LUXURY LIVING A SPECIAL ISSUE OF THE NEW YORK JEWISH WEEK AND THE NEW JERSEY JEWISH NEWS | SUMMER 2016
AT HOME IN THE HOMELAND
Design firm caters to diaspora homebuyers. PAGE 3
JAFFA RISING:
The ancient port city gets a luxe makeover. PAGE 6
MOD’IN AND NETANYA:
Luring luxury projects. PAGE 14
HIGH-END HOTEL UPGRADES PAGE 20
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The offices at Jerusalem Design. P HOTOS COU RTESY OF J ER U SALEM DESIGN S
At Home In The Homeland
For disapora homebuyers in Israel, design firm helps create personal touches beyond Jerusalem stone. NATHAN JEFFAY
A
lmost a century ago, the British made a decision that would determine the look of Jerusalem until this day. Construction, said the officials from London who then controlled the city, must take place almost exclusively in Jerusalem stone. The rule survived the shift in Jerusalem from British rule to Israeli rule, and now the pale stone is synonymous with the holy city, and often used in Judaica as a symbol of Jerusalem. But when residents or people establishing a second home in Jerusalem decide to build or renovate a Jerusalem home, it limits
the choice of designs and styles available. “The Jerusalem municipality is very strict on building and restoration, so many people feel ‘we can’t express ourselves in Jerusalem,’” said Chezi Spero, creative director at Jerusalem Design, which provides architecture, design and project management services. However, Spero says that people shouldn’t feel unable to make a home their own because of the Jerusalem building regulations. In his view, the rich history and the diverse population of the city provide lots of ideas to give homes individual character, despite the mandated conformity of their exteriors. The smallest of touches can percontinued on following page
One of the firm’s kitchens.
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At Home In The Homeland
continued from previous page sonalize an exterior without going against the grain of the stone with its imposing past. Hand-painted gold leaf on a porch, for example, “changes the whole story” and creates a homey and a historic feel at once. City gardens, complete with outdoor furniture, also provide the opportunity to put a personal stamp on the exterior. But possibly the most exciting opportunity for diaspora buyers in Jerusalem is the chance to design the interior, especially since many of them, until this point, have been used to staying in hotels when visiting Israel. “People feel that when they come to a hotel it’s hard to personalize the experience,” Spero said. “But when people have a home here they can say, for example, ‘I loved the vibe of walking on the floor of Jerusalem’s Roman Cardo when I visited here as a child,’ and you can give them an echo of that Cardo floor in their bedroom. “This way they have captured a part of Israel that they love in their own home.” Many of Spero’s clients feel their homes in Israel are “an extension of themselves, and to much of the diaspora Jewry this is a definite way for them to express themselves.” When it comes to interiors, people should dial up or down the historical or history-inspired features as they see fit, Spero said. Some people, especially when choosing homes in the Old City or the nearby neighborhood of Yemin
(212) 719-1708
A Jerusalem Design living room with decidedly modern touches. Moshe, like to opt for bright colors and natural stones. They fit well with the surroundings — narrow alleyways and arches — and also the architecture that tends to include domed ceilings. Other people say, “I want a Jerusalem feel but I want to feel it’s 2016,” he said. “For them there is the option of a large, open plan instead of very clean lines and concrete as you may have in other cities. In Jerusalem people go for tiles in sandy colors.” S p e r o ’s c o m p a n y m o s t l y works in Jerusalem, but also takes on projects elsewhere in Israel where very different architectural visions can take off. “You may
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show me a picture of a beautiful ranch house from Tuscany, but I’ll tell people that won’t work in Jerusalem, where there wouldn’t be enough land around it.” However, up north and down south ranchstyle homes can work. Tel Aviv is dominated by Bauhaus architecture, and a home in the beach-house style could look out of place, but can fit well in a quieter coastal city like Herzliya. Jerusalem Design’s services, aside from building plans and interior design, include selecting and managing contractors, working with suppliers, coordinating schedules, and supervising the quality of the work. Spero notes
that there can be a cultural gap between standards of work expected in the U.S. and in Israel, and one of his company’s priorities is to set clear expectations with contractors and check work carefully. One of his sayings is that “not everyone can afford high end but everyone deserves quality.” Wherever in the world clients are, they can log on to its Project Tracker, an online portal that tells them, in English if requested, exactly what work has been taking place and what money has been spent. “Even if you have people with serious money,” Spero said, “today they want to know where it is going.” ◆
