Where the Train Stopped in Jerusalem

I know that in a city like Jerusalem we have to make a balance between preserving its heritage and meeting the demands of modern living.    Even so I hate to see a beautiful, historic building knocked down in the name of “progress” or, even worse, just allowed to decay until it has to be taken down.

The Jerusalem railway station in the 1890s.

That’s what I feared might happen to the old Jerusalem railway station.  The station opened in 1892 opposite the Khan as the final stop on the Jaffa to Jerusalem line – the first railway in the Middle East.  When the station finally closed its doors in 1998 it was sadly neglected despite its special architectural and historical merit.  The years took their toll on the building.  Decay, vandalism and the occasional fire almost damaged it beyond repair.

The neglected old railway station in Jerusalem. Photo: Dr Avishai Teicher

In 2008 I had watched in horror as a crane with a concrete ball on the end of a chain demolished the Ashkenazi Orphanage building on Harav Kook Street in the centre of town.   Bought from a wealthy Arab in 1881 the building had been extended and developed into “one of the finest public buildings in the city”.  In this orphanage and the nearby Alliance School the first attempts were made to introduce Modern Hebrew into the school curriculum.  Both buildings have been pulled down.  The Alliance School was replaced by the large, ugly Clal Centre.  The orphanage made way for “7 Harav Kook”, a huge 10 storey apartment complex, being built by developers Africa Israel.

About a year ago, after seeing a short film about the restoration and development of the old Jaffa railway station, I wrote to the mayor of Jerusalem. Follow this link to see the film.  I was impressed by what Tel Aviv had done and ashamed of how the old Jerusalem station was being allowed to decay.  He told me that I needn’t feel ashamed.    The city already had plans for a comprehensive renovation of the station and of the railway track all the way to Malcha.

The renovated Jaffa railway station.  Photo: Dr Avishai Teicher

Since then the first phase of the project has been completed.  The railway track from the old station along Rechov Harakevet to the junction of Emek Refaim and Pierre Koenig Streets has been transformed.  What was overgrown and unsightly is now a popular and attractive urban park with cycle and walking paths.

It was good to hear last week that a contract to renovate the station itself had been awarded to Avi Mordoch, the same developer who had done such a good job in Tel Aviv.  The plan for the site includes the preservation of the building, railway carriages turned into bars and cafes, a visitors’ centre for the railway, shops, galleries, exhibitions and restaurants.  The railway station together with the Sherover Centre under construction nearby will become a major cultural and entertainment focus for the city.   There is already, however, some controversy over the plan.  Both these sites will be open on Shabbat and charedi authorities have expressed their dissatisfaction.