Hadera to Add 6,000 Apartments for Young Couples

The government’s “price target” program for affordable housing may have landed its biggest fish yet – a project consisting of 6,000 apartments, complete with shopping and work opportunities, in the coastal community of Hadera.

Situated between Tel Aviv and Haifa, Hadera, which is adjacent to major highways and has a train station, would seem to be a natural place for growth and major home construction in a country with a huge housing shortage. But after a spate of construction about a decade ago, expansion in Hadera has been slow. One important reason is because much of the land in the city is privately owned, making it difficult for contractors to buy land on which to build large projects.

One exception to that rule is the Beit Eliezer neighborhood in the southeast of the city, where the Israel Lands Administration owns most of the land. Hadera is keen on expanding in that area, and on Wednesday Mayor Zvi Gendelman presented a development program for the area to ILA and Housing Ministry officials. At the end of the meeting, all parties agreed to advance the program.

Besides the housing and infrastructure to be built, Hadera will also get an additional train station and new highways (including a new spur to Road 6), as well as local transportation advancements, like a light rail.