The Jewish Agency plans to raise hundreds of millions of shekels for a program to construct thousands of apartments all over Israel, including the Greater Tel Aviv area.
The plan is in the very early stages. Last month, the Jewish Agenc Board of Governors made a strategic decision to accept the plan, and it now must be started. The Jewish Agency has initiated contacts for considering possible ways of raising capital for the measure.
The exact amounts to be allocated to the project, the number of apartments to be built, and the timetable for completing the project have not yet been set. It is believed that the Jewish Agency is planning to build 2,000-3,000 apartments on land that it owns, meaning that it will not have to buy the land from private owners or in Israel Land Authority tenders.
Nevertheless, as part of the project, the Jewish Agency will request building permits for some of the land, while other parts of the project are in areas in which apartments have already been built, and for which the Jewish Agency will ask for extension permits. In still other areas, the Jewish Agency will ask for the land to be rezoned for residential construction. This means that it will have to deal with the bureaucratic maze of planning committees, and obtain the necessary approvals, which is liable to take a lot of time.
The entire plan is being coordinated with the government, and the exact locations in which apartments will be constructed will be determined later. It is still unknown what proportion of the apartments to be built will be allocated to high-demand areas. The type of housing - for sale or for rent - has also not yet been decided.
The Jewish Agency said in response to the report, "The decision by the Jewish Agency Board of Governors is designed to help solve a concrete social problem. The entire measure is being coordinated with the government."
Natan Sharansky is chairman of the Jewish Agency.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on July 14, 2015
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