Keshet was at the center of a public campaign against a governmental plan to develop a new residential neighborhood on the edge of the Ramon Crater cliffs.
The “Har Gamal” (Camel Hill) neighborhood is a product of the National Infrastructure Committee (NIC). The plan sought to provide rapid housing solutions for new immigrants that arrived in the early 1990s from the former Soviet Union. However, at that time, only a few private homes were constructed. Fortunately, the extensive construction of apartment buildings at the outer perimeter of the original plan – on the cliff’s edge – was never realized.
At the beginning of the millennium, the Housing Ministry requested that the area originally designated for the construction of 400 apartments be repurposed into lots for single family homes. The new plan situated the backyards of private-home lots to a mere 75 meters from the edge of the crater. At that stage already, Keshet demanded that the archaeological site at Camel Hill be excluded from any construction plans for the area.
2014 – Submission of opposition to the plan.
With the submission of the new plan for approval in mid-2014, the Keshat NGO launched an extensive campaign among the residents of Ramon and, on behalf of 163 residents of the community, submitted a comprehensive objection and a demand for the cancellation of the plan.
The newly elected head of the council at that time, Roni Marom, initially joined the demand of environmental organizations to cancel the neighborhood. However, he later quietly withdrew his opposition under the pressure of the then-Minister of Construction, Uri Ariel.
The Southern Region’s Regional Planning Committee, however, reduced the number building lots to 35, stipulating they were to be separated by a road from the crater’s edge.
2015 – The Ministry of Construction appeals the decision of the Regional Committee.
The Ministry of Construction did not accept the compromise and appealed the decision of the Regional Committee to the National Committee. However, its appeal was dismissed outright during a hearing held on February 9, 2015, and the decision remained unchanged.
Nevertheless, the Ministry of Construction failed to submit a revised plan for the Committee’s approval or market the plots. Recently, we were informed that the ministry is working on a new plan and is likely attempting another effort to maintain the original number of plots.
Over the years, the Ministry of Construction presented several new detailed plans to complete the neighborhood’s design; however, these plans exceeded the scope of construction determined by the Regional Committee, driven by a desire to maximize the number of housing units. Planning authorities repeatedly sent the ministry back to the drawing board to present a plan that aligns with the Committee’s decision.
2022 – Final Outcome.
After 7(!) years of redesign, the new construction plan was submitted for objections, including only 76 housing units. Of these, 22 units were “Build Your Own Home” and 54 units were in two-story construction. The plan addressed most of the guidelines set by the Regional Committee in its 2014 decision, with minimal deviation from these areas. However, we still had to submit an objection in order to ensure maximum protection of the sensitive areas included within the neighborhood and adjacent to it.
The Committee partially accepted the association’s request to protect the open space from the entry of motor vehicles onto the cliff area by explicitly instructing that the plan’s documents be revised to ensure optimal preservation of the open space.
The Committee ruled that “Parking and vehicle passage will not be permitted in the open spaces, beyond the areas designated for such uses, and clear markings will be made on the ground to prohibit/prevent vehicle passage in the open spaces, by the authorized body.”
We will ensure that the continued development of the plan fully adheres to the provisions of the plan, and that the open and sensitive area along the rim of Ramon Crater will receive maximum protection.
We hope (and will advocate for this) that with the change in local leadership in the 2023 elections, with an administration that values environmental protection, a plan will be submitted to transform the area between the Camel hill neighborhood and the rim into an urban park with clear guidelines, thereby completing the task of optimally protecting this environmental treasure.
The Planning and Environment Department at the Keshat NGO monitors development plans in Mitzpe Ramon and will continue its efforts to prevent private construction in areas of scenic and environmental sensitivity.
