By JPOST.COM STAFFThe Jerusalem Pool 248.88(photo credit: )
The plight of the Jerusalem Pool on Emek Refaim Street continues to make waves. The action committee (vaad.breichat.yerushalayim@gmail.com) has hired a lawyer who has confirmed that, from a legal standpoint, the position of the pool members fighting its possible closure and rezoning is strong.
However, the committee is concerned that if the pool is shut down at the end of the year on the pretext of renovation work, as the pool management has announced, it will be hard to ensure that it reopens or that it retains its nature as an affordable neighborhood pool and the only Olympic-size one in the city. The pool management has not committed to a reopening date or denied reports that it is seeking to change the land use.
The pool is located on one of the most expensive real-estate areas in Jerusalem and is a potential gold mine for developers.
The public is being invited to a meeting on the subject on Sunday, November 22 at 8 p.m. at the Ginot Ha'ir International Cultural and Community Center at 12 Emek Refaim Street. A rally will leave the area outside the Jerusalem Pool at 7 p.m. and walk to the meeting together.
At a committee meeting this week, members stressed the importance of not being lulled into a false sense of security. "We need to carry on making it clear to the pool's management [Moshav Shoresh and the Ela Brothers] as well as to the municipality that we do not intend to give up the fight to protect the only 50-meter pool in the city and an important asset to the neighborhood," said one participant.
"We have heard a rumor that we have not yet been able to confirm, that the pool management has submitted a renovation plan for the Health Ministry's approval. If this is the case, we see it as a good sign," said the action committee in a statement."
The committee insisted however on "the public's involvement in determining the nature of the renovations and the length of the pool closure required to accomplish them. The renovations do not change the nature of our fight to ensure the continued operation of the pool in the future, to which the owners are obligated, and to prevent construction on the site."
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