Ahuza Street in Ra'anana to quadruple: just the start of the metro era in Gush Dan

100 projects currently being promoted are set to dramatically change the centers of Gush Dan cities. These are plans for metro station complexes, the light rail that will run under Gush Dan, which include no less than 300,000 housing units in the most crowded area in the country. One of the most advanced of these, on Ahuza Street in Ra'anana, is set to increase the number of floors, apartments, and residents around the planned station by hundreds of percent. Anyone trying to understand the magnitude of the revolution that will happen here in a decade or two can look at the numbers for the center of Ra'anana.

The project in Ra'anana (TAMAL/2072) is being promoted against the backdrop of one of the metro lines (M1), which will arrive from Tel Aviv, through Glilot and Herzliya, and will cross Ra'anana through the city's central boulevard, Ahuza Street. The station will be built at the corner of Ahuza and Ben Gurion.

Currently, there are residential buildings in the project area with 3,177 housing units in structures ranging from old ground-level homes to individual seven-story buildings (most of the latter underwent TAMA 38). Most of the residential buildings in the area are old 2-4 story structures. Also, the complex has commercial areas of about 46,000 square meters. Today, the complex does not function as a real urban CBD (Central Business District). The project proposes a real revolution: urban renewal in a 'pinui-binui' (evacuation-construction) format, in which the number of housing units will increase by about 160% and reach almost 8,400 apartments, in 8-16 story buildings; employment areas of 45,000 square meters and 40,000 square meters of commercial space will be added to the area.

The project in Ra'anana

• 160%: The increase in the number of housing units, from 3,177 to 8,400.

• 95 thousand square meters: Addition of employment and commercial areas.

• An increase of hundreds of percent: Growth in construction density.

This is an increase in construction by hundreds of percent, which will of course also affect the number of residents in the complex, which currently numbers about 5,100 people, a large part of whom are elderly. In the future, with the implementation of the project, the number of residents will rise to about 20,000 people.

A private company on behalf of the VATMAL (Committee for Priority National Housing Projects) that is promoting the project held information meetings among the residents of the complex, and even a social survey among the local residents. The survey revealed, among other things, that there is ambiguity among residents regarding the compensation they will receive. Some prefer to wait for the project to mature, some look to the future and believe that the ownership of the apartments will change (likely heirs who will take their place), while others who rent out the apartments are afraid that tenants will be deterred in the coming years, knowing that the complex is set to undergo a very long 'pinui-binui' process.

The VATMAL that handles the project held round tables about a month ago with the goal of focusing on solving existing problems in order to continue promoting the project. And indeed, the schedules for promoting the project are considered very fast in the world of Israeli planning, and it is supposed to be approved by the end of next year.

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"Many rights holders"

Will it happen? Real estate professionals operating in the area warn of the complexity of the project. Kobi Arditi, CEO of RMA from the Ram-Mugrabi-Arditi group, which operates in two complexes in the Ahuza Street area, explains that the complexity of the renewal in the Ahuza area stems from the scope of the project, and in particular from the current situation on the ground. "We are talking about a project that spans an area of about 2 km along the metro, with many rights holders. In the current situation, there are apartments, shops, offices, parking lots, warehouses, halls, and other areas with unique designations on the ground. The project must provide an answer to all of this."

Advocate Yaron Shlomovitz, from the Shlomovitz-Sorkin & Co. firm, who represents rights holders in the area, puts the emphasis on the compensation and returns that will be given to the owners. "There are property owners on Ahuza and on the nearby streets who hold significant parts of the common property, such as parking lots or commercial shops. They enjoy stable income from rent or usage fees, while the project might harm their income. At the same time, apartment owners are expected to deal with the consequences of increased density and the number of neighbors." If all these are not taken into account, Shlomovitz warns, many objections will be registered that could delay the projects.

The Ahuza complex is, as mentioned, just one example of 100 projects currently being promoted in the cities surrounding Tel Aviv. In the coming years, dozens more projects will mature, each of which will be a local earthquake, and it is to be assumed that all of them will also be accompanied by local struggles and legal proceedings.

The metro project includes three lines, with a total length of 145 km and 109 stations, within the jurisdiction of 24 authorities in the Tel Aviv area. The target date for the launch of the metro is still set for 2037, but it is clear to everyone that it is absolutely not final. The national master plan, TAMA 70, which accompanies the metro lines, has defined areas of influence around the metro axes and stations, which are supposed to undergo a radical change, which will be reflected in a very large addition of housing units, commercial, public, and employment areas.