Hamas War

Thursday, November 8, 2012

Internal Expansion in Shiloh

While city residents frequently find themselves unable to comfortably fit themselves and their families into affordable apartments, some of my neighbors are expanding their homes.





People are enjoying living space, and the newly expanded homes are frequently very large.  And even when they're just the addition of a larger kitchen, livingroom or bedroom, the homes are more comfortable than most city neighborhoods with comparable Mama"D, Mamlachti Dati, State Religious schools.  The Shiloh education system, which is from infant day care center until the 8th Grade has an excellent reputation.  There are also private options for those under three years old.

Our elementary schools are district schools.  Children are bussed in from the Shomron, Jordan Valley and quite a number of Jewish communities in the Mateh Binyamin district.

At present there are large, OK more meters than my house, terraced apartments for sale.  The architect builder only completes them when the buyer chooses the exact floor plan. So, these are customized homes.

We have bus service to both Jerusalem, stopping at Ofra, Sha'ar Binyamin and the Tel Zion/Cochav Yaakov/Psagot gas station, and Ariel, which stops at Eli and Tapuach. From Ariel you can easily get to Petach Tikva, Tzomet Yarkon and Tel Aviv.  And of course there are roads to all over the country.  We're five minute's from The Alon Road in the Jordan Valley. Yes, Shiloh is the center of the country.  A half hour to Jerusalem and a half hour to Tzomet Yarkon and "Kvish 6" the special toll highway is even closer.



Sorry, but this doesn't show the roads.

And we have medical clinics, stores and a pizza place.  Best of all, I have the greatest neighbors in the world!

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

How often do buses actually run from Shiloh to Jerusalem?

Can you really get from your home to wherever you need to go in Jerusalem within half an hour -- by bus? Or only by private automobile? If you don't have a car of your own (and a convenient place to park it in town), how long does it really take?

Your descriptions of tremping and of being dependent on last-minute lifts to and from your job have been making me cringe for a while now.

Educated people abroad -- especially the younger generation -- are becoming disillusioned with the suburban dream, which basically involves guzzling a lot of gas and having nothing worthwhile within walking distance of one's McMansion. This dream has become a nightmare for many people who can no longer afford to live by this unsustainable model. Israelis may be a couple of decades behind this trend, as with other trends such as recycling, etc., but they will get there soon enough.

I am no advocate of a Judenrein Judea and Samaria, and am as allergic as you are to writing the words "Palestinian people" without quotes. But you do little good for the cause of Jewish life in Judea and Samaria by pushing the McMansion bit. Better to advocate for the development of a real public transit infrastructure in the area.

Batya said...

In the afternoon, there are buses every half hour from Jerusalem to Shiloh and Shiloh to Ariel. From shiloh to Jerusalem less frequently. You can check on the Egged site.
Travel time depends on whether it's rush out or not, just like any other place in the world.
Considering that it can take a half hour by car or hour by bus to go from place to place in jerusalem, why should you think I claimed you can get "from your home to wherever you need to go in Jerusalem within half an hour -- by bus?"
Shiloh is not your American suburb with long distances and a need for a car for basic shopping. The big grocery/supermarket is in the middle of shiloh, walking distance unless you're addicted to cars. If you're working in a city, you can shop in a discount supermarket, which are all over Israel, on the way home to save on gas and time.
School is walking distance for Shiloh kids, and the others are bussed.
the best way to "advocate the development of a real public transit infrastructure in the area" is to use what we have, which I do.

Alan said...

>> Educated people abroad -- especially the younger generation -- are becoming disillusioned with the suburban dream


well, Ms Anonyomous, I am rather well plugged into American economy and culture.... and you're pinning my BS meter. You can't show me REAL VERIFIED statistics - like property-tax-assessor's assesments or deed-filing-fees - which are probative of what you're saying. The only thing you can show me is a lot of speeches by "Urban Planning" students and other people who couldn't pass that first scary semester of actual university-level scholarship. And if I may mangle a quotation from Lord Rutherford.... "Accountants are real social scientists. All the others are stamp collecters".

Alan said...

A more informative question would be: how often does an average Shiloh-nik need to go to Jerusalem?
Vidilicet: What ==can't== you do in Shiloh?

Batya said...

Alan, There are over three hundred families in Shiloh. Some do not need to leave often, but most people work and/or all over the country. You can buy food, clothes, medicines etc in Shiloh, but that doesn't stop people from shopping elsewhere.
We have young newlywed couples and we have great-grandparents in their 80's plus.

Batya said...

that's and/or study all over the country.
Many families choose Shiloh because it's convenient to many parts of the country.