Despite pollution concerns in Sde Dov: 'Gush HaGadol' managers ask to advance land distribution
The land lottery in Sde Dov was postponed due to fears of contamination, and soil tests have not yet been completed. The managers of 'Gush HaGadol' are asking to hold the lottery and not wait additional months for the results.
The Israel Land Authority (ILA) recently updated the Magistrate's Court in Herzliya on the progress of tests regarding suspected soil contamination in the Sde Dov quarter, as part of the proceedings for the distribution of land among the rights holders in 'Gush HaGadol'. The lottery, intended to determine the distribution of rights between the complexes, was postponed after landowners requested to wait for the extent of the contamination and its implications on land values to be clarified.
The lottery, which was supposed to take place at the end of June, was postponed to August 11, in accordance with the schedule presented by the state for completing the contamination tests. The court ruled then that a wait of several weeks might be justified given the possibility that a significant gap in the extent of contamination between the complexes might be found, which could affect the value of the rights and the costs of treating the land.
However, in an update submitted by the ILA on August 12, the results of the contamination tests were not yet presented. The ILA stated that the testing plans prepared for the landowners' plots were transferred for approval to the Ministry of Environmental Protection, but have not yet been approved. According to the ILA, the approval process is expected to take about another month, and only after that will it be possible to proceed with the tests themselves.
"There is no justification to continue delaying the lottery"
Now, the managers of 'Gush HaGadol' are asking the court to allow the lottery process to continue. In the response they submitted to the ILA's update, they argue that the picture has changed since the hearing held in May, and that the delay that was then expected to span a few weeks might now extend for months.
According to the managers, when the court discussed the request to delay the lottery on May 11, the state estimated that the results of the contamination tests would be received within 60-90 days — that is, by mid-August at the latest. However, it now turns out that by this date, results have not yet been received, and even the testing plans themselves are still awaiting approval from the Ministry of Environmental Protection.
Under these circumstances, the managers argue, there is no longer any justification to delay the lottery. According to them, all the preliminary procedures required for holding the lottery for the complexes have already been completed, and in any case, several months are expected to pass between the selection of the complexes and the next stage, in which the lottery for the plots themselves will take place. During this period, they claim, it will be possible to simultaneously advance the contamination tests and reach results.
The managers also note that the fear of contamination does not apply equally to both complexes. In the Eshkol complex, there is potential for contamination on a plot where about 46% of the rights are located, while in complex 2, it concerns plots where about 56.8% of the rights are located. However, since the current lottery concerns only the distribution between the complexes and not the distribution of specific plots, they argue there is no obstacle to holding it already now.
Judge Yaakov Shaked: "The extent of the contamination has not yet been clarified"
The rights holders in 'Gush HaGadol' have been waiting for many years for the settlement of their rights. The dissolution of the partnership in the lands began back in 1975, and only last year did the Magistrate's Court in Herzliya approve the table of rights of about 1,700 rights holders in the block.
Judge Yaakov Shaked addressed the managers' request and in his decision criticized their approach to some extent:
"The position of the appraiser Rosenberg was not attached to the managers' response. As recalled, coefficients were set by him for the various complexes, as opposed to the plots. As the managers note, the extent of the contamination has not yet been clarified, and therefore it is also unclear whether it will affect the complexes and the coefficients set for them in a similar way. Therefore, the managers should address this issue and attach the position of the appraiser Rosenberg by the date specified."
