The Israel Land Administration (ILA) plans to market two historical sites in Jerusalem: the Schneller compound and the former Ministry of Foreign Affairs compound.
The Schneller compound, located between Malkei Yisrael St. and Yermiyahu St. was established in 1860 by Swiss Protestant Reverend Ludwig Schneller for Lebanese Christian orphans of a massacre by Muslims and Druze. Officially known as the Syrian Orphanage, the site has been colloquially named for its founder. Part of the original compound was sold to Jews, who built the Kerem Avraham and Makor Baruch neighborhoods on the site. Once a paradigm of vocational training, German culture and Lutheran values, the school was closed in 1939 at the outbreak of World War II. The British Army used the compound until Israel’s independence in 1948, when the IDF took it over.
When the IDF vacated the site, it became one of the largest land reserves in central Jerusalem. 660 housing units for the haredi (ultra-orthodox) community are planned for the compound, while preserving key structures, including the bell tower from which Kaiser Wilhelm II viewed the city during his visit to Jerusalem.
The ILA will also market the old Ministry of Foreign Affairs compound on Shazar Blvd. adjacent to Sacker Park. The 110-dunam (22.5-acre) site is zoned for 190,000 sq.m. of residential, commercial, hotel, and diplomatic use.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on February 13, 2006