Gerrer Hasidim Sue Jerusalem Municipality Over Land Allocation

The Gerrer Hasidic dynasty has filed a comprehensive lawsuit with the Jerusalem District Court, seeking to overturn the city's allocation of a prime plot of land in the Romema neighborhood to the rival 'Pnei Menachem' community. An interim order has been issued, freezing construction work for the next month.

The internal conflict within the Gerrer Hasidic movement has escalated to legal battlegrounds. Despite the Jerusalem Municipality's Allocation Committee approving the transfer of the former Israel Broadcasting Authority compound in Romema for the establishment of a spiritual center for the 'Pnei Menachem' community, the Gerrer Hasidim are not letting the matter rest.

A large administrative petition, spanning approximately 500 pages and signed by nearly 300 local residents affiliated with the Gerrer Hasidim, was submitted to the court. Prominent figures within the Hasidic movement are among the signatories. Concurrently, advertisements supporting the petitioners, titled 'Advertisers Doing a Mitzvah,' have been posted in mainstream synagogues, encouraging public support.

The lawsuit targets the Jerusalem Municipality and its Allocation Committee, alleging that the decision to grant the central land parcel to 'Pnei Menachem' was based on improper and extraneous considerations. The petitioners argue that the breakaway community comprises only a thousand families, many of whom do not even reside in the city, making the allocation of valuable public land to a small, exclusive group that does not serve the broader community unreasonable. They warn against setting a precedent where municipal properties are divided among specific factions, asserting that the city's claim that the center will serve the general public is inaccurate, as non-community members will not utilize its facilities.

A senior Gerrer Hasidic official told local media that the decision was clearly intended to harm the Gerrer movement's global center located nearby. This legal action follows the dismissal of a previous, individual lawsuit filed by a Gerrer Hasid. However, with this collective petition, a significant legal step has been taken: Administrative Court Judge Einat Aviman-Muller has ordered the respondents to submit their official response within 30 days. The judge also issued an interim order preventing any party from carrying out construction or alterations on the property until further notice. This development effectively halts the development plans of the 'Pnei Menachem' community, which recently celebrated winning the land and held a grand ceremony for the signing of the foundational scroll led by Rabbi Shaul Alter and his brothers, Rabbi Yaakov Meir and Rabbi Daniel Chaim Alter.