Weekly Update 58

October 24, 2025

Hello, everyone.

This past Tuesday, a special council meeting was held in place of the one originally scheduled for early October, which had been set for the Sukkot holiday. This newsletter will cover several important topics that we approved at this meeting.

First topic: Due to the establishment of the municipal police force in addition to the Moshava Patrol, the security fee we pay has doubled, but we will receive greater security in the town.

Second issue: Upgrading the waste management system in Zichron Yaakov—transitioning to underground bins, and within a few years, the green bins blocking the sidewalks on all streets where possible will be removed.

Third issue: A budget has been approved for the construction of a new sidewalk on HaTapuach Street in the Vilot BaHoresh neighborhood. However, the suffering of the residents of Vilot BaHoresh has continued for the past three months.

First issue: Due to the establishment of the municipal police force in addition to the Moshava Patrol—the security fee we pay has doubled, but we will gain greater security in the town

In Newsletter 48, I wrote about the planned establishment of the Zichron Yaakov Municipal Police Unit, which was approved by the Ministry of Public Security. Currently, they are finalizing the recruitment of personnel and renovating the building where the community police will be based. Operations are expected to begin in December or January. Council Security Officer Sahar Lipshitz is managing this operation and has also outlined how the municipal policing will actually be carried out.

During the meeting, the council head spoke at length about the threats facing the community, particularly since the rise in crime in the town of Pardes (residents of the northern neighborhoods, in particular, hear gunfire every day and even see tracer rounds at night; recently, two bullets struck residents’ homes) and crime within Zichron (home break-ins, graffiti, and reckless ATV driving) and explained the need to expand the community’s security and safety framework. The cost of this project is 4.7 million NIS per year and will include the cost of 4 patrol officers from the security patrol unit and an additional 6 auxiliary inspectors (the cost of the 6 officers is paid by the Ministry of National Security), leased vehicles for 4 patrol cars, a 24/7 emergency call center, and security cameras.

Funding will come from a security fee paid by every household in the community based on the size of the property. The fee funds will be managed as a closed fund—exclusively for municipal policing and the patrol unit; any annual surplus, depending on the annual growth of built-up areas, will be held in a dedicated fund for this purpose only.

Currently, for the patrol unit, a total of 1.4 NIS per square meter per year is paid; for example, a 100-square-meter home pays 140 NIS per year, and a 200-square-meter home pays approximately 280 NIS per year. And regarding the last example, with the introduction of the municipal police, the amount will double to 2.79 NIS per square meter, so that same 200-square-meter house will pay 560 NIS.

We all voted in favor of new council members as well as those who served in the previous term, such as Deputy Council Chair Zila Reshef, who previously voted against collecting fees from residents, as documented in various minutes. An accountant hired by the council who performed the calculations presented us with a precise breakdown of the calculation method and what the cost will include (I sent the documents in the previous newsletter as part of the meeting agenda). Unfortunately, the issue of security in the community is yet another matter that has been “privatized” from the state’s responsibility to that of the local authority. We cannot rely on the police, and there is a need for internal policing and a patrol unit. We are a community ranked 8th on the socio-economic scale and do not border a seam line or fence, so the state does not provide extensive funding, and residents are forced to finance it.

Municipal policing is not part of the Zichron Yaakov Police Department, which continues to operate as usual. Municipal policing is limited to the community’s boundaries. Each patrol will include a police officer and a council inspector. There is a fixed list of offenses in which they can intervene. Anything not on the list will be handled by Zichron Yaakov police officers, as is done today. For example, municipal policing handles violence in public spaces, while station officers handle violence in homes. Municipal inspectors issue citations for parking in prohibited areas, while municipal policing handles vehicles blocking traffic. The unit differs from regular police officers because it will operate according to pre-determined metrics and plans, and everything will be measurable. For example, if police reports show that there are break-ins in a certain neighborhood in the early morning hours—the defined goal will be to reduce break-ins in that neighborhood. Then the municipal police officers will focus on that neighborhood in the morning hours. To my understanding, the municipal police will not issue tickets.

With the council’s approval this week, the ball is now in the Ministry of the Interior’s court, which must give its approval; only then will the updated municipal bylaw be published in the Official Gazette, and collection under it will begin. This is expected to take two months or more.

Second issue: Upgrading the waste management system in Zichron Yaakov—transitioning to underground bins, and within a few years, the green bins blocking the sidewalks on all streets where this is feasible will be removed

At the meeting, we unanimously approved a total of 1.37 million NIS for the addition of 19 underground bins on the following streets (some with more than one bin): HaSukkah, 29 November, Derech Sarah, Exodus, 5622, Meshul HaGan, Nili Boulevard near the school, Narkis, Rakafat, and Kalaniot. The policy of installing underground trash bins began during the previous term as part of this policy and continues in this term.

