Nir Barkat, 50, the successful high-tech entrepreneur and venture
capitalist, was elected mayor of Jerusalem in November 2008, pledging
to improve life in the city through growth and efficient management.
The controversial Jerusalem-born Barkat’s efforts have brought forth
both optimism and anger. Last November, Barkat, who jogs regularly from
his home in Beit Hakerem—where he lives with his wife and two
daughters—to his office, ran the New York City Marathon to promote
Jerusalem as a top travel destination.
Q.
Each year for the past decade, 5,000 to 7,000 people have moved out of
Jerusalem, many for lack of affordable housing; you are looking into
affordable housing solutions. What is your goal for the city?
A. Our goal is to develop Jerusalem as an attractive destination site
for tourists throughout the world, for young people to come and live
here, for others to stay in the city, for investors to invest, for
entrepreneurs to open new businesses. That is the vision that will
enable Jerusalem to get out of its poverty, to stop the negative
migration of the middle and high socioeconomic groups.
Q.
Last summer there were a great many concerts and outdoor events as well
as new bars and restaurants—there were even free shuttles to events.
How does this fit in with your mission?
A. We want to
increase tourism to 10 million a year from the current 2 million a
year, [which] can mean more than 100,000 new jobs. It’s a 10-year goal.
And in parallel we have got to…dramatically spur demand...by expanding
culture. We have shown…there is huge potential for investments. As an
example, more people visited the Old City of Jerusalem [during the]
summer’s Light Festival than during any other time since 1967; these
events were bigger and better than ever before, raising international
attention.
[For the summer of 2010] we are going to start looking at the
international market. We are also working on infrastructure, public
transportation, and that is now in progress. Last but not least, we are
working on developing the hotel industry, which has to dramatically
grow, and bring a number of franchises to the city so we can deal with
increased numbers of visitors.
Then, of course, we have to market Jerusalem in a different way; the
world doesn’t want to hear about the problems and the conflicts.
Q.
How do you champion Jerusalem as a destination that is both part of
ancient history and culture yet also a place of 21st-century technology
and development?
A. I have dramatically increased key
budgets including the culture budget [from $2.7 million] to $5.4
million, and we hope it will be increased even further in 2010. We are
opening up the city for many events, parties and festivals, integrating
them all with the power of our brand. And, indeed, my vision is to open
up more infrastructure, the light rail, fast-tracking buildings like
the Jerusalem arena and major hotels, more physical locations that can
be used for culture and tourism.
Q.
You inherited a sweeping plan to bring a new light-rail system to the
city. But wasn’t the project behind schedule and the downtown area a
construction mess?
A. I have worked hard to expedite the
process since taking office and have instituted a series of incentives
and penalties that did not exist before to speed up the work. We are in
the process of…finalizing the first operating line by the end of 2010
and, no less important, developing the next phase of public
transportation in the city. In the next few months, hopefully, we will
have a contract to propose to the city and share with the public. So
the next phase is going to be fundamentally different, both on the
lines themselves and the way the process is managed.
Q. Is your entrepreneurial know-how helping you win the war on municipal bureaucracy?
A. I strongly believe that the skills I have developed are
strategically important in managing our city. Our budget is about a
billion dollars a year. To effectively manage such sums you need the
proper skills.
Q.
After four years of Uri Lupolianski, the Orthodox mayor, Jerusalem now
has a secular one again. Subsequently, there have been
disturbances—including violent haredi demonstrations after
you decided to open a public parking lot near the Old City on Shabbat.
On the other hand, you put more money in the budget for haredi schools. How do you deal with such challenges?
A. The haredi
community is very cooperative in developing the city and we view them
as our partners. There is more of an understanding now that we have to
live and let live in the city. It’s true they don’t always agree with
all the steps we’ve made, but they...play their full part in the city’s
management. What happens in the larger picture must also happen within
the haredi community. The Eida Haredit, which represents only about six percent of the haredi
population in the city, will also eventually have to learn to disagree
and respect other people in its own community as decisions are made.
Q.
Of Jerusalem’s 800,000 residents, 270,000 are Palestinians. You are a
proponent of an undivided capital city and are green-lighting
demolitions of illegal Palestinian houses. Yet you are also planning to
add about 13,000 housing units for Arabs, which has not been done
before. Will we be seeing changes in policies over the next 12 months?
A. My mandate and my vision are to strengthen the unity of the city, to
improve quality of life for all sectors, honestly and openly. I believe
there is a strong majority in the country, thank God, that supports
strengthening the city of Jerusalem as a united city. I definitely will
do everything I can to fulfill that vision and to manage the city
better in this spirit. The vision is to develop the economy in ways
that will benefit all areas of the city, including the Eastern part. In
particular, with our planned dramatic increase in tourism, the economic
benefits will rain down on all sectors so that it will create jobs and
enhance opportunities for Arab residents just as it will for Jews and
Christians.
Q. How are you addressing Jerusalem’s internal strife?
A. We have managed to create a wall-to-wall coalition—30 out of 31 city
council members are all parties [to it]. It works in developing the
local economy, creating jobs, education reform and producing greater
transparency in the municipality. Not everyone is happy with some of
the decisions, but...long term, I believe people will understand that
to create change decisions must be made.
Q.
Can you describe the impact the unprecedented global recession has had
on Jerusalem in terms of growth, business development and the overall
local economy?
A. The city was probably hurt less than
others. Even the high-tech sector in Jerusalem was less affected. The
reality is that…there is positive momentum. More and more investors and
others are looking to Jerusalem. You can see it by the fact that the
first Gap [store] just opened here [in Jerusalem’s new mall in the
Alrov complex].
Q.
Betar Jerusalem (soccer) and Hapoel Jerusalem (basketball) were
recently saved from near bankruptcy by private-sector support. How did
this happen and what is the broader message?
A. I think
that sports is an exceptional way to represent the city and is an
experience that Jerusalemites can engage with very proudly. It’s also
an educational opportunity…for the young population. The fact that it
is attractive for people like world-class businessman [Brazilian-born
philanthropist] Guma Aguiar to invest in these two teams is very
important. There are lots of philanthropists in the city in different
sectors—culture, sports, the Hebrew University. It’s my duty to explain
to different philanthropists how they are investing in the city….
Because we are practically the poorest city in the country, this is
very strong, strategic help for the city. H
