For the first time in its storied history the Kiach site and school building will be opened to the public, allowing free access to and from the immediately adjacent Machane Yehuda Market in the center of Jerusalem.
The resultant movement of pedestrians will allow the vitality of the market to suffuse the adjacent area, and provide a link essential to the continuity of commercial use in the center of the city. Of particular significance will be a new connection between Machane Yehuda Market and the Davidka light-rail station on Jaffa Road.
Promoting shopping and outdoor dining, interlinked courtyards will surround the robust historic building, itself repurposed as a boutique hotel. Above, a pair of residential towers will rise, strategically placed to flank portals to the new mixed-use precinct.
Mitcham Kiach is adjacent to the Etz Chaim project, currently under construction. The two sites have an integrated landscape strategy, with interconnected levels, continuity of circulation, and shared vistas.
Status: Competition Entry
Location: Jerusalem
Firm Role: Architect
Additional Credits: Associate Architect: Rosenfeld Arens Architects; Preservation Architect: Giora Solar; Traffic Engineering: Ami Matom; Landscape Architecture: Pei Cobb Freed & Partners; Images: Pei Cobb Freed & Partners, Pei Cobb Freed & Partners
