhart adds. No question about
it, fixing up Hadar is a matter for taxpayer money, he concludes. "You can't expect a poor
neighborhood like Hadar to redo a billion facades using private money."
He has some ideas for architectural solutions to the Hadar's woes. For example, he envisions
turning Herzl Street into an open-sky urban shopping center, centered on a classic Middle
Eastern bazaar, the kind of thing that tourists adore. Another idea is to connect the old
Technion to the government complex to public gardens with a conveyor belt.
But even if Gelbhart is at the center of power in the city of Haifa, that doesn't mean his ideas
will prevail. For now, they're on paper. "I'm in the minority," he admits. "The majority voted
in favor of the plan to increase population density, and at the end of the day, we live in a
democracy."
Which doesn't mean that the plan to increase crowding will happen either. A master plan for
the Balfour, Masada, and Hillel streets has been prepared - but it isn't economically feasible,
Gelbhart adds.
Urban planning isn't an exact science and the question of which plan would benefit Hadar the
most isn't going to be answered, at least not any time soon. But one thing is for sure. The
city's decision not to decide, but to implement tiny flashes of ideas here and there in
haphazard, pinpoint
isn't going to rescue Hadar.
Neighborhood renewal, or urban waste?
By Shani Shilo
Driving along Independence Street in the lower city of Haifa, you see sign after sign
trumpeting the future inauguration of this or that college in the future Port Campus.
In most cases, the buildings marked for development house nothing but pigeons and fleas.
This neglect doesn't exactly scream of an inspiring project designed to change the face of
Haifa and renew the dilapidated neighborhoods at the bottom of the mountain. But though
investment may be slow, the Haifa municipality truly is devoting major resources to the future
campus - at the expense of the Hadar Hacarmel neighborhood, which remains in the rear.
Haifa mayor Yona Yahav told TheMarker Real Estate in August 2005 that within a few years,
the lower city would become a buzzing center, proudly housing faculties from the Technion
and Haifa universities, alongside a selection of colleges.
The campus is the city's solution for a tedious problem: the empty buildings in the area that
once provided services to government institutions but whose offices moved to new edifices in
Kiryat Hamemshala. Hassan Shukri Street is an example: once it housed many a government
building, such as the local offices of the Interior Ministry, the court house, and city hall. But
with the inauguration of the government complex, the offices emptied and now stand innocent
of sapient life.
Architect David Gershon believes that the city's choice to invest in the lower city, while
ignoring Hadar - which is also studded with empty buildings - is like giving an organ
transplant to a patient with a fatal condition, while ignoring the needs of another patient who
needs that organ and whose chances of recovery are good.
"The lower city is dead, but Hadar is still in the process of dying, and could be improved
through investment," he says. "Herzl Street is still active, there are residential areas, there are
schools. It would be easier to save it."
Meanwhile, completely divorced from whatever the city means to do in the lower city, the
university went ahead and found buildings and dormitories for students in Hadar, Gershon
continues. "Efforts are becoming scattered. This one is promoting the Port Campus idea and
the other is promoting Hadar. Each is pulling in the direction that suits it," he says.
Haifa is not an easy city to plan. Its topography, and the development of its new
neighborhoods, have created a patchwork city in which one part has nothing to do with the
other. The most extreme example is the absence of a clearly defined "downtown" - city center.
That is a serious deficiency for what's supposed to be a metropolitan center. The dissociation
between the city sections makes it almost impossible for investment in the lower city to climb
up the mountain to Hadar.
"It's easy to state that a solution is needed, but the solution for Hadar would be complicated,"
Gershon says. "A master plan is being prepared for Haifa, but at such a low-definition
resolution, you can't really see Hadar's problems in detail. Hadar isn't a single unit and
because of that, the master plan can't go deep, creating a program for saving the
neighborhood."
He feels that the city has no choice: "It can't leave a black hole. It doesn't need to handle the
whole of Hadar. It would be enough to take one segment and to do various renewal works
there. Possibly the success would be so great that it would seep into the adjacent areas."
A few years ago, the city of Haifa commissioned a plan to save Hadar. The planning team was
led by architects Amir Mann and Ami Shenar, who worked with Prof. Yona
Ginsburg-Gershoni and Dr Gustavo Mesch, who addressed the social issues. Yet for various
reasons the plan was shelved, leaving little trace of actual progress behind.
Shenar, a partner in Mann-Shenar Architects, says that the final report was delivered in 2003.
Its concept was to improve the standard of living in the urban environment. "As part of the
plan we thought to revolutionize transportation in Hadar. We suggested removing some of the
bus lines from the area and turning Herzl Street into a pedestrian walkway, following which a
light-train system would be built."
He stresses that they weren't suggesting pies in the skies. They didn't mean to turn Hadar into
a Holy Land version of Boston or Madrid. "Most of Hadar is built-up and privately owned.
You have to grant incentives to renovate," he says, by which he means - extra building rights.
That is how Tel Aviv renewed its city center, Shenar points out.
"Hadar Hacarmel is where the center of Tel Aviv was 30 years ago," he says, and what made
the difference was the small things - regulating the schools and kindergartens, building and
improving public gardens and playgrounds, and so on.
The plan for Hadar indeed includes strengthening educational and cultural institutions, giving
building owners more building rights in exchange for prettying up their dumps, and finding
solutions for the empty buildings, such as the ones on Hassan Shukri Street. Namely, turn
them into cultural centers.
That's the plan. The practice is nonexistent. There are pinpoint efforts to fix up this or that
street, but barring filled potholes, Hadar just deteriorates from dilapidated to drecky.
