The Sderot Heritage Center A Community of Courage
American Friends of Sderot בס”ד
We are proud to present our plans for the establishment of the Sderot Heritage Center. The city of Sderot, from the time it was founded and even more so in recent years, has become an icon of Zionist pioneering, fortitude and courage. We are convinced that Sderot has a stirring and vital story to tell of great national significance and has carved out a unique niche in the pantheon of Israel’s miraculous stories of renewal and redemption. From the day it was founded the “Lapid” Association has made social involvement its motto, focusing on the strengthening of Sderot and stressing unity and co-existence within the various sectors of Israeli society. We have no doubt that the center will serve as a common ground for Sderot’s diverse communities with specific and comprehensive objectives:
Bringing together religious, traditional and secular Jews;
Deepening the connection and respect for new immigrants from the former Soviet Union and Ethiopia and for their legendary self-sacrifice in making aliyah to Israel;
Closing the generation gap by bolstering the pride of young people in their parents and grandparents, the founding generations of Sderot;
Uniting the Gaza Strip border communities - who have been bravely facing ongoing attack for a long time - with each other and with the soldiers of the Israel Defense Forces who protect them.
What binds us all together? It is the common narrative of the authentic devotion and straightforward Jewish self-sacrifice of the people of Israel to each other and to the land of Israel. This will be the central theme of ”The Sderot Heritage Center – A Community of Courage”. We have spent the last few months vigorously pursuing our dream of planning and implementing this program. A steering committee was established, headed by Mr. Mordechai “Suli” Eliav, Director- General of the Western Wall Heritage Foundation; Mr. Reuven Pinsky, Director of the Prime Minister’s Heritage sites development program and Sderot Mayor David Bouskila, who together with Sderot educators, residents and professionals, have had many brainstorming sessions, tirelessly working to develop the detailed plans that will turn our dreams into reality. The Lapid Association and its U.S. affiliate - American Friends of Sderot have an unparalleled record of achievement in Sderot. Our towering, beautiful institutions and tireless involvement in so many of Sdeort’s educational and social needs make us the natural choice to spearhead this amazing project which will have great significance and educational value for generations to come and will bolster the image of Sderot in the eyes of one and all. We are excited about the opportunity to share with you the special honor of becoming A Community partners in this special dream of community and courage. of Courage Respectfully yours, Rabbi David Fendel Yossi Baumol Dean, Lapid Association Institutions Director, American Friends of Sderot
Amutat Lapid-Afikei Daat PO Box 52 Sderot Tel. 08-6611360 Fax.08-6610814 Amuta No. 58-031484-7 [email protected] American Friends of Sderot 49 Dakota St. Passaic NJ 07055 718-673-4945 [email protected] www.sderot.org
2 3 Introduction Sderot – A Community of Courage
5 Introduction Sderot – A Community of Courage 8 Courage Personified – Miriam Peretz 10 Themes of Courage 12 Historical Overview Sderot, originally established as a Jewish refugee camp near the city, to commune with the quiet and natural courage of Sderot - Pioneers and Heroes – Dr. Aaron Cohen the Gaza strip over 60 years ago, has become one of the most the residents and to rediscover these same strengths within significant national symbols of Israel’s resurrection. Sderot’s themselves while facing the challenges of the future – both 14 Target Audiences & Goals brave determination in the face of continuous Palestinian personal and national. terror has revealed to the Israeli public and the entire world, Interpretive Exhibits and Creative Concept 16 a model of courage that has almost disappeared from the Sderot personifies many different expressions of valor 18 The Sderot Heritage Center Serving Sderot’s Residents & Visitors Israeli scene: including: Obstinate Jewish/Israeli self-sacrifice; The determination of the original residents of the Sderot 20 Architectual Spaces and Functions: Stubborn commitment to values and faith; Refugee camp who built a city in the wasteland; Schematic division of spaces and visitor flow Brotherly love and camaraderie in the face of great danger The fortitude of the Ethiopian immigrants who experienced and difficulty; extreme hardship and suffering on their way to the Land 23 Business Plan: Projected Operating Revenues Shouldering pioneering Zionism’s greatest challenges – of Israel; Business Plan: Projected Operating Expenses making the desert bloom, absorbing new immigrants and The heritage of the Caucasian Mountain Jews whose story 25 standing up to Israel’s enemies. played such a major role in the annals of Zionism, aliya, 28 Project Schedule & Timetables settlement and defense in the “Hashomer” movement; Already today, thousands of visitors come to Sderot each The daily courage of today’s residents of Sderot who with 30 Development Budget & Dedication Opportunities year without being members of organized groups or being their bodies and souls defend the borders of the Land of drawn to a specific tourist attraction. They come in order to Israel and with the courage of their hearts set the tone of tap into the special spirit which flows through the streets of our collective stamina as a nation. 4 5 Courage
WE DECLARE No other place is more suitable than Sderot as the home of a major tourist and heritage center dedicated to the theme of courage and community, an educational center which will teach the values of courage and heroism to residents and visitors alike, a place which will inspire us to live a life filled with meaning and valor.
