Calcalist, Anat Danieli, 03.03.2020

The Tel Aviv municipality does not allow construction of balconies on the upper floors of projects in Quarter 4, according to a petition that its contents reached "Calcalist". Urban Renewal Company "The People of the City" initiated a demolition and construction project at 13 Soutin Street, located in Tel Aviv District 4. As part of the permit, the company requested the erection of a balcony on the eighth and final floor. The local committee initially approved the balcony, but later demanded its cancellation and many more balconies canceled in about ten similar projects in the area, claiming that the plan does not allow it.

The company filed an administrative petition with the Tel Aviv Administrative Court through Attorney Meital Toister Rosenthal and Jonathan Monrove of Ofer Toister's Office alleging that a Quarter 4 plan was approved "without authority and without the decision of the planning institutions", which is why the local committee wants to prevent the construction of the terrace.

The 4th Quarter Plan applies to approximately 2,825 dunams in central Tel Aviv, between King Saul Street in the south and Bnei Dan Street in the north;Ayalon lanes in the east, and Ibn Gvirol Street in the west. The plan aims to establish a rights framework for urban renewal and simplification of licensing procedures in TAMA / 38.

The plan was published in October 2012 for deposit in the records after it was approved by the Tel Aviv District Committee. According to the deposit, the height of construction allowed on non-prime streets or with a special low-rise building plan was up to six stories, and a partial roof and "in addition to the maximum permissible area, more than 14 square meters per unit of housing for balconies protruding from the exterior building walls", provided the average area Do not exceed 12 square meters.

At the end of May 2018, the program for validation was released. In the opposition process, the district committee accepted the city engineer's objection, stating that in District 4 more to build six typical floors and two more partial floors in retreat from the front. But there was no reference to the issue of the balconies.

Ultimately the final wording remained the same except for the addition of the words "typical floors". Stating that "more space of up to 14 square meters per unit of housing for balconies that protrudes from the exterior building walls on the typical floors, provided that the average area of ​​all the balconies in the building does not exceed 12 square meters." This means that it allows balconies only on the standard floors of the building.

The city's people say this has a dramatic impact on their projects around the city, with the top apartment also supposed to be the most expensive and profitable for the developer: "The consequences of eliminating the balconies are particularly heavy, given the fact that this is the top floor of the building, and therefore these are the most expensive apartments. "Of course, eliminating the balcony on the eighth floor apartment will have a dramatic impact on the ability to execute projects (which is beyond harm to the quality of life of the apartment owners as the project is implemented)."

The petition also stated that the local committee did not deny that the words "typical floors" were added as part of the final drafting of the plan. In an appeal that was discussed at the Tel Aviv District Committee, the municipality claimed that "the addition of the word 'on the typical floors' undertook in light of the change of construction and the need to maintain a six-storey performance to the front of the building. This indicates that the word pair did not appear in the deposited plan because the construction in the deposit did not include two partial floors." .

The Tel Aviv District Planning and Building Committee said: "Our answer will be given in court."

According to the Tel Aviv municipality: "Contrary to the claims, the provisions of the Quarter 4 plan are the result of all the decision clauses given by the planning institutions. An administrative petition has been filed in this matter, among which the arguments raised in this appeal will be discussed, and the local committee's position will also be disclosed to the body of interest. .