In the Ramot Hashaon project in the Morasha neighborhood in the eastern part of Ramat Hasharon, an urban renewal project on Hehalutz St. has begun. The project is being built by the Yuvalim group, owned by Itzik Baruch and Israel Levi Real Estate. 168 old housing units of 46-60 sq.m. in seven residential buildings constructed in the 1960s will be demolished, and 588 new housing units in four 23-26-storey high-rises will be built in their place.
As of now, the first two buildings have already been demolished, and the owners of the old housing units have moved into rental housing, with the developers furnishing the rent. The companies have already obtained a license for digging and revetment, and are in the process of obtaining a building permit for the project. The developers believe that two additional buildings in the compound will be vacated and demolished by June 2016.
The owners of the old housing units will receive new housing units in the project. Owners of three-room apartments will receive a new housing unit with 100 sq.m., with a parking space and a balcony, while owners of four-room apartments will receive a new housing unit with 115 sq.m., with a parking space and a balcony. The other housing units in the project will be sold on the open market. As of now, before the beginning of construction of the project, the company is marketing four four-room 100-sq.m. apartments in a presale with 12-sq.m. balconies and parking spaces at prices starting at NIS 2.2 million. Five-room apartments with 121 sq.m., balconies, and parking spaces are being marketed starting at NIS 2.4 million. Filling up the project is expected within 3.5 years. Eliav Maimon, CEO of the company jointly owned by Yuvalim Group and Israel Levi, is managing the project. The architect for the project is Prof. Gaby Schwartz of the Schwartz Besnosoff Architects and Town Planners firm. The performance contractor for the project has not yet been selected, and the company is conducting a tender among three construction companies, slated for completion in the near future.
"The project is part of a broad urban renewal plan in Ramat Hasharon that constitutes a real solution for the shortage of land for building new residential neighborhoods," Baruch said. He added that he himself had bought an apartment for investment in the compound many years ago, and had thereby learned of the urban renewal project there. "I bought an apartment for investment in 2004, and they were already talking then about vacate and build. Over the years, when another developer who had pushed the project abandoned it, we entered the picture. It took a very long time to make progress in the plan, and there were quite a few delays. We had to sue a recalcitrant tenant. A developer entering a vacate and build plan nowadays starts a long period of uncertainty, and has to deal with difficult bureaucracy," he said.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on December 14, 2015
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