The Desert Gate by TSTR Landscape Architecture

A Threshold Between Town and Desert
The Desert Gate project in Mizpe Ramon reimagines the town’s western edge as a dynamic threshold between the urban fabric and the arid expanse beyond. Stretching from the town’s main entrance along Highway 40 through the central Ben Gurion Boulevard, the project culminates in a gateway to the open Negev desert—forming a connective urban spine that integrates public life with the surrounding landscape.
As a contemporary interpretation of desert urbanism, the project revitalizes the aging modernist structure of Mizpe Ramon. It links key civic and commercial nodes—both existing and newly developed—while reinforcing the town’s orientation toward the vast desert to the west and toward emerging tourism-agriculture initiatives.

Urban Spine with a Desert Soul
At the heart of the intervention lies the transformation of Ben Gurion Boulevard into an active, climate-responsive public corridor. Enhanced with bicycle paths and shaded pedestrian zones, the boulevard now connects neighborhoods to commercial and civic spaces, creating a lively axis that supports mobility, comfort, and social interaction. New walkways, gathering spaces, sport areas and playgrounds activate the town from within. Local stones are incorporated into the pavement and urban furniture, and native vegetation blend the urban project into its surrounding environment. Crucially, this redesign reframes the desert not as a limit, but as a natural extension of urban life—welcoming the arid landscape into the rhythm of the town.
Further along the boulevard, the project reaches into a mature grove that marks a key transition zone: opening westward to the desert panorama and linking eastward to the upper neighborhoods. A system of stairways, accessible trails, and sloped ramps seamlessly navigates the site’s complex topography, improving connectivity and accessibility across elevation changes.
Strategically placed canopy structures provide shade and act as focal points, offering framed views of the desert and creating welcoming spaces for rest, gathering, and reflection. Along the edge where the built environment meets the open terrain, new promenades articulate a soft yet intentional boundary—celebrating the relationship between town and wilderness.

Reclaiming and Activating the Wadi
At the western end of the boulevard—the symbolic “desert gate”—the project reclaims a neglected area long used for waste dumping into the adjacent wadi (dry riverbed). Through ecological restoration and sensitive design, the site has been transformed into a multifunctional landscape supporting both community life and ecotourism.
Shaded plazas and desert trails invite residents and visitors to engage with the landscape through recreation, learning, and exploration. At the elevated activity node, visitors are welcomed by a shaded overlook facing Mount Camel, offering moments of pause and panoramic desert views, where swings invite kids to experience the desert from new perspectives. Below, in the existing eucalyptus and pine grove, shaded paths and gathering areas support trailheads and playful educational signage, highlighting the unique flora, fauna, and geology of the Negev desert.

A Strategic Gateway
The Desert Gate is more than a public space—it is a spatial strategy that redefines the relationship between Mizpe Ramon and its surroundings. By embedding social, ecological, and educational functions into a desert-oriented landscape, the project creates a resilient and meaningful interface between community and terrain, urban presence and natural continuity.

Project Details:
Winner of the Outstanding Planning Authority Award for 2020, the Israeli Planners Association
Team: Vardit Tsurnamal, Beni Barzellai, Shiri Shabtai, Shiri Yarkoni
Client: The Dead Sea Drainage Authority, Mizpe Ramon Municipality
Location: 30°36’32.3″N 34°47’43.8″E
Area: 25 acres
Signage: Ofer Cotler, Sharon Ambar
Photos: Shai Elihiani, Nir Kafri
Completed in 2022

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