The few workers who labored inside the new house on the side of the mountain in Moshav Beit Meir looked from a distance like ants inside the huge building. The decorated and luxurious stones, the huge windows, the mosaic that covered the new floors and above all the semi-Olympic pool, all radiated luxury even though the construction is still in progress. "It's a private house," replied a Palestinian worker in broken Hebrew. "We don't know whose it is, a religious person, not from Israel. We haven't seen him here." It is difficult to call the huge building a house, perhaps a mansion is a more correct definition. A house that is at least suitable for Caesarea.
I continued on the road, without a definite direction, and came across the fence of another mansion.
Here it was a built and impressive complex, most of which was not visible to the eye.
Well-hewn Jerusalem stones led into the enclosed mansion, green trees that were evidently tended by a gardener frequently stood next to several buildings with red roofs.
"The whole street is like this," said an elderly woman who went out to throw out the trash on a hot summer day.
"We are almost the last of the entire street left, but we are not going anywhere."
Danny Maron
72 years after the Beit Meir settlement was established by religious immigrants from Hungary and Romania as part of the Mizrachi settlement movement, and was one of the first in the Jerusalem Corridor to be connected to the electricity grid, it is becoming a prestigious settlement for ultra-Orthodox businessmen and millionaires.
Estate after estate is purchased and the original residents leave the area.
In their place are expected to come in a few years, after the complicated financial matters are settled and the construction is finished, the ultra-Orthodox residents, some permanently and others only on holidays, as holiday buildings.
"It will be the ultra-Orthodox's Savion," says Yaakov Halperin, owner of Halperin Optics, who has lived in the seat for years and is pushing for the move with his two sons.
Barns and chicken coops, there are no luxury homes - welcome to the gentlemen's seat.
From the Palmach to the Bible
If you drive on Route 1 towards Jerusalem, you will exit at the Shorsh interchange and drive for a few minutes until you reach the wide open yellow gate.
"Welcome to the Beit Meir seat."
The seat, surrounded by hundreds of thousands of pine trees, is placed in a pastoral and spectacular area in the Jerusalem mountains.
To the north you can see the mythical Burma Road, the dirt road through which the Israeli forces managed to break through the siege of Jerusalem in the War of Independence, followed by the central cities.
To the south you can see the fortress of the Castle and the Herald of Zion, which hides Jerusalem.
"We don't know whose it is, he's not from Israel."
One of the mansions being built in Moshav, photo: Yehoshua Yosef
Inside the seat, the situation is less romantic, and some would say that it is a little neglected.
The sign of the Bnei Akiva branch hangs crookedly on the building, and in one of the farms we can see a crumbling shack that has surely seen better days.
At one of the central intersections stand two fire trucks that were new in the 70s, surrounded by an orange fence and a "No Entry" sign.
Nostalgia is exciting, but given the fact that last year a huge fire almost consumed the seat, maybe it's time to move on to the 21st century.
Yaakov Halperin, owner of Optica Halperin: "People realized that instead of buying several apartments around her and attaching them, they would buy a few acres and build a house. Some of them don't want to buy a house for daily living, but to come for the holidays, for the summer."
"When I arrived here in 1975, we lived with our four children in two rooms that we built here in the 1950s. We had a huge farm, hundreds of cattle and thousands of laying hens," says one of the residents.
Today there are about sixty farms in the settlement, where around 200 families live.
Like many settlements in this area, the original residents are getting old and want to move.
In some cases the owners of the estates pass away and their sons and grandsons, who do not live in the area, want to sell the farms.
And there are those who are interested in purchasing, and with a lot of money.
One by one, the residents receive offers from brokers, the main ones being Jacob Halperin's two sons, to sell the properties they own for high sums.
The customers are affluent ultra-Orthodox, many of them from abroad, who are interested in building a house, where some will only live during the holidays.
"The trend started with a friend or two of my sons, and passed to a few more of my friends," explains Jacob Halperin.
"Let's tell the truth, the seat doesn't look good, and as long as the situation is as it is - it's not going to change either. Happily, the move my sons are leading changes the seat, but it has to be said that there will always be connected people here who won't leave, a combination of the old with the new, and that Blessed. The change will not happen in one fell swoop, but with God's help the moshav will develop and my grandchildren will come to visit me here when I am older in a moshav that will look much better."
Don't be a brat
The reason for choosing Beit Meir stems, among other things, from the location of the moshav - deep in the pastoral forest, but at the same time relatively close to both Jerusalem and the center.
The new ultra-Orthodox residents also benefit from the fact that it is a religiously oriented moshav: there are no vehicles that travel on Shabbat, it includes women's and men's mikvahs, synagogues and even several ultra-Orthodox and religious yeshiva.
