Havatzelet HaSharon

Havatzelet HaSharon is a small moshav in the Hefer Valley, administered by the Emek Hefer Regional Council.[2] It lies near the Mediterranean coast and north of Netanya. Planning reports describe Netanya's proposed northern neighborhood as being situated mainly on agricultural land belonging to the moshav.[3][7]

The settlement is known to passing motorists for traffic congestion near its interchange on the coastal road.[8] Its rural character became a central concern in residents' objections to plans for urban construction on nearby agricultural and open land.[3][7]

Havatzelet HaSharon was founded in 1935.[1] An undated archival map catalog entry marks land for the settlement, reserve land, areas designated for Yemenite residents, a workers' camp associated with the General Zionists, and a coastal strip.[5] Another undated map records plots and building locations in a "Yemenite neighborhood" near Havatzelet HaSharon, buildings in a workers' camp to its west, and topographical information.[6]

A broader Emek Hefer map lists Havatzelet HaSharon alongside Kfar Vitkin, Avihayil, Kfar Yedidia, Ein HaHoresh, and other localities, and shows plots, topographical details, and a road network.[9] A water-route map titled "Havatzelet HaSharon" depicts a line belonging to the Emek Hefer water-supply enterprise, including the Ma'abarot line designated as pipe 24, with handwritten notes concerning Jewish National Fund land.[9]

A 2024 column reported that several dozen families had arrived in Havatzelet HaSharon before Israel's establishment.[8]

Reb Aharon Ratner moved to the Hefer Valley settlement in his old age, tended a small farm and orchard, and lived there for twenty years. He died in Tel Aviv in 1955 at the age of 77.[10]

A 2019 water-consumption report listed Havatzelet HaSharon as a moshav in the Emek Hefer Regional Council with 482 residents.[2] The 2022 population entry recorded 474 residents, including 459 Jews.[1] These figures reflect the settlement's small population and represent a difference of eight residents between the two reported years.

Havatzelet HaSharon has two synagogues, one considerably older than the other. A 2024 column described one as full and the other as empty.[8] An earlier account records that an association connected with Rassco purchased 36 apartment buildings in the settlement for Jewish immigrants from Khotyn, at a stated value of $57,000. The association raised money through advertisements and a lottery, attended an opening ceremony, and established and helped furnish a synagogue.[11]

Havatzelet HaSharon's position at the northern edge of Netanya's growth area has drawn it into a prolonged planning dispute. A 2019 report described a proposal involving 570 dunams of the moshav's agricultural land and 415 housing units to be allocated among Havatzelet HaSharon, Tzukei Yam, and Shoshanat HaAmakim. Local opposition focused on construction near open spaces and the coastline. Changes to the proposal included a green corridor linking a planned national park to the coast and reduced development near the beach.[4]

By 2020, an approved plan for a new northern Netanya neighborhood, situated mainly on agricultural land belonging to Havatzelet HaSharon, had been reduced from an original proposal of 5,000 housing units to 2,800 regular homes and 500 assisted-living units. It also included employment and commercial space.[3][7] The plan allocated 72 additional housing units to Havatzelet HaSharon.[3] Emek Hefer residents objected to the loss of agricultural and open land and the expected effect on the area's rural character.[7] The plan also provided for an ecological connection between the Avihayil national park and the sea.[7]