US embassy cable - 05TELAVIV6425

UNCLAS TEL AVIV 006425 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL, PGOV, KWBG, IS, SETTLEMENTS, ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN AFFAIRS 
SUBJECT: GOI ISSUES TENDERS TO BUILD IN HAR ADAR AND QARNEI 
SHOMROM SETTLEMENTS 
 
This cable has been cleared by Consulate General Jerusalem. 
 
1.  (U) Press reported today, November 9, that the Israel 
Lands Authority issued a tender for 80 plots to construct 
single-family houses in Har Adar settlement, northwest of 
Jerusalem.  According to the tender, which was published in 
Yediot Aharanot, the plots of land will be from 501 to 833 
square meters, although most plots are in the 500-square 
meter range.  The plots can be leased for 98 years, with an 
option to extend for an additional 98 years, and will cost a 
minimum of NIS100,000, approximately $22,000.  The houses 
will be privately financed by the residents, and the tender 
states that the expenditure for development will be 
NIS391,000-521,000, or $87,000-116,000, depending on the size 
of the plot.  Buyers must bid by December 18.  (Note:  The 
relatively cheap price for a large house and its proximity to 
Jerusalem make Har Adar settlement a desirable location.  The 
Central Bureau of Statistics reported this month that Har 
Adar experienced a growth rate of 9.2 percent in the first 
nine months of the year.  Post will report septel on these 
population statistics.  End note.) 
 
2.  (U) In addition, the Jewish National Fund (JNF) issued a 
tender in Globes for the construction of a park "in memory of 
those who have fallen" in Qarnei Shomrom settlement in the 
Ariel bloc.  The JNF will provide a tour of the area on 
November 15, and bids are due on November 22. 
 
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JONES