On the other side of Highway 1 is the ultra-Orthodox Kiryat Ya'arim, which provides complementary religious and educational services for those who want it.
"A new phenomenon".
Eisenstein,
"The upper ultra-Orthodox decile was looking for a kind of Savion or Kfar Samariaho where he could live the ultra-Orthodox communal lifestyle at a high level, and above all to get out of the stigma of Bnei Brak-Jerusalem," explains Itzik Eisenstein, an ultra-Orthodox interior designer who specializes in luxury construction.
"The new residents of Beit Meir do not want to be Bnei Barakim but to create something new. Beit Meir is a beautiful place, in the heart of the forest, and those who have money can build a mansion like no other in Israel. No other place has the areas, acres upon acres with a pool and huge gardens There are rich people all over the country, but a phenomenon like Beit Meir is new. As we speak, this phenomenon is taking shape."
Eisenstein introduces us a little into the world of ultra-Orthodox luxury: "The new rich will of course take care of a pool, that's the basics, but also a jacuzzi, sauna, home theater room, billiards room and maybe even a bowling alley. Every ultra-rich person also takes care of a room or a wine cellar. I got design a wine room measuring 100 meters. The indulgences are what distinguish the rich from the rich. One of the interesting things is that some of the rich have a special kitchen for Passover. Others have two kitchens - one where the cooking is done and one to show to the guests - not one where an omelette is prepared. These are people who earned the It's their money and they choose to live their lives that way. Some of them are very high-quality and great philanthropists, and they have the right to live that way."
An impressive building and lawns around it, photo: Danny Maron
The members of the Halperin family explain that in their vision as mediators there will be no fundamental change in the nature of the moshav, despite the entrance of ultra-Orthodox people into the place.
"In the coming years, after all the economic matters are finished, many people who have capital will move here, but the character of the moshav will remain. You have to understand that in many households there are several tenants, so even if a family moves into one house, it still does not change the nature of the moshav. They will begin to feel the The buds in about five years, when people start building, and in 10-15 years it will be an ultra-orthodox Savion. In my eyes, the moshav will become a very sought-after and beautiful place."
"This is a Shabbat-observant seat, with several synagogues, yeshivas, mikvahs and a non-suffocating religious atmosphere," says Jacob Halperin.
"My son knew quite a few people when he lived in the US for several years, and when he told them that his father lived in a high-quality of life settlement, they realized that instead of buying several apartments around it and adding them together, or having the whole family spread out over a large area, they would buy a few dunams and build a house.
Some buyers don't want to buy a house to live in every day, but to come for the holidays, for the summer, and be together with each other."
Blinded by the big money
The problem, some residents point out, is that prices have currently jumped to almost unimaginable levels.
Currently on the website of the Tax Authority the highest price for land in Beit Meir stands at eight million shekels, but there are several new transactions that have not yet been reported, which include much higher amounts.
The residents tell of an amount that reached NIS 15 million and more.
"The affluent ultra-orthodox public is tired of the noise and the fact that all day they knock on their houses and ask for donations. They want to escape, they want to be released. I'm sure they are big donors, but you can't do it like that all day long," analyzes one of the old residents of the moshav.
By the way, he does not intend to move.
"I'm looking for a quality of life, our lives are short. What will give me a bank number? Nothing. I prefer a place for my grandchildren. Those who sell are blinded by the money."
"The seat will become a very popular and beautiful place."
Halperin, photo: Yehoshua Yosef
One of the members of the Halperin family tries to cool down the drama, saying that it is a number of specific businessmen who raised the prices.
"There is noise from two or three people who refused to give up their dream and paid exorbitant prices. It is true, the transactions are of a slightly larger scale than usual because there are components that are not found everywhere - there are mikvehs, synagogues, yeshivas, things that are not found in every locality."
Yaakov Halperin adds that "I feel at the moment the trend has stopped because the stock market in the United States is weak and it is difficult for people to release money. Until the stop there was a beautiful and interesting wave of people who instead of buying apartments in or around Romme came here."
Behind a gate in one of the central streets could be seen the open door of a large, castle-like house.
Without making an effort you could see a man and a woman walking through the house.
routine.
"There are two types of Haredi rich," explains a person close to one of the Haredi luxury families.
He asked to remain anonymous, because his relatives do not like such publications.
"There are those who like to show what they have and there are those who don't. Yes, even those who don't like to show their wealth will drive in a luxury car that costs a million and a half shekels, but this is not ostentatiousness but purely comfort. Others will share on Instagram every second of their lives."
The open space became fenced off, photo: Yehoshua Yosef
What are wealthy Haredim looking for in Beit Meir?
Well, visibility is part of the matter, or rather - the lack of visibility.
