From a transit camp to a city of towers: Bat Yam celebrates 100 - and prices already remind of Tel Aviv

Bat Yam celebrates 100 years in the midst of a transformation: towers, light rail, and a 40%-50% rise in apartment prices. Longtime residents and new businesses testify to the change, and on the political front, the gap between blocs has narrowed.

Bat Yam is celebrating 100 years since its founding amid a transformation: 25- to 40-story towers are changing the skyline, apartment prices have jumped about 40% to 50% in recent years, and the light rail is improving accessibility. Sarah, owner of an ice cream parlor operating in the city since 1978, says that in the past there was "sand and sand" and one bus stop, and now customers bring the next generation. Nehama, a real estate agent, estimates that the price of a four-room apartment that stood at about 2.5 million shekels in 2020 is approaching four million. The new restaurant "Cala Vera" on the coastline attracts revelers from Tel Aviv. On the political front, a change has also been recorded: the gap between blocs narrowed from an advantage of nearly 20% for the Netanyahu bloc in 2022 to single-digit percentages in the last elections, and Mayor Zvika Brot formed a cross-camp coalition including Likud, Meretz, the Haredi parties, and Yisrael Beiteinu.