This week in Jerusalem: Peggy Cidor’s round-up of city affairs

The 2020 Israel Festival scheduled for this month in Jerusalem, postponed due to the pandemic, is now rescheduled to take place in September.

By PEGGY CIDOR
GOOD news: Parking at the shuk just got easier. (photo credit: OLIVIER FITOUSSI/FLASH90)
GOOD news: Parking at the shuk just got easier.
(photo credit: OLIVIER FITOUSSI/FLASH90)
Pandemic postponement
The 2020 Israel Festival scheduled for this month in Jerusalem, postponed due to the pandemic, is now rescheduled to take place in September. The festival – the 59th in a row – is regarded as the top official cultural event in the country; its removal from this month’s calendar was one more blow to the cultural life of the city and the country due to the coronavirus crisis.
Setting a new date in September is a bit daring, as nobody knows where we will stand regarding virus restrictions in the coming months, but it is a vote of confidence in the city and its capacity to rebound and hold such an event.
Following meetings between the Festival directors and the Culture and Treasury ministries, a way was found to run the festival with all required precautions for the safety of the public and performers.
The festival will run between September 3 to 12. Its final program – based largely on local art and artists – will be announced shortly and tickets will be available soon after.
Lockdown loosening
The Jerusalem Artist’s House, the capital’s official gallery, located in the original building of the Bezalel Academy in the city center, is reopening its galleries and exhibitions after a long lockdown due to the coronavirus. As of this week, the gallery is open to the public – in conformance with Health Ministry hygienic guidelines – from Monday to Thursday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. No fees.
Tablet and computer empowerment
Some 1,000 tablets and computers will be acquired by the municipality for the benefit of children and young students who have no access to this technology. The isolation imposed by the coronavirus restrictions has confirmed what many social workers and activists knew – that a significant number of children and young adults with no access to computers of any sort were totally disconnected.
The municipality, the Joint (JDC) and Intel, with logistical support from Pelephone, have collected $700,000 (of which $100,000 came from Intel and $250,000 from donations made through the Jerusalem municipality). Most of the 1,000 computers and tablets will be distributed through the schools to children and students in need of the computers, as identified by teachers and social workers.
Harking to parking needs
The municipality is adding new city center parking spaces with rules designed to ease the issue of parking for residents and merchants. A new parking lot with 92 parking places located in the compound of the ancient Shaarei Tzedek hospital, on Jaffa Road near the Mahaneh Yehuda market, began operations this week. The first two hours of parking are free, to encourage residents to do their shopping in the shuk or in the area. After these two first hours, parking will cost only NIS 10 for Jerusalemites who show a shopping receipt of at least NIS 100. Another parking area in the Menora Square is now available on a daily basis between 7 a.m. and 11 p.m. (including Fridays until one hour before Shabbat) at NIS 6 per hour.
Nightlife revival
Mahaneh Yehuda is back in business, but the long lockdown that angered and frustrated merchants has had casualties. Casino de Paris has closed. The veteran bar – the first to open in the shuk area – blazed the path for the nightlife that developed there. Casino owners Eli Mizrahi (once the chair of the shuk’s merchants’ association and the first to open a restaurant in the alleys) and musician Sha’anan Streat announced earlier this week that the nearly three-month lockdown knocked them out of business.
Many of the shuk’s nightlife aficionados express concern that the Casino is only the first of several bars and eateries in the shuk that will not recover from the crisis. But meanwhile, initiatives are taking place to bring back the visitors – locals and from across the country – until foreign tourists come back. One such is the comeback of the Israel-2go.co.il programs, which include touring the shuk, tastings, and ending the night with a guided tour of the nearby Nahlaot neighborhood. The revived tour kicked off earlier this week and will run in the coming weeks from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. All tours are planned according to Health Ministry regulations. Details can be obtained at Israel-2go.co.il.
 
Another sign of city revival is the return of live music at Nocturno. No fewer than nine events – music and lectures – will are scheduled for June, with a twist adapted to the situation: besides a limited number of physical attendees, there will also be a Zoom broadcast accessible from home through registration.
Golda slowdown
Following more than 200 accidents on the Golda Road, the speed limit has been reduced to 50 km/hour, and a lane will be dedicated for public transportation. Most of the accidents occurred on the slopes of the Ramot neighborhood. The relevant decisions, made jointly by the local Ramot council and the Master Plan for mass transportation, are to be implemented in the coming weeks.
Minimal pride
According to an Israeli association for the LGBT community, Jerusalem rates poorly (22nd place in the country) regarding the attitude toward members of this community. The group says that the municipality does not fund June Pride Month events and does not provide material on special events of the community to educators. Additional reasons for the low rating: the city doesn’t finance a special coordinator for the LGBT community; there is not a special social worker specially focusing on the needs of the community; and there hasn’t been any adjustment of gender classifications on the official forms of Safra Square.
Regarding the LGBT community’s concern that the municipality is trying to avoid financing the events of the Open House, specifically the yearly Pride Parade – especially following the declarations of recently appointed deputy mayor Arieh King on the matter – it is important to note that this grant is secured by a High Court ruling and cannot be canceled.