"These are not ultra-Orthodox you think of, yeshiva boys with wigs, but ultra-Orthodox Americans who don't want to live with all the ultra-Orthodox. They don't want to live in noise, but are actually looking for peace," explains R., who is involved in the prestigious brokerage world in the ultra-Orthodox world.
"I am working on several penthouses in different cities in Israel, but they are worth NIS 15 million.
"The people who come to Beit Meir know that they can get an amazing villa with a garden and a pool for the same price as a penthouse in Jerusalem, and their grandchildren will also be able to enjoy it. These are often very discreet people who want to get value for their money. A similar phenomenon can also be seen in settlements in the Beit Shemesh area, such as the Eden Hills." R. adds.
So far dozens of farms have been purchased in Beit Meir.
"There is a population change, nothing less," analyzes Maxim Cohen.
He has lived in Beit Meir since 1960, one of the oldest, and until five years ago he served as chairman of the committee - a total of thirty years in the position. "Nearly 30 farms have been sold and in the coming years 50% of the population will change.
In the next five years the moshav will be half abandoned, until they build their house.
I am not known personally, I stay in my locality.
I have a son who continues and he will inherit the place."
It's hard to say that Maxim is happy with the situation.
"I'm not angry with anyone, but the path is wrong in my view. I don't believe that this will be a savion for the ultra-Orthodox, it's a story of brokers who work well. There is a man who bought four farms, another bought five, does that seem natural to you? It will bring the seat back to change The 60th, for the clans. There will be clan wars here. The prices are also astronomical and not justified at all, they just go wild with the prices because apparently they have a lot of money in the United States."
Maxim refers to the large house that is currently being built in the settlement and states that "I am against these monstrous houses, if I were still at the head of the committee I would not approve such houses in any way. There is no reason to go crazy, we have a 160 meter house and we are delighted, I raised five children here and it was excellent ".
Without expansion there is no future
One of the issues that worries the old residents, among others, is the future of the synagogue on the site.
"Every oligarch has his own synagogue here and the main synagogue has been abandoned," says one of the residents.
"Our synagogue wasn't big to begin with and now it's half empty. It's sad."
In the past, there was a plan to expand the settlement to 80 farms, but this is stuck, which means that next to the sale of the houses to the ultra-Orthodox rich, there is no expansion of the moshav for future generations.
"It was planned to expand the moshav to 80 families, but this is not happening. This leads to the fact that no boys continue in the moshav," says Maxim.
Debbie Kelly: "Our essence is here. We know every piece of grass, but yes, there is a dilemma. We have to think about our future and our children's. Sometimes we have to learn to love something else"
The question of how the residents accept the new situation varies from one resident to another.
Some said that this was a natural and blessed situation and others said that they had mixed feelings.
When "Israel Today" photographer Yehoshua Yosef was documenting the moshav, he encountered a mother and her two children who told him that they were leaving because the moshav had changed its face - and in their opinion, not for the better.
"The seat has lost its character and suddenly there are disputes and class differences in the seat between the rich and the class of people with an average income," she explained.
Jacob and Debbie Kelly, in "Saba's Warehouse", photo: Danny Maron
The sweltering weather leaves most residents deep in the air conditioner as I make my way inside the seat.
Near the building in the center of the settlement, I encounter a large group of ultra-Orthodox teachers who have come for a training session on the occasion of the new school year that has begun.
A sign with a small inscription "Grandfather's warehouse" catches my eye and I decide to go down into the garden, where I discover a treasure - parts of a real armored car from the War of Independence in the garden of a house.
And this is only the first swallow from the private museum that Debbie and Jacob Kelly have been operating there for many years.
"I'm new here, only since 1973," smiles Eli Debi under a wide-brimmed hat.
The couple raised their three children there, with one living in a housing unit below the large house they built, and at the same time they collected old objects, together creating a museum inside an old chicken coop.
Among other things, she shows me one of the only remaining Davidkas, old newspapers and even two barrels of the Nazi Wehrmacht.
"The British brought them to Israel after they defeated Rommel in World War II. When they established Beit Meir there was no electricity here, and my father-in-law turned one of them into a pasteurizing machine in order to produce canned fruit."
Debbie and Jacob Kelly usually host groups at the museum and show them the rare items.
"There is a driver here who brings Satmar Hasidim here, among other things," she smiles.
Recently, the couple received an offer to sell their property, which covers a large area, which includes, among other things, grapevines, a fabric house from the Second Temple period and which overlooks the Burma Road and the central cities.
"We haven't been offered an amount yet, but I'm sure it will be a tempting amount. We are simple people, my husband is an electrician, I'm a lactation consultant, but our essence is here. We know every piece of grass here, but yes there is a dilemma. We have to think about our future And of our children. Sometimes you have to learn to love something else, learn to say hello, but it's hard. Every morning we sit on the balcony at home and eat breakfast. It's not a simple dilemma."
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