"It's a missed opportunity for urban renewal," Shenar chides the city chiefs. "Hadar is a
beautiful place" - halfway down a dramatic mountain overlooking the blue-green
Mediterranean Sea - "and it boasts modern building in stone, and a great deal of Bauhaus
construction. But throughout the years nobody branded the Hadar as part of the city center."
Which, geographically, it is.
Shmuel Gelbhart, architect and city planner, is head of engineering at the Haifa municipality
and also chairs its planning and building committee. He admits that any improvements to
Hadar have been confined to the cosmetic. "Roads are fixed here and there, but it's clear that
the main effort is being devoted to the lower city. It seems that it's hard to raise two flags at
the same time," he says.
One reason for targeting the lower city was high hopes of building a light-train system, which
could leverage the whole area, Gelbhart says. Hadar just got left behind.
He doesn't believe that the plan formulated by Shenar and Mann will change Hadar's
situation, either. All they'll get is the same grubby Hadar, but more crowded (because of
landlords adding more stories to their buildings).
What the neighborhood sorely lacks is open space: "It has only 0.7 square meters of open
space per person," Gelbhart laments. "That's more crowded than Gaza. The policy statement
suggested that children play on the rooftops."
And if the city were to renovate the houses, and add high-rise residential towers, that wouldn't
bring more the prosperous segments of society to the Hadar, Gelbhart adds. No question about
it, fixing up Hadar is a matter for taxpayer money, he concludes. "You can't expect a poor
neighborhood like Hadar to redo a billion facades using private money."
He has some ideas for architectural solutions to the Hadar's woes. For example, he envisions
turning Herzl Street into an open-sky urban shopping center, centered on a classic Middle
Eastern bazaar, the kind of thing that tourists adore. Another idea is to connect the old
Technion to the government complex to public gardens with a conveyor belt.
But even if Gelbhart is at the center of power in the city of Haifa, that doesn't mean his ideas
will prevail. For now, they're on paper. "I'm in the minority," he admits. "The majority voted
in favor of the plan to increase population density, and at the end of the day, we live in a
democracy."
Which doesn't mean that the plan to increase crowding will happen either. A master plan for
the Balfour, Masada, and Hillel streets has been prepared - but it isn't economically feasible,
Gelbhart adds.
Urban planning isn't an exact science and the question of which plan would benefit Hadar the
most isn't going to be answered, at least not any time soon. But one thing is for sure. The
city's decision not to decide, but to implement tiny flashes of ideas here and there in
haphazard, pinpoint
isn't going to rescue Hadar.
The Port Campus branch of the University of Haifa opened Wednesday, March 3, 2009. The
first stage of activity will offer courses from the Department of Occupational Therapy, the
School of Creative Arts Therapies, the Department of Nursing, the Center for Tourism,
Pilgrimage and Recreation Research, the Division of Continuing education & Extension
Studies, and the Pre-academic Unit.
The branch is located in downtown Haifa, on the “port campus” site that the Haifa
municipality is promoting in the course of rejuvenating the old center of downtown Haifa to
make it more attractive, especially to youth and students.
The University’s branch is located at 65 Hanamal Street. It comprises new classrooms and up-
to-date computer cubicles that enable communication with the facilities at the main branch:
the library, departments, student administration, and of course, the marvelous characteristic
landscape of the senior campus - a view of the sea.
The campus is situated only a few minutes’ walk away from the train station. Those arriving
in private cars can use the 300-car parking lot free of charge. Public bus transportation is
also available to and from the new campus.
first stage of activity will offer courses from the Department of Occupational Therapy, the
School of Creative Arts Therapies, the Department of Nursing, the Center for Tourism,
Pilgrimage and Recreation Research, the Division of Continuing education & Extension
Studies, and the Pre-academic Unit.
The branch is located in downtown Haifa, on the “port campus” site that the Haifa
municipality is promoting in the course of rejuvenating the old center of downtown Haifa to
make it more attractive, especially to youth and students.
The University’s branch is located at 65 Hanamal Street. It comprises new classrooms and up-
to-date computer cubicles that enable communication with the facilities at the main branch:
the library, departments, student administration, and of course, the marvelous characteristic
landscape of the senior campus - a view of the sea.
The campus is situated only a few minutes’ walk away from the train station. Those arriving
in private cars can use the 300-car parking lot free of charge. Public bus transportation is
also available to and from the new campus.
La patisserie Spiro
Detail du batiment de la banque Anglo-Palestine de l'architecte Alexandre Baerwald
Detail of the Anglo-Palestine bank designed by Alexander Baerwald
Detail of the Anglo-Palestine bank designed by Alexander Baerwald
Clifford Holiday's commercial buildings
Les batiments commerciaux concus par Clifforf Holiday
Les batiments commerciaux concus par Clifforf Holiday
L'entree du port et la station de trains
Downton, la ville
Photo Arnaud Rodrigue
Photo Arnaud Rodrigue
Photo Arnaud Rodrigue
Dagan photo Catherine Leuchter
Kyriat Hamemshala , mosquee
Photo Catherine Leuchter
Photo Catherine Leuchter
Dortoirs du Campus HaNamal
Students housing
Students housing
Lancre
Et meme Mike Brandt
Debut de construction du projet de la Place des Etudiants,
developpement du Campus HaNamal
Start of construction of the Students Square,
development of Campus HaNamal
developpement du Campus HaNamal
Start of construction of the Students Square,
development of Campus HaNamal
