City Notes: Ministry approves Hadera road

The Transportation Ministry this week gave its approval for the budgeting of a bypass road in Hadera, named the Yuliana Project.

By MICHAEL OMER-MAN
Hadera 521 (photo credit: Courtesy Hadera Municipality)
Hadera 521
(photo credit: Courtesy Hadera Municipality)
NORTH
The Transportation Ministry this week gave its approval for the budgeting of a bypass road in Hadera, named the Yuliana Project. The road will connect the city’s eastern entrance to Road 65 at its northern edge, the Local website reported. The ministry recently approved NIS 200 for projects aimed at upgrading infrastructure in the area to meet the needs of the growing population, according to the report.
Hadera Mayor Haim Avital has previously lamented the lack of ministry funding to his city due to its low place in national priorities, but during his tenure he credited a boom in the city’s standing with changing that, Local reported.
The planning stages of the project have resulted in predictions that the new road would reduce travel times for residents and others by more than half. In addition, it is hoped the road will reduce congestion throughout the city and surrounding roads, Local reported.
Mayor Avital thanked the ministry for recognizing the necessity of developing and upgrading the transportation infrastructure in the area in order to help spur further development and growth in the city, according to the report.
Beit She’an police bust drug-dealing ring
Police in Beit She’an arrested a dozen people suspected of dealing drugs early this week, following a months-long undercover operation in the area.
The operation was run by the central investigations unit of the northern branch of the Israel Police in recent months, headed by Commander Michael Shafshak, the Local reported.
Early Sunday morning, dozens of officers launched raids in the city, arresting 12 of 13 suspects implicated in the investigation. The suspects were aged 30 to 58 and were brought to court in Nazareth.
Roni Atia, commander of the Israel Police’s northern branch, said of the operation, “We take attempts to deal drugs very seriously and will act with our full power and with all available means against it,” according to the report. “We will act decisively to reduce the drug trade on both an intelligence and an operational level,” he continued, saying that the activities also create greater deterrence.
Police put an end to railroad fraud scheme
Police this week arrested a 37-year-old Israel Railways employee suspected of committing fraud throughout the north of the country. The man is suspected of working with members of crime organizations. According to police, the man forged Israel Railways paychecks for these crime organization members, which they presented to banks to request a NIS 50,000 loan.
In all, the man and his associates are suspected of obtaining NIS 1 million in bank loans in this manner. Police arrested 13 other suspects. Police will request a remand extension for the 14 suspects from the Haifa Magistrate’s Court on Monday.
CENTER
Kirya opens lot to ease
TA parking problems The Defense Ministry announced this week that it will open its main parking garage at its Tel Aviv Kirya headquarters to the public for parking at night, in an effort to relieve the city’s shortage of parking space. The decision was made in conjunction with the Tel Aviv Municipality, a Defense Ministry statement said.
“As part of the solutions to real estate problems we’re attempting to present throughout the country, and in light of our desire to help city residents, we’ve decided to open the Leonardo parking garage and hundreds of parking spaces from 7 p.m. until 6 a.m. every day,” a Defense Ministry statement said.
The process of opening the parking garage to the public required a significant amount of cooperation and the creation of new systems within the ministry, including the use of an automated system that identifies every car entering and exiting the premises. The parking garage will continue to be restricted to civilian employees and military officers serving at the Kirya base during daytime hours.
TA to officially reopen Sheinkin Street
The Tel Aviv-Jaffa Municipality is holding its official ceremony marking the reopening of Sheinkin Street, following months of construction, road work and renovation projects. The ceremony, to take place today, will include two fashion shows showcasing designers from several fashion schools in the area.
The festivities will also include musical performances, street games, 3-D street art and graffiti demonstrations. Tel Aviv’s 102 FM will broadcast live from the event.
The renovation project began one year ago.
While the majority of the street was reopened several months ago, the municipality is marking the end of the NIS 30 million project now.
Horses cause three-car pile-up
A woman was lightly injured in Herzliya Saturday night after stray horses caused a three-car accident. One of the horses was killed in the incident, another was injured, and police managed to capture the third.
Thieves rob TA jewelry store
Two gunmen broke into a Tel Aviv jewelry store on Saturday night, stealing 30 kilograms of gold. The thieves escaped from the scene. Police have opened an investigation into the incident.
SOUTH
Eilat explores possibility of ‘canal port’
The Transportation Ministry has decided to move forward with geophysical testing on the feasibility of building a canal port in Eilat, following a resolution by the ministry earlier this year. Eilat Mayor Meir Yitzhak Halevy was present at the meeting and supported the process.
The project, called Southern Gate, plans to build a 4- to 6.5- kilometer canal from the Red Sea to an inland port that would be built alongside a new international airport and the planned rail line to Eilat, effectively connecting all three transportation modes.
The canal is planned to be 150-250 meters wide and run along the Jordanian border. The project is still in the earliest exploratory phases, testing soil and examining similar projects that have been undertaken throughout the world. The three key points of the project are its feasibility, its necessity and its importance.
Transportation Minister Yisrael Katz said the project, if implemented, would create more than 5,000 new jobs in the southernmost city and will make it a strategic asset for Israel, lessening the burden and congestion at the Ashdod and Haifa ports.
Eilat Deputy Mayor Eli Lankry described the proposal as “a very important decision that moves us one important step closer to implementing the project, which could change the face of Eilat and bring growth and prosperity to the city.”
Yad Mordechai offers children a Hanukka experience
Kibbutz Yad Mordechai, which was in the line of fire during the latest violent escalation with the Gaza Strip, is inviting Israelis to celebrate Hanukka with an olive festival and activities.
Families and children will be shown and experience olive growing and oil production, with an emphasis on Hanukka.
Children will participate in picking olives, pressing them into oil and lighting candles and will receive a canister of enough oil to last eight days.
Other activities offered are beekeeping and honey production, where visitors will learn about the social and work structure of bee hives and how beekeepers do their important work. In keeping with the Hanukka theme, candle-making activities will be offered using beeswax.
In addition, traditional kibbutz activities will be available, such as dairy production and visits to a local War of Independence battle site. The activities are scheduled to take place between December 9 and 16. The kibbutz is a 10- minute drive from Ashkelon.
Soldiers shoot, kill suspected burglar in Sde Avraham
Early this week, IDF soldiers responding to a reported break-in shot dead a 20-year-old Israeli Beduin man in the southern community of Sde Avraham, which is very close to the Gaza Strip and Egyptian border. At around 4 a.m., the man allegedly broke into a home in the Eshkol area community and stabbed a woman. She was lightly wounded in her shoulder.
Because of the proximity of the community to the Gaza Strip and Sinai, the IDF dispatched soldiers on suspicion that the attack was terrorist in nature, emanating from Gaza or Egypt. Soldiers shot the man dead. The IDF said soldiers first attempted to arrest the man, according to the report.
Authorities said the incident was most likely criminal in nature and not a terrorist incident.