Rawabi, about 20 miles … north of Jerusalem, is designed to look much like an American suburb. … Cities like Ramallah and Nablus have sprawled into the West Bank countryside over the last century, leaving them with insufficient roads, infrastructure and parking space, producing daily traffic jams that snarl their centers. In Rawabi, by contrast, a series of roads will loop down the hillside, lined with residential buildings connected by footpaths, designed for the Palestinian middle class, [Bashar] Masri [managing director of the company behind the project] said. Residents will have ample parking and access to parks, schools, mosques and a church.
Masri declined to give condo prices, but said 5,000 units are designed for Palestinians who can afford monthly mortgage payments of between $400 and $700. Another 1,000 deluxe units will sell for more, he said .The project is being funded by Qatari Diar Real Estate Investment Co. and Ramallah-based Massar International. To help families purchase homes, the U.S. Overseas Private Investment Corp., an investment arm of the U.S. government, is helping establish a mortgage assistance project.
Masri’s company plans to start pouring foundations in three months, he said, and says the first residents should move in by 2013. That is, assuming the city gets its access road. Reaching the site now means following a narrow, winding road through a number of Palestinian villages. Planners have laid out a new access road, but about two miles … of it cross an Israeli-controlled zone, said Amir Dajani, Bayti’s deputy director. Dajani said the Palestinian Authority has asked Israel to put the stretch of road under Palestinian jurisdiction, but has yet to get a response. “The access road is an artery for the project,” Dajani said. “It is critical for its success and future growth and a prerequisite for its sustainability.” Access the full article>>
