Page 326 - The Architecture of Nadler-Nadler-Bixon-Gil

1962 Beit Giora Immigrants
Hostel, Kiryat Hayovel,
Jerusalem

Site plan, early 1960s Between 1957 and the beginning of the 1970s, as hordes
60‫ ראשית שנות ה־‬,‫תוכנית אתר‬ of new immigrants arrived in the country, the Ministry of
Housing founded twenty “hostels” – an advanced version
p. 322: Entrance, 1962 of the 1930s “immigrant houses.” These hostels served
1962 ,‫ הכניסה‬:322 '‫עמ‬ for accommodating new immigrants for limited periods
during which they were provided with tools to ease their
323 absorption into Israeli society and the job market. Beit
Giora Hostel in Kiryat Hayovel in Jerusalem – named after
Minister of Housing Giora Yoseftal, who passed away
during its construction – included 73 dwelling units of
various sizes with 168 beds.

Characteristic of the Jerusalem modernist style
the firm had formed during that time, Beit Giora comprises
clean cubic units: a low and wide unit with an internal
courtyard serves as the building’s ground level, which has
public service areas that include a lobby, dining room,
kitchen, club and offices, along with a few dwelling units.
This block is clad in natural stone and crowned with a
strip of exposed concrete. Above it stands a three-story
structure containing the vast majority of the dwelling
units. This block’s façade is designed with a combination
of exposed concrete strips and hewn stone, complying
with the city’s distinguishing municipal law. In 2014 a local
committee for planning and building approved a proposal
to demolish the building and replace it with an apartment
and commercial building.