גאות ושפל - שימור מורשת עירונית

Ebb and Flow – Urban Heritage Preservation The preservation and planning project of the Bat Galim Casino was born from a deep story of community, collective memory, and the struggle over public space. The casino opened in 1935 and became the architectural and social gem of the neighborhood. In its heyday, it served as a center for culture, leisure, and gathering — a place that brought together diverse populations: British officers, Haganah fighters, and residents of Haifa and Bat Galim. All came to dance, swim, wander, and enjoy. The building was etched into the collective memory of the neighborhood and remained a symbol of an era of openness, urban life, and proximity to the sea. In recent years, the building has stood abandoned, yet it still retains its status as a local icon. Today, it faces a dramatic change — its transformation into a private hotel. The residents of the neighborhood feel wronged: a place that once belonged to the public, that was the beating heart of Bat Galim, is being taken away and turned into a private space that will not serve the local community. Moreover, the casino is located at the heart of the neighborhood, at the end of Bat Galim’s main boulevard, but instead of acting as a gateway to the sea, it is planned to block access to it and sever the public’s connection to the waterfront. The project seeks to raise awareness of the importance of preserving urban heritage — not only as an architectural object, but as a living memory of a community and a place. The casino is an inseparable part of Haifa’s cultural and historical landscape, and its preservation holds deep significance in shaping local identity. Here, preservation is not nostalgic but an active act of spatial justice — one that returns to the residents the history and space that were taken from them. Alongside preservation, the planning seeks to strengthen the connection between Bat Galim’s residents and the sea — a connection that has gradually faded over the years. The casino, which once served as a gateway to the sea, returns to fulfill its role as an open, public, and breathing space that invites the community to reconnect with the coast. The new program draws inspiration from the site’s history — such as the swimming pool, areas for culture, recreation, and dining — and reinterprets them through contemporary, sea-related functions: a Sea Scouts club, water sports, maritime education, seating areas along the waterline, and underwater spaces. The building is designed to accommodate diverse audiences — old and new residents, young and elderly alike — while creating a shared, egalitarian, and accessible public environment that allows these functions to intertwine and offer a variety of experiences for the entire community. The structure is conceived as a continuous and integrated public space that extends Bat Galim’s boulevard and functions as a pier within the water. The pier allows residents to experience the sea not merely as a view, but as a place for life. The dialogue between architecture, people, and the sea creates a unique continuum of connections — between city and sea, community and heritage, past and future.