W E B E L I E V E That this center will become a lodestone for tourists from Israel and abroad and will be a positive and important landmark on the map of tourism in the Western Negev.
WE KNOW That the Sderot Heritage Center will be a tremendous local resource and will serve as a source of pride and empowerment for the people of Sderot as a whole. “I brought six children into the world, four boys, all combat soldiers in the Israel Defense Forces - Uriel, Eliraz, Avichai and Elyasaf, they all served in the Golani Commando Unit. My two girls, Hadas and Bat-el were also connected to the Golani Unit.
I didn’t raise them to die. It’s not normal for a mother to bury two of her sons in the very same plot on Mount Herzl in Jerusalem. How can I face the same dilemma, time after time? Every time I have to stop and think once again, which son should I visit first? Should I go to my oldest son, or to the younger one who was just buried? Who will be the first to receive a hug from mom? No mother should have to make such choices.
My sons did not like war, they were not happy to be in battle, but when they were called to defend our people, they did not hesitate - they said “it’s our turn now, Mom”. They always stood in front, they were always leaders, because that was how you should be, that was what you should do.
As members of an already bereaved family, my sons were not obligated to become combat soldiers, however they saw serving in a combat unit as a great privilege and honor. After Uriel fell in battle, Eliraz’s commanding officer suggested he not do his army service in the same battalion. But Eliraz refused - he wanted to be a combat officer and lead other soldiers.
When I signed the waiver form allowing them to become combat soldiers, I signed with fear and trepidation, with tears in my eyes, but with joy in my heart. I prayed to G-d, lit candles, gave charity and cried – but still I was happy. I was happy because of the great privilege I had been afforded - to play such an important role in the rebuilding of our land and nation.
For so many Shabbatot, I was left at home alone while they were fighting side by side - in Lebanon, in Samaria and elsewhere. During every war or campaign, I hung a large sign on my door, “Home of only Happy Tidings”. When they came home, I would wash their uniforms and hang them outside on the clothesline so all the world would know: Once again, my boys have returned safely!
I would pull the thorns out of their hands and feet, bandage them and thank G-d for every thorn in their Courage Personified bodies. I knew that anyone who lives in this land must know how to accept every thorn and every pain with love. I did not have the privilege of being born in Israel, but I did have the privilege of returning to A special message from steering committee Jerusalem, which my parents could only dream about – back to our national heart and the soul, back to member Miriam Peretz, the source of justice and light. I had the privilege to see my nation rise up from the ashes and the dust to Widow and bereaved mother of First Lieutenant resume living a life of freedom and power. I had the privilege to see Uriel and Eliraz pray at the Western Uriel Peretz and Major Eliraz Peretz Wall. I saw my children marching in formation, proudly wearing the uniform of the Israel Defense Forces. May they rest in peace And then…I saw them both, each in turn, wrapped in their prayer shawl and the flag of Israel, carried to their final resting places. Nevertheless, at the same time, I could feel the stirring of the spirit of Israel returning and awakening in us all. Standing beside the coffins of my sons, I cast my eyes heavenward and cried out: “Am Yisrael Chai” – the nation of Israel lives on!
8 Themes of Courage
The Sderot Heritage Center
Will be a hands-on tourist experience as well as a place for the in-depth study and research of the role of courage in our lives; A place where the banner of heroism will be held aloft - both as the central motif of the story of Sderot as well as a universal/ Jewish/Israeli value which is the basis for our continued existence as a nation and a people.
We See Courage Everywhere… We Need Courage Everywhere… In settling the land, in defense, in aliyah and on every In standing up against evil, immorality and corruption; in frontline against every challenge that the Jewish nation clinging to values; in school, in the army and at work. has faced. The courage of individuals is what comprises Courage makes us better people and gives us the strength our common fortitude as a nation, a nation which fought to take action for a better world. Courage is the legacy of to be reborn against all odds, a nation which continues Judaism, of Zionism, of the people who live today in the to astonish the entire world with the inner powers it has Negev. It is part of our heritage which is being written day revealed. by day by the residents of Sderot in the annals of the State of Israel.