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A rendering of the lobby area for The Residences at W Tel Aviv-Jaffa project. ALEX MOR R I S
Jaffa Rising
The ancient port city is now luring vacationers and second-home buyers with a 21st-century vibe. NATHAN JEFFAY
J
affa, the ancient port city, is witnessing an explosion in demand for luxury housing and hotel accommodations. Steeped in layer after layer of history, Jaffa has long been on the itineraries of diaspora Jewish travelers, who enjoy its stunning port and its boutiques and cafés. But now, it is also an increasingly popular choice for vacations and second homes. One of the most ambitious attempts to cater to the high-end market in the city where the biblical Jonah set sail, where the cedars arrived for the First Temple and where many thousands of Jews arrived to settle the Promised Land in modern times, is in full swing at an old Christian complex. The adjacent structures, which once housed the former School of
the Sisterhood of St. Joseph and a 19th-century French hospital are being converted, so to speak, into an ode to modern luxury. As they are transformed into a hotel and apartment complex, many original features are being preserved and repurposed. “Within the building we have an amazing chapel that became completely dilapidated and we have spent a lot of effort and money trying to restore its grandeur,” said architect Ramy Gill excitedly, explaining that it will become a music room with a bar for hotel guests and residents. Next to the old building, a new building is being constructed, which will be very different in style and which Gill said represents “the signature of our generation.” “You will see the 19th century brought back to its glorious days continued on page 8
The W Residences entrance with a distinctive hanging tree. AM IT GERON
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Jaffa continued from page 8
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170 Shonnard Terrace | Yonkers, NY | $4,950,000 | Magnificent 20 plusroom stone castle with 6 bedrooms, 7 baths, 11 fireplaces, overlooking the Hudson River, and 25 minutes from Manhattan. An established film and photo location with potential six digit income. Web# DE09063. Terhi Edwards O: 646.541.8072
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and the second building, which is a 21st-century building,” he said. Once finished, the complex will be part of the W Hotels collection, which has 43 hotels and retreats worldwide, as well as home to 34 apartments in a wing to be known as The Residences at W Tel AvivJaffa. There, homeowners will be able to use the facilities of the hotel, and order all hotel services, including maid assistance and room service. Gill’s team is complimenting historic features such as the sunbathed chapel, vaulted ceilings, stained-glass windows and hidden inner courtyard with contemporary components. Gill first started working on transforming the Christian complex into a luxury development some 20 years ago. The man who finally provided the necesPROOF: info@menorahgalleries.com CC: Cindie P:\a&a COLOR Section\04-29-16\menorah galleries sary capital is the New York real estate tycoon Aby Rosen, who is behind the project through RFR Holding, which he co-founded. PROOF: info@menorahgalleries.com CC: Cindie RFR working on the P:\a&a is COLOR Section\04-29-16\menorah galleries project
with Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide. Through the starts and stops in the project Gill has maintained a strong enthusiasm for the challenge — and has translated it to reality working with British architect John Pawson. The architects have managed to expand the area of the original buildings by enlarging them downwards. “The original building was built in 1879 and has two grand floors,” Gill explained. “We were then allowed to dig in to the lower areas and have all the public facilities, like the restaurants, in the walk-out basement that spills out in to the large courtyard.” The homes will feature floor-to-ceiling windows and hand-finished hardwood floors. Details include marble stonework and upscale Duravit fixtures in the bathrooms and stainless-steel Miele appliances in the kitchens designed by Mr. Pawson. But the high-end approach extends beyond the homes to communal areas and
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575 MADISON AVENUE, NY, NY 10022. 212.891.7000 © 2016 DOUGLAS ELLIMAN REAL ESTATE. ALL MATERIAL PRESENTED HEREIN IS INTENDED FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY. WHILE, THIS INFORMATION IS BELIEVED TO BE CORRECT, IT IS REPRESENTED SUBJECT TO ERRORS, OMISSIONS, CHANGES OR WITHDRAWAL WITHOUT NOTICE. ALL PROPERTY INFORMATION, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO SQUARE FOOTAGE, ROOM COUNT, NUMBER OF BEDROOMS AND THE SCHOOL DISTRICT IN PROPERTY LISTINGS ARE DEEMED RELIABLE, BUT SHOULD BE VERIFIED BY YOUR OWN ATTORNEY, ARCHITECT OR ZONING EXPERT. EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY.
