Plan for new ultra-Orthodox city in Negev gets thumbs-up

The national planning and building council yesterday approved the establishment of a new city in the northern Negev, Kasif, for the ultra-Orthodox community. Fourteen council members voted in favor and seven opposed the plan for the city, to go up near Arad.

Kasif will cover 1,190 acres and 10,000 homes will be built in the first stage of construction for an expected population of 50,000.

Housing and Construction Ministry officials said at yesterday's meeting that Kasif will help solve the housing shortage in the Haredi community, which still needs another 100,000 housing units.

The town will be located at Tel Arad Junction.

The plan that was approved was the region's master plan; the next step for Kasif is cabinet approval. After that, the Housing Ministry will plan the city in detail, which will require the further approval of the planing authorities.

The project had many opponents, including Green organizations and local authorities.

But the surprise opponent was none other than Housing and Construction Minister Ariel Atias from Shas. Atias is now in charge of the undertaking, which will put him in direct conflict with the head of his own party, Interior Minister Eli Yishai, who supports the plan.

In the past, the Housing Ministry was a big supporter of the project. Ministry officials said Kasif was a better solution for the ultra-Orthodox than other options such as a new Haredi neighborhood in Be'er Sheva.

"I think that [Kasif] may well perpetuate poverty in the ultra-Orthodox sector," said a senior Housing Ministry official. "They will be stuck in one place and their ability to get into the job market is almost zero. There are enough limitations on the ultra-Orthodox sector, and transferring them to a place like this will make their situation even more difficult."

The Housing Ministry is already busy working on 10,000 units for Haredim in Harish-Katzir northeast of Hadera, with another large plan for 3,000 apartments in Ahisamakh near Lod. There are plans to sell 2,000 more units to the ultra-Orthodox in Tiberias, and another 2,150 in Beit Shemesh, which the ministry insists are not only meant for Haredim.

The Housing Ministry official said the plan for Kasif stemmed from the days of the previous minister, Meir Sheetrit. "What we are doing now is taking the Haredim to a hole and saying this is the solution," he said.

He added that Harish-Katzir was a much better solution for the ultra-Orthodox because it was near Route 6 and close to job opportunities. He said the ministry would try to stop the building of Kasif, but not the entire regional master plan.