Court: Shabbos generators in Bnei Brak - Illegal

The Tel Aviv District Court, sitting as the administrative court, canceled yesterday (Tuesday) the permit to operate generators in the area known as Boys Hill in the central city of Bnei Brak.

The beginning of the legal battle is a petition filed by residents living in the streets Shemaya and Halochamim who claimed that they operate noisy generators and emit smoke and soot in chimneys. Local residents claim that the station operates an open public area, which is not designed in terms of planning for this purpose.

About five years ago, the residents filed a petition against the generators, and the court ordered the municipality to deal with hazards, but these were not addressed. Recently, Bnei Brak Municipality decided to build a water reservoir which operates nearby pumps.

For this purpose, the generators were moved from their place, but instead of keeping them away from the residents, the station approached them. The new project has made that in addition to generators, are expected to be in the region also power rooms for pumps placed within concrete structures.

Residents decided that they will fight the placing of generators as necessary, despite the fact that many residents use their own generators on Shabbos.

In the decision issued yesterday, the court ruled that the permits granted to operate the generators by the city are canceled - because they were rendered without jurisdiction, and because the programs do not permit their existence. On the reservoir, the court rejected the neighbors request yesterday which petitioned to cancel its construction.

Vice President of the Court, Judge Sarah Gadot, accepted defense arguments that the complaining neighbors were supposed to act immediately to cancel the permit water reservoir, and waiting for nine months detracts from them the right to argue against it.

It is estimated that the city will use the opportunity to appeal within 45 days. At the same time, the residents plan to appeal the ruling, which does not cancel the permit to place the water reservoir near where they live.

'בחדרי' גם ברשתות החברתיות - הצטרפו!