continued on page 12
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M o d i ’ i n
All computer simulations are for illustrative purpose only
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Jaffa continued from page 8 even the parking garage. “We’re building a totally automatic parking garage for 245 cars,” Gill said. “You drive into an entry like a driveway and put your car in a cabinet that is actually an elevator and say goodbye to the car, which is automatically parked.” When drivers want their cars back, they can just call the parking system from their cell phones. Gill calls the system
“mind boggling” to watch. Despite all the modern conveniences and his design, Gill is at his most enthusiastic when talking about Jaffa, a city for which he enthusiastically provides an overview of 4,000 years of history and discusses numerous visitor sites and the time-travel experience they provide. “How many places on earth do you have this kind of experience?” he said. ◆
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Modi’in, Netanya Luring Luxury Projects Demand for high-end apartments spurs Israeli property developers.
STEVE K. WALZ
C
ompared to some of the astronomical asking prices on upscale properties in Manhattan, the outer boroughs and Northern New Jersey, luxury Israeli real estate projects are considered to be a relative bargain. According to a recent survey by Israel’s noted Geocartography Institute and the ONE Manhattan real estate firm, the average price of a luxury property in Tel Aviv, which is frequently referred to as the “Manhattan of Israel,” is currently one-third the price of a comparable apartment in the Big Apple. “Tel Aviv is in the process of becoming the Manhattan of Israel, with more luxury towers being built for wealthy buyers, but the luxury apartment club will eventually expand to other cities, which is already happening,” Rina Degani, an urban planner and CEO of Geocartography, recently told the Netanya Real Estate Forum at
Netanya Academic College. “During the past decade there were only four or five cities in Israel that saw real estate deals that exceeded more than $1 million, but today we see that in at least 10 such cities.” The over-heated local property market has actually played a role in the accelerated growth of Israel’s high-end real estate development; as a result, a number of builders are erecting projects in several cities that have been designed specifically for buyers from North America and England. Modi’in, one of Israel’s newest and fastest-growing cities, with a population of 100,000 people, has become a magnet for many Englishspeaking families from the U.S., Canada and the United Kingdom, etc. The city boasts a high quality-oflife quotient, underscored by highly rated schools, community services, synagogues, shopping centers, large parks and even Little League baseball teams that compete in the Israel Association of Baseball. “Modi’in is the most modern
The Briga Towers in Netanya, above. Below, an apartment in the Briga Towers. COU RTESY OF B R IGA TOWER S city in Israel, as it’s only 20 years old,” said Raz Schreiber, vice president of marketing and sales for the Almog Group, which is currently building a luxury project dubbed “Almog HaTziporim” (Birds) in the city’s brand-new Tziporim neighborhood. “The city has attracted a very high-caliber population, which includes growing numbers of English-speaking residents, many of whom are from New York, New Jersey, etc. They are attracted to real estate projects that cater to the life-
style they were used to in the U.S.” Almog HaTziporim consists of five, four-story buildings that overlook picturesque Park Anaba, which American residents have dubbed “Central Park” because of its lake, green zones and bicycle paths. “We purchased the land to develop this project because of its strategic location both to the park and adjacent Road 431, which leads to the nearby shopping centers, as well as to the metro Tel Aviv region, where many people work,” Schreiber added. The project’s various apartments have sold out quickly, with only a select number of spectacular penthouses featuring rooftop swimming pools and balconies still to be sold. Prices for the penthouses are around $1.2 million. “Modi’in is not only considered to be a great place to live but also a very safe real estate investment, because of its quality of life and proximity to Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and, of course, Ben-Gurion Airport, which is a big plus for those people who still conduct their business in the U.S. and UK,” said Schreiber. According to the latest government statistics, prices for a fourroom apartment in Modi’in have risen by 10 percent in the last year. The continuous influx of Englishcontinued on page 16
