The Internal Affairs Committee recommends not closing Sde Dov before receiving building permits
During the committee meeting, members stated that a decision similar to that of Herzliya Airport should be implemented at Sde Dov: to only close the site when permits are received for the neighborhood planned for construction. MK Yoav Kish: “Sde Dov is a very important public resource that has provided significant support to the residents of Eilat and the region.”
The committee for the environment and environmental protection, chaired by Deputy Yoav Kish, discussed the decision to close Sde Dov Airport. Committee members called on the government to adopt and compare its decision regarding the continued operation of Herzliya Airport and Sde Dov (to postpone the closure of the site until a building permit is obtained).
In July of this year, the plan for the evacuation of Sde Dov and the construction of a new neighborhood in northwestern Tel Aviv, totaling 16,000 apartments, was approved for submission to the Tel Aviv District Planning and Building Committee. The plan covers an area of 1,500 dunams and its borders to the east: Levi Eshkol Street, the new L neighborhood, and the Nofei Yam neighborhood, to the west: the beach, to the south: Shai Agnon Street, to the north: Propes Street. For public buildings, approximately 126,000 square meters for commerce, approximately 333,000 square meters for employment areas, approximately 125,000 square meters for hotels, and approximately 355 dunams of parks.
But the submission of this plan was just the beginning of a series of objections from various organizations and individuals who claim that the evacuation of the site is a mistake that could cause serious harm to the residents of Eilat, city hotels, and airlines like Arkia.
The committee chairman, Deputy Yoav Kish, stated during the meeting: “In addition to the important principle of preventing the violation of property owners’ rights, Sde Dov is a very important public resource that has provided significant support to the residents of Eilat and the region. In any case, we must act to halt the evacuation before receiving permits that could take several years.”
The mayor of Eilat, Meir Yitzhak Halevy, one of the most prominent opponents of the evacuation of the site, stated before the committee: “Due to a military base, you are closing the most important base of the State of Israel – the city of Eilat. Every day we travel with patients to Ichilov Hospital.”
Daniel Meltzer, construction coordinator in the budget department of the Ministry of Finance, stated: “I do not see the possibility of stopping the evacuation of the site; there is complexity here, there is a property issue, and the rejection will severely harm them. The evacuation of Sde Dov is part of an important agreement made between the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Defense. The funding for these operations comes primarily from the evacuation of Sde Dov. And it will be approved in mid-2019.”
Noam Hirsh, representative of the Ministry of Health, stated: “We oppose the closure of Sde Dov, and the residents of Eilat rely on the medical services of Yoseftal Hospital, which are unable to provide a complete treatment envelope. Biospatel also employs specialists who arrive daily from the center of the country by plane. If the airport closes, they will seek other employment.”
Israland offers land in the current Sde Dov complex; the lands are part of the urbanization program approved by the municipality. The plots will be buildable very soon according to the city’s urban engineer.
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The lands that obtain building permits will be exchanged by developers for apartments, a common practice in Israel called “Esskem Combinatzya,” the agreement for the exchange of land rights.