10 11 A Historical Overview of Sderot Pioneers and Heroes By Dr. Aaron Cohen, resident historian and steering committee member
From the day it was founded, the hundred Jewish refugees from Middle Eastern countries came as pioneers to this camp. The original intention of residents and leaders of the city of founding this camp was that the residents would work Sderot have had to deal with many as farmers in the surrounding kibbutzim. Soon enough, it became clear that there was not enough work in varied challenges. agriculture and instead they worked at projects that the residents initiated themselves, such as planting trees along the roads, preparing the infrastructure for the pipes which would bring water to the Negev and building the infrastructure for other settlements in the northern Negev. willing to live with all these hardships, set the foundation for or abandon the city; instead they coped together with the The immigrants in the camp faced many hardships - a the unique spirit which has characterized them and Sderot challenges, difficulties and dangers that faced them. These high rate of unemployment, an insufficient supply of throughout the years. Despite the many difficulties and residents took a desolate desert area and changed it into a food, water pipes bursting, not enough teachers for the challenges, the residents of Sderot focus on the love of their thriving big city of 26,000 people. school and a lack of religious services, doctors and nurses, fellow human beings, mutual help and support, love of Zion Sderot residents in the last few decades have also had to sanitary conditions, an ambulance and more. On top of and courage as the highest value. cope with increased danger coming from the direction all these difficulties, even back then there were security of Gaza. More than ten thousand missiles have fallen on problems, Arabs (then known as “fedayeen”) sneaking in After the original residents, new immigrants arrived from Sderot. Residents have been injured and killed. The biggest from Gaza, who laid down mines and stole property. North Africa, immigrating to Israel as part of the “From Boat damage, a damage not discerned by the naked eye, is the The residents of the camp, who saw living in the Holy to Village” campaign in the years 1954-56. Together with psychological condition of the residents who are in an Land as the beginning of the redemption and were the original residents of the camp, they founded the city of emotional state which is known as “post-traumatic stress”. Sderot. They too suffered from the same hardships and like Despite all the dangers, the residents of Sderot continue to the original residents, they lived in tiny, crowded temporary act with the sense of valor they are known for – they are not houses without any infrastructure, without religious leaving the city. Actually, the opposite is true. More people services, employment or educational frameworks for their want to move to Sderot and you can barely find a house to children. Together, the residents fought to get the most rent or buy in the city. In the early years of Sderot, which recently celebrated its basic services. For most of the residents, who were religious The strength and determination of the people of Sderot has 60th anniversary, it served as a “Maabarah” or refugee camp and traditional, the biggest struggle was to receive religious influenced others from outside of Sderot to come and live called “Gabot-Dorot”, founded on Passover eve, April, 1951. services, to open religious schools, to build a mikva (ritual in the city. Despite the continuing threats to their security, The camp was built on an empty hill, without any water, bath) and to establish a local cemetery. Although both the Sderot residents hold on to their homes and their city, plumbing, electricity or infrastructure to speak of. Two inner and outer struggles were difficult, the special spirit of continuing to live their everyday lives with courage and Sderot was always felt by the residents. They did not leave dignity.
12 13 Target Audiences & Goals
The Sderot Heritage Center will serve as a center and anchor for a wide variety of educational, cultural and community oriented activities in a series of ever widening circles. ק ה ל י י ע ד ו י ע ד י ם:
Tour Options And Itineraries The first and immediate target audience is comprised The third circle is internal tourism. From a geo-tourism of the residents of Sderot and the area. Local schoolchildren, perspective, Sderot is part of the region which includes Individuals and brief tourist stops – about an hour new army recruits and adults are the first important group Ashkelon, the Ashkelon coast and the Sha’ar Hanegev The Sderot Heritage Center will long, serving as a “teaser” for a more in-depth tour - suitable which the Center will appeal to, imbuing them with a regional council. The tourist attractions in the area will be meet a wide range of needs for VIPS as well. powerful message of heroism and optimism while stressing listed seperately. high ideals, culture and “esprit-de-corps” all geared to raise suiting varied populations with A deeper look at the themes and messages of the The fourth circle is foreign tourism - both Jewish and non- the spirits of local residents. Sderot Heritage Center on various levels according to Jewish. Many groups have been knocking on our doors for different objectives. the needs or requests of the visitor – visits to specific areas The second circle is Israeli society at large, with an emphasis years such as JNF, ZOA, AFSI, Emunah, Amit, Birthright, Taglit, of the museum and/or use of seminar rooms or classrooms. on schoolchildren, soldiers and visitors from around the Masa, Christian Zionist groups and others who identify with country, who will, for the first time, be able to combine a visit the challenges Sderot faces. The Sderot Heritage Center will As a meeting point or a place of departure - providing in the Western Negev with an inspiring in-depth encounter provide them with a sorely needed meeting place, where the necessary facilities at the start or end of a tour of Sderot with the spirit of fortitude which characterizes the Jewish they can enrich and expand their appreciation of Sderot’s and the Western Negev. people and Israel’s legacy. The Center will host a rich and heroic legacy. A warm and well- appointed venue for various events diverse array of programs which will include field trips and The fifth circle is comprised of diplomats and foreign – conferences, seminars, concerts, “town hall” meetings and seminars in Sderot and the surrounding area, providing journalists, who will come to us on an every day basis, in other types of gatherings as befits a multi-faceted regional the topical, informative and emotional focal point of these order to get the inside story on the bravery and fortitude cultural center, with a priority on encouraging and promoting programs. of Israel’s people. In addition, G-d forbid, during times of events relating to the deeper values the Center is built on. emergency and military stress the center will be used as a frontline control center for Israeli “hasbara” PR efforts. 14 15 Interpretive Exhibits And
