Moshav Shorashim New Settlement – Master Plan, Clusters of Houses and Public Buildings

Master Plan for a new settlement for Jewish immigrants with the social structure of a community, where land and work profits are owned collectively, but still each family has its own house. Unlike other master plans, it describes the life, the dynamic relationship between people and the environment, growth over time and is a prescription for a process. The Moshav is located on a hillside, overlooking an extensive olive grove. Its center is formed by a spine of public buildings running perpendicular to the slope. It includes twenty houses, three workshops, a synagogue, a community hall, a hostel to accommodate new arriving families, a kindergarten, a store and a cafe, all run by the families; their total floor area is 40,000 square feet. The twenty houses are grouped in five clusters, laid out in such a way as to enhance the physical beauty of the site, with its trees, rock formations, view terraces. The clusters are connected with the central spine through meandering paths, accessible only to pedestrians. The entire settlement, as well as each house had been laid out and designed on site, in conjunction with the family.