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Jerusalem Design PLAN | STYLE | MANAGE
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Luring Luxury Projects
continued from page 14 and French-speaking immigrants has created a buyer’s market. It is also for this reason that the Almog Group will be building a second luxury project in the city in the coming months. Dubbed the “City Center” project, it is part of Mayor Chaim Bibas’ grand vision to turn central Modi’in into an Israeli-version of midtown Manhattan, albeit with more trees and less traffic. “We are going to build two 12-story towers that will also feature large luxury residential apartments,” said Schreiber. “There will be 30 luxury apartments for sale to buyers who don’t compromise on upscale standards of building and design. Even though we haven’t even broken ground, we have already received serious inquiries from foreign buyers, including couples and families from the U.S.” Another city that has attracted a lot of attention from English-
A building in the Almog HaTziporim project in Modi’in, which consists of five, four-story structures in a new neighborhood. COU RTESY OF TH E ALMOG GROU P
speaking buyers and investors is Netanya. During the past decade, Netanya has undergone a radical transformation from a crime-ridden, downtrodden city with a weak population to a bustling seaside metropolis, featuring thousands of English- and French-speaking new immigrants who have purchased breathtaking oceanfront properties along the city’s coastline. Netanya’s
170 Shonnard Terrace | Yonkers, NY | $3,950,000 | Magnificent 20 plusroom stone castle with 6 bedrooms, 7 baths, 11 fireplaces, overlooking the Hudson River, and 25 minutes from Manhattan. An established film and photo location with potential six digit income. Web# DE09063. Terhi Edwards O: 646.541.8072
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mayor, Miriam Feierberg-Ikar, has proudly proclaimed to Americans that her city is the “Mediterranean Miami Beach,” while telling potential French immigrants that Netanya is the “Mediterranean Riviera.” The roots of the city’s makeover began when the mayor was able to open up large parcels of land at the southern entrance to the city, which includes the Poleg, Ir Yamim (Sea City) and Iris Reserve neighborhoods, to major developers. One of those developers, Briga, has been at the forefront of the city’s residential building. It is a private real estate development company that has operated out of Netanya for nearly 40 years and has garnered a reputation for uncompromising quality. “You know, there are bigname builders out there who will sell projects to buyers, and when the apartment is ready, the purchasers will get the keys and that will be the end of it,” said Alona Orland, Briga’s director of sales and marketing. “Because Briga is a local builder of high-end projects, we care about every buyer or investor, and if one of our customers asks to move an electrical outlet or adjust something in the new apartment, we won’t charge them extra for it. Personal interaction and satisfaction is important to us because word-of-mouth is a strong marketing tool.” Briga’s newest luxury residential project, Briga Towers, is located along the alluring Mediterranean coastline, situated right on the beachfront promenade. If you wish to swim in a more private environ-
ment, the development boasts an Olympic-size swimming pool. “We are not just selling apartments, we are selling an entire lifestyle with uncompromising standards inside and outside the building,” said Orland. The Briga Towers project comprises two 34-story buildings, located between two nature reserves — the famous Iris Reserve to the location’s north, and the Poleg Shore Reserve to its south. The well-groomed leisure areas cover some 7,000 square meters for each tower, including gardens, top-end environmental development and a range of installations such as the pool, with shallow areas, floating suntan beds, bar, children’s playground, tennis court, and a private strip of sand facing the sea, which offers beach volleyball and more. The lobby is outfitted with a luxurious reception area and seating designed for hosting business meetings, an elegant space containing a well-equipped bar, a quality children’s play area, synagogue, library and art gallery, high-end gym; all are available for residents’ use 24/7. The spacious apartments are designed to match the buyer’s personal requests. Each apartment includes floor-to-ceiling windows that bring the sea into your home from almost every window. Prices for various mid-tower apartments range from about $1.5 million to about $8 million for upper-floor apartments and even higher for the limited number of penthouses. Many of the lower- and middle-floor apartments in Briga Towers are being snapped up very quickly. “Some of our buyers are Israeli couples who have sold their homes because their children have gotten married and moved out,” Orland said. “Others are younger, new immigrants with children, who wish to live in the lap of luxury, and we offer value for the money.” The spectacular growth of Netanya has indeed made the city a prime locale for real estate investment. While the price of a four-room apartment in Modi’in rose by 10 percent during the past year, sans the sand, the price of a similar-sized unit in Netanya, with the ocean as an alluring inducement, has risen by 12 percent since 2015. ◆
