Israel's High Court of Justice has dismissed a petition against construction of the huge new Jerusalem suburb in the White Ridge (Rekhes Lavan) in the southwest of the city. In 2018, the Jerusalem District Planning and Building Commission approved the plan for objections.
The controversial plan will rezone 210 acres of forest on the slopes of the White Ridge in the Jerusalem hills, which are between Moshav Ora and Moshav Aminadav and the Jerusalem neighborhood of Kiryat Menachem. 5,250 housing units, 300 hotel rooms, commercial and business space, stores, a filling station, and other uses will be built on the land.
The petition was submitted by the Mate Yehuda Regional Council, which object to its land being transferred to the Jerusalem Municipality for the plan. The plans has also attracted dozens of objections by the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI) and other environmentalist organizations as well as dozens of public figures, academics and activists.
The panel of judges was headed by Chief Justice Esther Hayut who said that the court's role was not to be a 'master-planner.'
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on May 18, 2020
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