Modi'in is moving forward with the TechMod tech park, which will encompass 100,000 square meters of office and commercial space with an investment of NIS 1.15 billion by the three partners developing the project. TechMod will provide 10,000 jobs in a city where 75% of residents work elsewhere.
City that was built backwards
Between 2019 and 2023, work began on 220,000 square meters of office space and 30,000 square meters of commercial space in Modi'in, according to the Central Bureau of Statistics, so that TechMod represents 40% of all the office and commercial space being built in the city in recent years.
"This is a city that was built backwards," says Eli Goldstein, one of the three partners developing the TechMod project, together with Hadar Group's Yair Hadar and Hold Group's Ari Shapira. "It was built as a dormitory suburb without jobs in it. Although it continued to grow, and today serves many towns in the region, there are no significant sources of jobs in Modi'in today, and modern planning, among other things, through the new master plan, tries to address this.
"It's a big project by any measure, but in some ways it's not big enough to fill all the shortfall in Modi'in. It's a city without any real alternatives for offices, and the lack of jobs in it is very conspicuous. It's going to occupy a much larger volume than it has occupied until now, and become one of the largest in the country, for sure due to its being a central transportation hub - both for railways and highways. The new project provides it with something much needed from the residents' point of view, which it does not have today."
1,800 parking places
TechMod, which was designed by Moshe Tzur Architects and Town Planners, will be built in the northeast of the city and will include four buildings with 86,000 square meters of office space and an additional 14,000 square meters of commercial space. There will also be 1,800 parking spaces in an underground car park in accordance with the national parking standard. Several hundred meters from the tech park the city's third railway station will be built.
The land on which TechMod is being built was purchased by the three investors for NIS 62 million, with rights to build 18,000 square meters, which has since been greatly enlarged due to additional rights granted by the overall master plan in this area of the city. The financing for the purchase and first stage of construction of the project (earthworks and support) was provided by Bank Leumi.
The plan for the land had already been approved, in the scope of tens of thousands of square meters, and these days a more expanded construction plan is being submitted, which will allow the construction of 100,000 square meters. The building permit for this is expected to be received in about three months.
Construction will be undertaken in two stages. In the first stage, two ten-floor office buildings will be built, as well as half of the parking area. This stage is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2026, comprising 40% of the entire project. In the second stage, another ten-floor office building will be built, along with a 20-floor office tower, 8,500 square meters of retail space and the second part of the parking lot. The plan for the park allows for various uses - from high-tech and offices, through laboratories and clinics to various services, and according to the estimates TechMod will be able to provide jobs for about 10,000 people.
"Our project is probably the largest built in the city as a single project, and it is also large in terms of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem," says Goldstein. "It will be self-sufficient with commerce and services that will serve the office areas and the residents in the region and will meet needs that are lacking in the city today. We hope that it will be a magnet for the residents of the area and for every company."
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on May 6, 2024.
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd., 2024.