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The penthouse at 415 E. Sixth St., which will sit atop the historic Anshei Meseritz synagogue, inset. APARTM ENT CR EDIT: COU RTESY OF EAST R IVER PARTN ER S SYNAGOGU E CR EDIT: WI KI M EDIA COM MON S
Welcome To The Synagogue-Condo
If you lived here, you could be praying by now: Where luxury New York real estate meets financially strapped congregations. LUCY COHEN BLAT TER JTA
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f there’s one story that sums up the changes afoot on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, a once heavily Jewish neighborhood, it’s the saga surrounding the Anshei Meseritz synagogue. The Orthodox shul at 415 E. Sixth St. is a relic of a time when “tenement” synagogues — so FOUS ON named for the narrow lots they NEW YORK inhabited — filled the neighborhood. But in recent years, faced with a shrinking membership, the congregation had been searching for a way to stay afloat. Its salvation lay within its crumbling 100-year-old building. While the Orthodox population in and around the Lower East Side has shrunk considerably, the value of the properties they own are skyrocketing. As New York City’s property market becomes a safe-deposit box for the world’s 1 percent, luxury residential buildings have become commonplace across the city, including once-downtrodden areas like the Lower East Side — today the average cost
of a two-bedroom condo there is $2.35 million, according to StreetEasy. In order to make ends meet, many houses of worship are striking deals with developers. Some have relinquished their air rights — allowing for construction atop their structures — or in some cases sold their buildings entirely to make way for demolition. These decisions are never easy — a building’s historic merit can add another layer to an already emotional and complicated transaction. At Meseritz, its saga began in 2008, when the Kushner Companies seemed prepared to demolish the structure and build a six-story building, with two floors reserved for the synagogue. The plan drew protests from preservationists and pitted synagogue members against one another. Eventually the building was saved from demolition — in 2012 it was designated part of a historic district, which meant the exterior had to remain intact. But the congregation’s financial issues remained. Enter East River Partners, a new developer with a plan that was something of a compromise: a hybrid synagogue-condo that preserves exterior
details such as stained-glass windows and the original door, but is completely redone on the inside and with a new penthouse up top. When the building is completed in the next few months, the congregation, which has occupied the building since 1910, will return, taking the basement and ground-floor level. Atop the synagogue are three luxury condo apartments — two with original stained-glass windows — ranging in price from $2.95 million to $4.395 million. The developers have agreed to pay the congregation at least $20,000 annually for the next 198 years, in addition to a $600,000 payment up front and an $180,000 allowance to design and rebuild the sanctuary. The developer will keep profits from apartment sales. Though the plan drew ire from some locals, the developers say they are more than satisfied. “It’s a terrific part of the history of Judaism in the city,” said Jody Kriss, president and cofounder of East River Partners. “It was important to the congregation and to the rabbi [who has since died], and a unique opportunity for us to keep the synagogue going.” What’s more, the developers have received more recognition for the project than any continued on page 22
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P r o d u c t of I s r a e l
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Hotel Luxury On The Rise
Upgraded services on tap for tourists and business travelers. STEVE K. WALZ
W
