This week in Jerusalem: A different open house

Peggy Cidor’s round-up of city affairs; the Warburg plan is a go; the high cost of education; TED is on its way.

By PEGGY CIDOR
Sderot Mayor David Buskila at his hunger-strike 521 (photo credit: Marc Israel Sellem)
Sderot Mayor David Buskila at his hunger-strike 521
(photo credit: Marc Israel Sellem)
A different open house
Since last Thursday, on the street facing the Prime Minister’s Office, a small tent has been home to David Buskila, the mayor of Sderot. Buskila – who was unaware of the coincidence that the annual Houses From Within festival had begun in Jerusalem on the day he arrived – is staging a hunger strike to protest the government’s lack of support of his beleaguered city’s residents. His tent, a kind of open house in itself, hardly protects him from the cold Jerusalem nights, and tourists seeking out the capital’s architectural gems don’t pay any attention to him. But Buskila is determined to remain here, fasting until the prime minister, and more specifically the finance minister, realize that Sderot is not just another city.
To the growing number of Jerusalemites who stop in to sympathize with him and show their support, Buskila doesn’t say anything about the relatively relaxed and entertaining atmosphere in the capital these days, compared to the stress experienced by his city’s residents.
But he does say that he came here to make the government and the decisionmakers aware of the untenable situation in the small southern town.
“They have to understand that we are facing a terrible situation, that we have special needs and that our low funding just doesn’t allow us to continue,” says Buskila, adding that he hopes he will not have to remain here, fasting, for too long.The Warburg plan is a go
A plot of land in one of the quietest areas of Kiryat Hayovel, which has been at the center of tensions between haredim and the other residents in the neighborhood, finally ended this week in a clear victory for the secular residents. The Warburg plan was presented by the local planning and construction committee – after a substantial change was introduced to its original details – as a municipal project for the construction of a public building.
The buildings will serve the Jerusalem secular yeshiva and the Jerusalem secular mechina (a pre-army studying facility) that have been operating in the neighborhood for the past year.
The decision, promoted by Mayor Nir Barkat, is the result of a protracted struggle between the haredi representatives on the city council – who, for the moment, say this is not the final word – and the secular and non-haredi residents of Kiryat Hayovel, who fought to prevent the handing over of the plot to a haredi preschool.
The first chapter in this saga began in the last months of former mayor Uri Lupolianski’s term when, one morning, without any warning, the municipality set up two cabins on the site for a haredi preschool. Now, five years later, the haredi preschool will be opened closer to Bayit Vagan.
Meanwhile, the Warburg plot, which has become identified with the struggle against the haredization of the neighborhood, will gain the two secular institutions – though very close to Jewish culture and identity – as well as a facility for leisure activities on the weekends, such as screening movies at reduced prices on Friday evenings. On that particular issue, Deputy Mayor Yitzhak Pindrus (United Torah Judaism) declared that as a member of the mayor’s coalition, he will not allow it. Stay tuned.‘The grand’ maestro
Anniversaries always provide a good opportunity to celebrate, but what could be more enchanting than celebrating the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra’s 75th birthday with a particularly charming composer and conductor? Michel Legrand, the man responsible for some of the most beautiful sound tracks of great French and American films, is coming from Paris for just that occasion.
On Saturday night, the Jerusalem Theater will host the maestro, who will lead the JSO musicians through some of his exquisite scores, accompanied by soprano Keren Hadar and harpist Catherine Michel.
The 80-year-old Legrand has composed, arranged, recorded and conducted some of the most famous film sound tracks, such as The Umbrellas of Cherbourg and The Thomas Crown Affair.He wrote music for films directed by Robert Altman, Jean-Luc Goddard, Clint Eastwood, as well as Barbra Streisand’s Yentl and many more.
Legrand has won three Oscars, five Grammys and was nominated 13 times for an Academy Award.The high cost of education
The high cost of the religious school stream is not novel. For various reasons, and despite many attempts to reduce the cost, it is still a heavy burden on parents, many of whom have several children studying at these schools at the same time. The cost varies from one school to another – between NIS 5,000 (Horev) to NIS 2,300 (Yehuda Halevy) a year per pupil.
City council member Yair Gabai (Habayit Hayehudi) has obtained a mandate from the Education Ministry’s Religious Department to look into these extra payments more closely, which, it seems, do not comply with the ministry’s policy, at least partly. This doesn’t mean that the financial burden will be lifted from the parents within a few days, but at least the sums may be decreased a little. What’s more, some sort of equality will be established among the schools. After all, explains Gabai, the payment is requested for the same religious curriculum for all pupils.Parking problems
Living in Baka and suffering from insufficient parking space? There might be a light at the end of this tunnel. The local neighborhood council of Greater Baka (including Talpiot and Arnona) is holding a meeting for residents to seek viable solutions to the problem. On Monday evening, all residents who are concerned about the parking situation in the neighborhood are invited to the meeting, which will take place from 7 to 10 p.m.
On the agenda are questions, proposals, solutions and suggestions of ways to bridge the gap between the municipality’s plans and the residents’ needs.
TED is on its way
TEDxJerusalem, an independently organized event licensed by TED, will host speakers from Israel and abroad with original and exceptional ideas who feel connected to Jerusalem. To date, some 500 participants are expected to attend, starting with the opening event scheduled for December 10 at the YMCA. Each speech will last up to 18 minutes and will be translated into English, Hebrew and Arabic.
TED is a nonprofit organization devoted to ideas worth spreading.
Started as a four-day conference in California 26 years ago, TED has grown to support those world-changing ideas with multiple initiatives. At TED, the world’s leading thinkers and doers are asked to give a talk about their lives in 18 minutes. TEDx offers individuals or groups a way to host local, self-organized events around the world.
“The multiplicity of cultures in Jerusalem makes this city a microcosm of Israeli society; therefore, we see the importance of hosting the conference here,” says Beto Maya, one of the organizers of TEDxJerusalem.
TEDxJerusalem is made possible through the partnership of the Schusterman Foundation, The ROI Community and the Leihtag Foundation, with the participation of New Spirit.
Anyone interested in taking part in the conference can register at