Who are the biggest beneficiaries from the closing down of Sde Dov Airport? Who are the landowners in the large block? After quite a few disputes that even went to court, the managers of the large block on behalf of the court today published the list of names: 1,700 of them, including some well-known figures. In contrast to previously expressed opinions, however, most of the landowners are not tycoons; they are the descendants of the original owners from the 1930s and 1940s, who have never had the chance to exercise their ownership rights.
The list includes businesswoman Galia Albin, who told "Globes" today, "It's all inheritances. We have rights to two or three apartments. It's not something big that will change our lives."
Also on the list is the family of late Adv. Moshe Shoob, which inherited its share of the large bloc from him, including his children, Adv. Tzvi Shoob, Adv. Shmuel Shuv and Adv. Miriam Donin; Central District Court Judge Arnon Benjamin; businessperson Rami Ungar; Supreme Court Justice and Elections Committee chairman Hanan Melcer; businessperson Leon Recanati; and former Labor Party chairman Isaac Herzog. Jewish National Fund and Israel Electric Corporation each hold 2% of the land.
The large block (officially, lot 204, bloc 6896) consists of 504 dunam (126 acres), which makes the owners' average holding three dunam (0.75 acres) each. The value of the land in the large block is slated to rise steeply in the near future when the plan is approved. At the same time, under the agreement signed with the state by the large block managers in 2007, which was given the force of a court ruling, the state will get 50% of the rights in the land, and a large proportion of the proceeds from the state's holdings will be allocated to pay for the transfer of IDF bases to the Negev and public benefit projects.
Aviation activity at Sde Dov was terminated on July 1, and work on vacating the airport began, in accordance with the, cabinet decisions, agreements with the state, and Supreme Court rulings. According to the earlier plan in cooperation with Israel Land Administration, the Tel Aviv municipality, and the large bloc managers, vacating of the airport will make it possible to build a new residential neighborhood on state land, the large bloc, and land owned by other private owners.
Adv. Joseph Guy Mosseri, who is also listed as holding large part of the land, explained to "Globes" today that he did not actually own the land; he and his law firm were listed as holding the land for many of their customers. "We represent owners of over 55 dunam of the land," he stated. Mosseri says that in view of the removal of the activity from Sde Dov and promotion of the plan, including through the National Infrastructure Committee, he estimates the price of the land is now rising 10%. "A large proportion of the people have been holding the land for decades, and justice was done for a change; they will now be able to reap the fruits of these holdings," he said.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on July 28, 2019
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