hen the Hilton Hotels Corp. unveiled its Waldorf Astoria brand two years ago in Jerusalem, it not only changed the dynamics of the luxury hotel business in the Israeli capital, it spurred all fivestar hotel owners across the country to upgrade their facilities and services in order to cater to upscale foreign tourists and business travelers. Accentuating a unique combination of 1920s grandeur with modern elegance, the 226-room facility, located a few hundred yards from the entrance to the Old City, was praised last year by Conde Nast Traveler Magazine as the “Best Hotel in the Middle East.” “This means that the Waldorf Astoria Jerusalem beat out some of the most renowned hotels in the greater Middle East region. The hotel was also ranked as the seventh best hotel in the world by the magazine, making the Waldorf Astoria Jerusalem the No. 1 hotel in the entire Waldorf Astoria chain,” explained Motti Verses, director for public relations for Hilton Worldwide Hotels in Israel, comprising the Waldorf Astoria and two other luxury hotels, Hilton Tel Aviv and Hilton Queen of Sheba in Eilat. “From the minute a reservation is received,” Verses continued, “each guest is assigned a personal butler who is ready to assist with everything, even before you land. The butler can arrange chauffeured transportation and will know what the needs are of each guest from the minute they set foot in the hotel including business services, specific food requests and more.” Though reservations are flagging at Jerusalem hotels, Verses insisted the Waldorf Astoria still has plenty of clientele. He added, “There are many people looking for and willing to pay for this product. Unlike other hotels who might offer special packages, we can’t do such things because that will mean that we would have to offer an inferior product. People who book with us will not pay more than any other upper-end hotel in the U.S. or Europe, and our guests know exactly what they will get.” For the many couples, families with children and business travelers who don’t need butlers but still seek quality service and accommodations, the 283-room Inbal Jerusalem Hotel has been a
The lobby lounge at the Waldorf Astoria Jerusalem. COU RTESY OF H I LTON HOTELS COR P.
popular venue. According to Alex Herman, the hotel’s vice president of sales and marketing, “The Inbal awaits the upcoming summer season, having recently inaugurated newly renovated luxury suites. Our hotel is a favorite destination for visitors to Jerusalem and many are from the Metro New York-New Jersey region. The Inbal Jerusalem Hotel, one of Jerusalem’s finest hotels is also a doorway to the city’s grand culture, tradition and history.” Herman added, “The Inbal is in walking distance to the city’s main tourist attractions, shopping areas and entertainment centers, and near unique and memorable historic sites. It recently has been recognized by TripAdvisor for both its Certificate of Excellence, and has been voted the most luxurious hotel in the TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice Awards, a testimony to the satisfaction of our guests, many return time and again.” In Tel Aviv, hotel occupancy rates this year have been higher than in Jerusalem, due to the growing numbers of business travelers and the fact that five-star hotels have upgraded their services. According to HVS, a respected British marketing company that services the global hotel industry, Tel Aviv is the fifth most visited city in the Middle East and Africa combined. Jimmy Zohar, chairman of the Tel Aviv Hotel Association and general manager of the five-star Carlton Hotel, said, “The upgrades and changes in the local hotel industry, including the five-star hotels, began 10 years ago when Tel Aviv started to invest heavily in promoting itself as a major attraction and destination. Major city funding went into upgrading the beachfront promenade, Port of Tel Aviv, Port of Jaffa, Neve Tzedek, etc.” One of Tel Aviv’s most popular five-star ho-
tels among the business travel community, the InterContinental David Tel Aviv, has just finished a series of upgrades ahead of the summer season, when many families arrive for fun and sun. The hotel offers 555 guest rooms (39 are suites), including the brand-new Tel Aviv Suite and two elegantly appointed Royal Suites. Dining options, including the Aubergine gourmet restaurant and trendy Inca Casa del Habano Cigar Bar, serve international cuisine. Hotel amenities include the outdoor swimming pool with sun deck and pool bar, 24-hour room service, and an upgraded Spa and Fitness Center. InterContinental David Tel Aviv’s “Senses of Tel Aviv” experience is, according to the hotel, a comprehensive luxury insider program designed to give guests the keys to unlock the secrets of the city and immerse themselves in the local Tel Avivian vibe. “We are delighted to offer our guests a unique and authentic insight into what makes the city so special,” said InterContinental David Tel Aviv’s general manager, David Cohen. “We look forward to exposing the best-kept secret of the Middle East — Tel Aviv.” According to Zohar, over the next three years the Tel Aviv hotel industry will add at least another 600-700 “luxury class” hotel rooms, with the W Hotel in Jaffa and the Kempinski Hotel in Tel Aviv leading the way. Both the W (owned by New York real estate entrepreneur Aby Rosen) and Germany’s Kempinski luxury resort chain, compete with high-end brands such as the Waldorf Astoria in major cities all over the globe. Zohar added, “These hotels will also be aggressively targeting upscale North American tourists, as well as business travelers, who seek the very best.”◆
