Regeneration

++The guiding design principles behind the village plan are as follows:

+The Green Belts

The green belts shall be created and maintained by the inhabitants themselves on publicly owned as well as privately owned donated land. These will border houses and roads and will function as sustainable gardens, promenades and parks. They will be ‘enclosed’ by retaining walls. Their specific design, inspired by a Klee painting, is a richly textured mosaic of ground cover, plants, shrubs and trees. They will also include stairways, benches, pathways and parking places. The plants will provide shade and act as buffers against dusty winds. Drainage channels will be placed along the bands. The green bands will follow the topographical contour lines of the land and be executed also upon expansion simultaneously with the roads. Together they form a system and thus act as the determining factors in shaping the character and function of the village. Once the structure is layed, houses and public amenities may follow.

+The roads

The village of Ein Hud will be connected to Road 4 at a junction point before arrival to Ein Hod. An existing road will be widened, paved and extended to Ein Hud. Any other existing roads may remain as they are. The way to lay down a functioning road system that can accommodate any foreseeable (and unforeseeable changes) in Ein Hud’s development is by laying a network based upon some of the existing roads, existing patterns of settlement and on topographical conditions. A road network is hierarchical in nature. Contrary to contemporary Israeli planning of new towns, which rely heavily on 1980’s North American suburban planning, all roads will allow for continuous through traffic. Most roads will merge in the vicinity of the entrance and exit of the village. For the village to continue its growth based on its established pattern no dead end roads nor cul-de-sacs are permitted. Dead ends make navigation difficult and cul-de-sacs do not actually promote a sense of community but of isolation, thus preventing interaction between the inhabitants. To avoid dusty air turbulences generated by moving vehicles, all roads should be paved in either a combined surface of compacted aggregates set in cement, or with brick or concrete pavers. To cut the costs of road maintenance asphalt shall be limited only to the main roads. On the plan most of the new roads converge at the eastern part of the village, due to a municipal line of 180 dunam. With any form of expansion the roads (and the green belts) will continue to follow the contour lines and not converge until a later point in time.

The Houses

Houses shall be located between the green belts. The locals may determine their positioning, orientation and size on the land. Each plot of land will have at least one fruit tree planted. The fruit produced may be than sold on the market. Each lot will be either cultivated to a garden or paved as a terrace and thus free of debris and vehicles. Cars may be parked in the designated places on the green belts. Parking on one’s premises is done only for invalids or on a temporary basis. Each household agrees on collectively working on the maintenance of the green belts. As part of the children’s education, a programme may take place in which they learn to participate in the stewardship of the land.

+The Public Amenities

A market square will allow for the fruit to be sold not only to the local inhabitants but also to those of the adjacent villages. Local crafts may also be sold there. The surrounding houses will all have storefronts and will include a bakery and several convenience stores and a post office branch. A medical clinic with a pharmacy A nursery located on the 12 dunam agricultural land A campsite with a hostel, guesthouses, recreational field, picnic grounds and storage facilities A new town hall and a new public square Adjacent to the existing school is space allocated for an extension and a decent size play ground is layed-out.

+The Cultural Centre

The cultural centre situated on a new public square across the mosque and in the vicinity of the new town hall, will help form a new sense of civic pride. This place is intended to serve not only the locals but also those from the surrounding villages. The centre is a place of interaction, between all age groups and all cultures. The two-storey building (8m high) is nestled in the sloping terrain with only several cuts made into the almost hermetically sealed envelope. A roof terrace is directly accessible to the public on street level at the back of the building, offering primarily a view towards the public square with its buildings, to the sloping green bands and the sea beyond. The terrace can also be served as an open-air theatre or as an outdoor atelier for artists and their students. An inner courtyard is created in one of the vertical cuts of the building to allow the natural terrain and indirect light to penetrate. This building’s purpose in the village is to promote educational programmes for both adults and children, and to function as an indoor public gathering place. The centre offers a 2 storey public library and research facilities for village history, with study rooms and internet computers. In addition, a small auditorium for guest lecturers and film viewing, guestroom accommodation for artists, researchers or other cultural figures experts, atelier class rooms for arts and crafts courses, exhibition spaces and a café is offered. Technonically, the building is constructed of cast-in-place concrete and claded in a light grey sand stone. The front elevation, that which faces the public square, is glazed. In order to prevent overheating, a second skin of wooden vertically folding shutters is applied. These shutters will form an overhanging canopy above the café’s outdoor terrace. Tactility and light form a more important aspect in the design of the building than the use of cool colours that are kept to minimal shades of white and grey (with the exception of the warm wood).

+Conclusion

It is of the utmost importance that the villages will join forces and set a national precedent for change to occur. Not only in the granting of planning rights and in the setting up of common planning committees, but in the shared stewardship in maintaining the sustainability of the land and of the national park that Ein Hud may begin to undergo the process of regeneration. This masterplan and building deign has attempted to facilitate this process and act as the catalyst for Ein Hud’s transformation into a dignified and prosperous village.