Jerusalem Gateway

The Holy City begins a mega-makeover with its new business district.

By ARIEL DOMINIQUE HENDELMAN
For the past year and a half, construction crews have been digging under Shazar Boulevard. (photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM)
For the past year and a half, construction crews have been digging under Shazar Boulevard.
(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM)
When you think of sleek, high-rise buildings, bustling business complexes, fast transportation and overall modern city amenities, Jerusalem is probably not the first place that comes to mind. In fact, it may be one of the last. But that will soon change, as Jerusalem – specifically the entrance to the capital between the Central Bus Station and the Jerusalem International Convention Center (Binyenei Ha’uma) – is out to receive a more than NIS 1.5 billion makeover aimed at propelling it into the future.
Currently, the area that extends down Shazar Boulevard toward downtown is a wasteland of sorts, with vacant lots and a tiny Muslim cemetery peppering the landscape. But the new project spearheaded by Mayor Nir Barkat aims to change all of that within the next five to 10 years.
The Jerusalem Gateway project is already under way on the foundation level. When it’s complete, there are to be nine high-rises, 24 new buildings in total, including courthouses and the largest conference center in the Middle East.
There will also be an outdoor shopping mall akin to Mamilla, the new fast train to Tel Aviv with a station and underground parking, and a new light rail line to help connect it all.
Calling the Jerusalem Gateway a project is a bit of a misnomer, as it is really multiple projects in one. The one million square meters of construction area is expected to bring some 60,000 new jobs to the capital, as well as cultural and commercial venues.
It will be the biggest and most advanced business district in Israel; larger than Azrieli and Rothschild in Tel Aviv combined. The Jerusalem Gateway will also bring with it revamped and more aesthetically pleasing public spaces.
For the past year and a half, construction crews have been digging under Shazar Boulevard. Since the Jerusalem Gateway has so many moving parts, coordination is paramount.
Everything in the area is being done simultaneously, while trying to disturb the public as little as possible. Eden, the Jerusalem Center Development Company, specializes in the city’s economic development, particularly in the public space. Eden endeavors to make the Jerusalem Gateway a platform for vibrant culture and commerce.
The company specializes in making economic development work for the city as much as the city works for them. “We take the physicality of a place and renew it by planning it from scratch,” explains deputy CEO Lior Grunhaus, manager of the Jerusalem Gateway project.
“We use things like culture to make it alive. This is what Eden does and we do it with a unique financial model. We work in certain areas like Talpiot, the city center, and now the entrance to the city. The government put a lot of money into this project. It’s a holistic vision, where we’re taking a place and doing it from A to Z and back again. You’re not going to have a successful area where all the taxes from it go somewhere else.”
The Jerusalem Gateway was born first from a deep Mayor Nir Barkat has dedicated himself to increasing hi-tech and biotech in Jerusalem. Now that demand has increased, the city needs to supply an infrastructure it currently does not have.
desire to bring Jerusalem into the future and to have the face of the city’s entrance be something beautiful, eye-catching, and worthy of Israel’s capital, rather than a dilapidated and rundown array of empty lots.
The second catalyst was a matter of supply and demand. Barkat has dedicated himself to increasing the presence of hi-tech and biotech in Jerusalem, an effort that is paying off. Now that demand has increased, the city needs to supply an infrastructure that currently it does not have.
The city center is slowly improving. Talpiot is a center for many businesses, but it is a far commute from what will soon be the fast train to Tel Aviv. A thriving business center needs to be more central, with easy transportation. Enter the Jerusalem Gateway.
Barkat’s vision for the project is starting to come to life and take shape. The main challenge is that some aspects of the project will still be under construction while others are finished, since there are so many moving parts. Trying to streamline the timetables and avoid having one project stepping on the toes of another is no small task.
Commuters will be moving from the new fast train station to the street while many sites are still under construction, given that the train is scheduled to be up and running in another year. The Eden team is devoted to making the lives of the public easier while construction is ongoing. Much coordination and many hours have been spent in this regard.
One of the many exciting aspects of the Jerusalem Gateway is the ICC, which is to be the biggest conference center in the Middle East. New adjacent hotels with thousands of rooms and a sprawling outdoor mall will sprout on the other side. Off of Shazar Boulevard, from the Central Bus Station toward Sacher Park, there will be new buildings, both private and public.
“The Jerusalem Gateway is the most strategic, significant and critical project for our city’s future,” Barkat declares. “This project will be a game changer, not only for the city of Jerusalem, but also for the entire State of Israel. This new business district will be the new modern face of Israel’s capital, solidifying Jerusalem as an international hub for tech and business and paving the way for new opportunities and boundless possibilities in our city.”
In 10 years, roughly half a million people are projected to come through the Jerusalem Gateway every day, Eden estimates. With the fast train, the Central Bus Station and two light-rail routes, it will be the largest transportation hub in Israel. It will also include new and much needed bikeways.
To move the project forward, a competition was held among several leading architecture companies.
A German group, Topotek1 Berlin, won. It will design the open spaces and set the guidelines for the buildings’ conceptual plans, which the Israeli architects will then follow.
Many of the issues that Jerusalem faces, including its expanding population, will eventually occur in the rest of the country. Jerusalem is home to both large haredi and Arab communities. These rapidly rising populations have created economic problems that, if solved here, may be possible to prevent elsewhere.
The projected numbers are inspiring to say the least. It is estimated that some 145,000 people will pass through each day, starting next year. Within five years, the fast train is expected to be running smoothly and the underground parking lot to be complete.
The new Green Line of the light rail will connect previously disparate sections of the city. For the pessimists among us, all of these crucial transportation aspects have budgets and have been approved by the planning authority. The new buildings are scheduled to be completed within 10 years, compared to Tel Aviv’s Sarona Market, which took 22 years.
“The Gateway’s tens of thousands of new workplaces will create a dramatic increase in employment opportunities, boosting Jerusalem’s economy and attracting young families to our capital,” Barkat says.
“The new business district will be Israel’s largest convention center and will be connected to the most advanced transportation hub in Israel through tunnels, roads and modern piazzas, which will make for a bustling and vibrant entrance to the city.
“I have full confidence that the Jerusalem Gateway project will become Israel’s main business center and financial hub, combining technology, history and innovation with all the uniqueness Jerusalem has to offer. This project is on the city’s critical path and will ensure continued sustainable growth in our city.”
Jerusalem is a city in motion; a place beyond time, learning how to span past and future. Like any evolving entity, the outward appearance is usually the last to change. The Jerusalem Gateway is that outward signifier of the inner change that has been lifetimes in the making.