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they’ve done. “It’s a creative use of the property,” Kriss said. Such “creative uses” are often a win-win for the developer looking to make a buck and a synagogue struggling to pay for upkeep of increasingly expensive properties. But it’s not always smooth sailing. The Young Israel of Manhattan, on the Lower East Side, had its 200-year-old building razed in 2010 to make way for a synagogue-condo hybrid. Its transaction coincided with the housing market collapse and the building never happened. An empty lot has stood in the spot for years, and the congregation has relocated. One problem, said developer Michael Bolla, is that synagogue board members are rarely well versed in real estate deals this complicated. The Lower East Side can be a particularly tricky place, said Bolla, who was part of a group that converted the old Jewish Daily Forward building into condos several years ago. “You have a lot of ex-communists doing commercialism,” he said. “The boards can be horribly difficult.” Like Kriss, Bolla sees potential profit in keeping these buildings and their historical — and often beautiful — features somewhat intact. He estimates that about 20 percent of the people who moved into the old Forward building — actress Tatum O’Neal and an heir to the Versace fortune, among them — did so because of its historic significance. The last condo to sell there, in 2015, was a two-bedroom that sold for $2.5 million, according to StreetEasy. Developers “don’t understand that these assets actually have more value when you restore them — they’re easier to sell than just boxes,” Bolla said. “When you can link a project to a historical moment in time, especially if it’s a thing of great beauty, that can translate into a large profit,” he added. Lest you think the synagogueto-condo conversion is only occurring on the Lower East Side, take a look at Lincoln Square Synagogue, a beacon of Modern Orthodoxy on the Upper West Side. In 2013, the
congregation moved 100 yards south to new digs after selling its original building, a 1970 travertine structure in need of repair, to a developer. According to The New York Times, the synagogue struck a deal with American Continental Properties, a developer, for a land swap — 180 Amsterdam Ave. for 200 Amsterdam — and about $20 million to help finance the project. The synagogue’s original building still stands and already has switched hands. SJP Properties and Mitsui Fudosan America, Inc. now plan to build a 51-story luxury condominium tower with 112 residences on the site. Shaare Zedek, a traditional egalitarian synagogue on W. 93rd Street, is about to embark on its own construction project, which will see its 1923 building demolished to make way for a 14-story construction. The bottom three floors will be for the synagogue and the top floors for condos. Congregation Shearith Israel, the oldest Jewish congregation in North America, is in the midst of replacing its community house, which is next door to its landmark synagogue building. That building was demolished last year to make way for new construction that will include a residential portion consisting of “three full-floor apartments and a duplex incorporating the penthouse with views overlooking Central Park.” The new community space will include a banquet room, classrooms and study spaces, as well as a new entrance to the synagogue, making the entire facility wheelchair accessible. “In today’s changing landscape, synagogues, churches and most houses of worship are searching for new funding opportunities to support their operation and their mission,” said the synagogue’s executive director, Barbara Reiss. Additionally, Shearith Israel has a large collection of historic archives that need to be preserved, as well as four historic cemeteries in New York that need to be maintained. “Our commitments go above and beyond the pressures all synagogues increasingly feel,” Reiss said. “Our core mission is not real estate investment,” she said emphatically. “It’s serving the Jewish people.” ◆
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