Due to noise complaints: children of the moshav did not play on the court for 14 years
An injunction issued in 2012 prohibited the use of the only sports court in the moshav Ge'a following residents' complaints. The council claimed it had carried out the adjustments required to reduce noise, and the court accepted its position. Activity will resume during limited hours.
For 14 years, the only basketball court in the moshav Ge'a, near Ashkelon, was at the center of a prolonged legal battle. This followed claims by residents that activity there caused noise disturbances. Now, a court has decided to lift the injunction that prohibited the use of the court, thereby allowing the children of the moshav to return and play on it, subject to the established restrictions on operating hours.
The process began in 2012, when an injunction was issued at the request of moshav members, prohibiting any use of the basketball court. The background to the injunction was an opinion from a noise expert on behalf of the Ministry of Environmental Protection, which determined that measures must be taken to reduce noise from the court, including raising the acoustic wall and regulating the hours of its use.
In 2021, the Hof Ashkelon Regional Council appealed to the court to cancel the injunction. The council, through attorneys Yanir Gur and Shelly Harari from the Ofer Shapir & Co. law firm, argued that it had fully met the conditions set for reducing the noise nuisance and therefore there was no longer any justification for continuing the ban on using the court.
The council also emphasized the social and health importance of reopening the court, noting that it is the only sports court in the moshav that allows children to engage in sports activities.
On the other hand, some of the moshav residents opposed the lifting of the injunction and claimed that the conditions set in the agreement between the parties and in court decisions had not yet been fully met. According to them, the council's declaration that it had carried out the required work is not enough, and the entire mechanism established within the framework of previous proceedings must be adhered to.
At the center of their opposition was the argument that a re-examination must be carried out by professional experts on behalf of the Ministry of Environmental Protection, to determine whether the actions taken by the council had indeed resulted in noise reduction.
Judge Sabin Cohen rejected the argument that an additional opinion was required and ordered the lifting of the injunction that prohibited the use of the court. In her decision, she determined that in accordance with the agreements between the parties, the lifting of the injunction was conditional upon the implementation of all the expert's instructions and the receipt of approval from the council's engineer, and that these conditions had indeed been met.
With the reopening of the court, the operating hours will continue to be in accordance with the hours agreed upon and the guidelines established in previous proceedings. The judge added that if, after the resumption of activity, the residents believe that noise disturbances still exist, they have the option to file a new lawsuit.
