The site is a natural, undeveloped Kurkar (sandstone) hill, stretching over 40,000 sqm in the heart of Aseret, a community settlement on the coastal plain of south-central Israel.
This hill is part of a large, continuous strip of regional conservation areas, designated by the National Outline Plan as a landscape reserve and archaeological site. The hill rises above the surrounding area and allows for views over it.
Over the years, the natural character of the hill has been preserved and you can find exemplary mature trees, local flora, and a variety of animals typical to this area. Because of its central location within the village, the hill was used by the residents as a natural shortcut and as a site for seasonal outings by the children of the nearby kindergarten.
An initiative by the settlement council and the residents’ committee proposed to develop the hill as an expansion of the adjacent park. The initiative was met by opposition from a group of residents who were concerned that the development would harm the natural values of the hill.
ARA Landscape were appointed to the task and began an inclusive study of the site’s archaeological, ecological, and hydrological aspects, in collaboration with an ecologist and agronomist from the Israel Nature and Parks Authority and an archaeologist from the Antiquities Authority.
Great importance was given to the participation of the public in the planning process, in holding an open and fruitful dialogue and in responding to the residents’ vision for the site.
From the very beginning of the project, it was clear to the planning team that the place is special and that its “Genius Loci” and scenic values must be preserved. It was important to identify areas that could be developed with a minimum of interference, as well as areas that were deemed “untouchable”, while maintaining a reduced level of development throughout the rest of the hill.
The formulated concept divided the entire site into 3 main areas:
The top of the hill: the “reserved area”, intended for extensive development.
The slopes of the hill: the “buffer zone” designated for semi-intensive development,
and the Bottom of the hill: “the park”, an existing, intensive area of activity, to which the planning connects.
The rest of the hill was marked as “do not touch” areas.
During the initial conceptual stages of planning, the main issues that must be dealt with arose regulating the access to the hill, adding new uses such as seating and activity areas for the kindergarten children, integrating local vegetation and managing the runoff from the hill. The designed materials were chosen to suit the character of the place: use of kurkar stone, combed concrete monolithic paths and wood for the bridge, pergolas, and furniture.
The project presents a very simple plan in the “reserved area”: a continuous and accessible concrete main path, that climbs the hill and ends at a beautiful observation point that is a meeting place for youth and families.
The main trail also branches of into a small open space that is placed under a mature eucalyptus tree and was designed to host the activities of kindergarten children, including a seating area, picnic tables, wooden elements for activity and play on top of kurkar gravel, ample shade, and a water tap.
Since this is an archaeological site, it was not possible to carry out development work involving excavation, thus the foundation work for elements such as paths and the pergolas needed to based on top of the surface. The paths were all made using compacted substrates, and the low height difference between the path and the natural ground was used to incorporate passages for reptiles.
On the slopes of the hill in the “buffer zone” a channel was planned to manage the surface runoff and designed as a natural stream with big local rocks.
At the point where the channel crosses the walking path, a wooden bridge was designed, leading to a circular path with seating areas integrated around existing pine trees.
In planning the vegetation for the site, local species of trees and shrubs suitable for the kurkar type soil were carefully selected, with the aid and guidance of the ecologist and agronomist, so that the ecological balance on the hill would not be violated, as well as the local fill soil that was brought to the site.
The execution phase involved the close supervision of the ecologist, with the entire team being extremely careful not to harm the areas marked as “do not touch”.
The project ended about 8 months ago. After the winter you can see that the designed stream is functioning, and the vegetation is well established.
Nature demonstrates its abilities. Another significant achievement of our cautious intervention is the positive feedback we hear from the people who were initially opposed to the plan and the satisfaction of the rest of the community who are happy to take their children, families, and guests for a walk up the hill.
Photo Credit: Yoav Peled
Location: Harimon 8, Aseret, Israel
Design year: 2019 – 2021
Year Completed: 2023