Shlomi Peretz, Director of the Operations Department, explained to us at the meeting that currently 40% of household waste is disposed of in underground bins. This is already in place in newer neighborhoods such as Halomot, HaBe’er, HaTazmoret, and Park HaYayin, where underground bins were installed as part of the initial infrastructure. The goal is to reach 100% underground bins within a few years, and to that end, a gradual process of installing underground bins is beginning in the older neighborhoods as well. Here are some figures provided to us:

• Each underground bin has a capacity of 5 cubic meters, which is sufficient for 30 families.
• Each underground bin has a sensor that reports the amount of trash to the collection truck, so the truck only comes to empty it when it is nearly full. This reduces truck traffic.
• The goal is for the underground bin to be within 100 meters of residents’ homes. Of course, for some, the bin is very close to their home, while others will have to walk 100 meters to reach it.
• The placement of the bins takes into account existing underground infrastructure; there are places where digging is not possible.
• The cost of installing each underground bin is 40,000–50,000 NIS. Therefore, the transition will take place in phases over several years.
• The installation cost is high, but the ongoing cost saves money since currently we pay per bin. Even if it’s half-empty, we still pay for it. Additionally, the time required for collection has decreased significantly, which means fewer blocked roads.
• The transition to underground bins and the removal of the green bins will free up the town’s sidewalks for pedestrians. The transition will reduce calls to the 106 hotline, as many calls today concern bins not being emptied, broken bins, and more.
• None of this relates to the orange bin, which is for packaging and is set to be introduced soon. No date has been provided.

Third topic: A budget has been approved for the construction of a new sidewalk on HaTapuach Street in the Vilot BaHoresh neighborhood

Last week, I wrote in the newsletter about the saga of the residents of Rehovot—HaShizif, HaShikma, and HaTapuch Streets. One morning, without sufficient warning, they began digging on their street for road resurfacing and paving, which quickly turned into digging deep pits until residents were informed that the rainwater drainage pipes were also being replaced. I would also like to emphasize that I still have not received the documents I requested on August 18, 2025.

Three months on, and the streets remain a dangerous construction site. Despite meetings with residents and repeated promises from the mayor that the work is nearly finished… residents are still living in the midst of a dangerous construction site!!

Last Friday, what they had warned him about happened—a 22-year-old granddaughter who came to visit her grandmother’s house fell and was seriously injured—she was hospitalized and required prolonged and painful treatment. In my opinion as a lawyer, the council will certainly be sued by the victim and ordered to pay compensation for the injury using public funds. Why?? Isn’t the injury and the money a shame?? Why can’t the work be completed on time while maintaining public safety or ensuring safe working conditions at the construction site?

And what’s most infuriating—it was only after the injury that the council head decided the sidewalk on HaTapuach Street needed replacing, and he submitted a request for budget approval in the morning of the meeting (not 10 days before the meeting) for 155,000 NIS to build a sidewalk on one side of the road. Why wasn’t this done earlier?? Why didn’t they listen to the residents, and only remembered to request a budget for the sidewalk after that girl was seriously injured and the council is expected to pay compensation.

Attached is a letter the residents wrote this week to the council chair, which was also forwarded to the council members.

I’m reminding you of what I wrote in last week’s newsletter: Since August 18, 2025, I have repeatedly contacted the council chair and the treasurer to obtain the documents related to this project. For two months now, they have not responded to me and are withholding documents from me and the public that could shed light on the saga and suffering you, the residents, are going through. I also contacted the Ministry of the Interior, which, unfortunately, is doing nothing.

At this week’s meeting, when I reiterated that I haven’t received these documents for two months, the council head actually dared to attack me, claiming they hadn’t responded to my countless reminders because there was no basis for my request?? Since when does a council member’s right to inspect documents require substantive approval from the council head, who decides what to give and what not to give? According to the law, once I requested it, I must be allowed to review the documents within three days. If there’s nothing in them, then I’ve wasted my time and that’s on me. But clearly there is something in them—otherwise, why have they been evading me for two months and even lying?

When will the work be completed? With proper management, they should know when the roads—which are currently dirt roads—will be paved and when the sidewalk on HaTapuach Street will be built. They didn’t report this to us at the meeting. Apparently, there’s nothing to report. It’s important to renovate and rehabilitate infrastructure, but the resident must be at the center—they need to receive all the information in advance, and every effort must be made to minimize the impact on residents. And information must not be withheld from council members and the public. I’ll keep following this.