Rehavia 4.18

Rehavia is an upscale Jerusalem neighborhood located between the city center and Talbiya.HistoryRehavia was established on a large plot of land purchased in 1921 from the Greek Orthodox Church by the Palestine Land Development Company (PLDC) and the first house was completed in 1924. It was named after Moses’ grandson, “Rehavia”. The area was known at the time as Ginzaria, a native Jerusalem plant. The Jewish National Fund (JNF) bought the land and commissioned the German-Jewish architect Richard Kaufmann to design a garden neighborhood. The land was transferred back to the PLDC in exchange for lands in the Jezreel Valley, but the JNF retained some real-estate in the neighborhood. The Gymnasia Rehavia high school, Yeshurun Synagogue, and the Jewish Agency building were built on this land, overlooking the Old City. Rehavia was modeled after the garden cities of Europe, with an emphasis on the International Style popular at the time.The first phase, called Rehavia Aleph, was bordered by King George Street to the east, Ramban Street to the south, Ussishkin Street to the west, and Keren Kayemet Street to the north. To preserve the quiet character, the neighborhood association allowed commercial businesses only on the two main roads at the neighborhood's edges. The roads open to traffic were deliberately built narrow, to keep them less busy and thus quieter. The main, tree-lined boulevard which bisected the neighborhood was open to pedestrian traffic only. Later expansion was primarily to the south, in the direction of Gaza Street.