Just outside the Jaffa Gate entrance to the Old City located in what is destined to be the new “heart of Jerusalem”, is the "Mamilla Alrov Quarter” project, designed by renowned architect Moshe Safdie. When completed in mid 2008, the “Mamilla Alrov Quarter” will boast a luxury hotel and 50 super-luxurious residential dwellings in addition to the shopping avenue.
According to Safdie, who first drew up plans for this area nearly 40 years ago, the “Mamilla Alrov Quarter” promenade is a place where everyone, tourists and residents of Jerusalem alike, can enjoy themselves and the Quarter is destined to breathe new commercial life into the downtown area. “This new urban space,” Safdie adds, “is destined to change the gravity of tourism back to the heart of Jerusalem, where it rightfully belongs.”
“It’s a bridge between the old and the new parts of Jerusalem, a bridge between the religions,” says Shmuel Ben-Moshe, CEO of the Alrov Real Estate Company Ltd. “It is a connection between the past and the future, the old and the new; it signifies the hope for the opening of a window of opportunity for peace, economic prosperity and development.”
History & Preservation
Over the past century the district has seen its share of history. Stern House, one of five historic buildings that have been preserved as part of the Quarter, either in their entirety or via elements that have been incorporated into new buildings, emphasizes the historical value of the site and pays homage to the authenticity of Jerusalem. Some historical buildings have been left in place (such as the Clark House, which was constructed by American evangelicals in the late 19th century), or (as in the case of Stern House) has been dismantled and every stone marked reassembled elsewhere as part of the development – all of this under the guidance of the Israel Antiquities Authority.
Shopping, Dining & Fun
Take a seat in a café and bask leisurely in the exciting views of the Tower of David and the Old City Walls. Glory in the Jerusalem sunset in the same way locals and visitors to the city did some 2000 years ago. When completed, the “Mamilla Alrov Quarter” shopping complex will house 140 businesses on two sides of a pedestrian mall 800 meters in lengths. Some sections are two-storeys high, with the upper level rented out to commercial enterprises; others house shops and galleries only on a single level. In both cases, a series of footbridges connects one side to the other. Within this setting, hotel guests, tourists and Jerusalemites alike will have the opportunity to dine and shop at trendy kosher bistros, chic fashion outlets, art galleries and bookstores. Several restaurants and clothing stores located along the first stage of the promenade, opened for business in May 2007.
What’s in a Name?
The name Mamilla means “that which comes from God.” However, some people claim that the word refers to St. Mamilla, who erected a church in the area long ago. Both the saint and the church are referred to in 870 AD by Bernard the Wise, a French Catholic monk who documented the itinerary of his pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
The neighborhood’s Mameluke Muslim cemetery was also named Mamilla, and the Mamilla Pool, one of the three water cisterns built by King Herod during Second Temple times, was located adjacent to its center.