Ground Floor Auditorium: Creative Concept The Source of Inspiration
The Sderot Heritage Center will serve as the focal point of a wide ranging encounter with the city of Sderot Guests will them proceed to the second stage of the Sderot Technology to be employed: Our guests will be surrounded - its legacy and legends, history and heroes, broader implications and impossible situations. Experience which will take place in the auditorium using by a huge, synchronized, projected presentation combining 360o, multi-layered screens. Our guests will be introduced seamless projections on three walls of the auditorium, The Center will confront its audience with the challenge of Sderot by first inviting them to contemplate and to the real people behind the “theoretical” dilemmas which complimented by transparent projections on and through grapple with the dilemmas of life on the frontline firsthand, then move and inspire them as they go on to they dealt with around the round tables. The moving film the glass elements at the front of the hall, employing experience the actual true stories of valor and finally enrich and deepen their understanding of the different will portray true moments of valor, weave a chain of real-life the existing windows. This way, certain elements of the aspects of the value of courage through stimulating educational activities. Towards this end, the center will heroes – one by one, each one in his own world and style – presentation (such as numbers or statistics) can be portrayed employ cutting-edge multi-media methods and tools as well as a conference and research center. who together will create an inspirational story. three-dimensionally – without the need for special glasses.
Ground Floor Lobby and Reception Area: Part I – The Dilemma The Sderot Experience will begin with our guests being I stay on? invited to join a “round table” discussion. The tables – These real, personal situations will challenge each visitor to interactive “smart tables” – will flood the people sitting make a personal decision, followed by a group decision - around them with moral dilemmas which deal with issues of which will lead to a serious discussion until the group can courage versus self interest. come to a joint decision. Should I set out on my danger-filled way to the Land of Technology to be employed: The tables will be based Israel – or should I stay in Ethiopia? Should I allow my son on an advanced technology known as “Multi-Touch” tables; to serve in a combat unit after having already lost another which allows for complex interactive multimedia activity by son in battle? Do I relocate from a town under attack or do a number of participants at any one time.
16 17 The Sderot Heritage Center Serving Sderot’s Residents & Visitors
Second and Third Floor: Event Hall, Info-Cafeteria, Resource Library & Classrooms The Cultural Center Serving Residents of Sderot and the Surrounding Area Education and Research The Sderot Heritage Center will be a center for dialogue on all topics relating to life in Sderot, with a particular focus on encouraging and applauding altruism, public service and selflessness. This will be The third part of the Sderot Experience will be a closer, more Interactive touch displays in the cafeteria and on the hallway carried out not only by experiencing our unique audiovisual displays, but also by providing a much needed in-depth look at the stories of the pioneering days of Sderot, and classroom walls will invite the visitors to learn more venue for seminars and conferences requiring auditoriums, classrooms, study halls, event spaces, audio- about Sderot’s human mosaic of ethnic backgrounds and about the different stories of valor. The digital display will visual and computer equipment, etc. The Sderot Heritage Center will initiate cooperative efforts with the school system, the IDF and a plethora of other organizations (some enumerated earlier) to organize and legacies, about development towns in general and about be coordinated with the museum exhibit and comprise host these seminars and conferences dealing with the different characteristics of valor throughout history Sderot in particular. physical and artistic elements reflecting the heroic spirit and and in the Jewish and Israeli world today. historical content of the Sderot Heritage Center. After the edifying and emotional experience visitors will experience on the first floor, they will be able to ascend to the upper floors, where they will can continue by taking part in a wide variety of pre-packaged educational programs. These activities will take place in the “smart classrooms”, planned to be educationally Regional Tourist Information Center synchronized with tours of Sderot and the area. The touch screens will offer visitors to The Sderot Heritage Center updated tourist information for the continuation and enrichment of their tour of the Western Negev. The Central Tourist Depot and Visitors Information Center The Center is adjacent to a large forest planted by the Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael (Jewish National Fund). We would like to develop the following elements in this part of the forest in cooperation with KKL:
• Picnic tables and shaded areas. • “Path of the Fallen” – a path to commemorate those who were killed in terrorist attacks in Sderot and the surrounding area. • Departure point for tours – including walking tours in Sderot, as well as vehicular tours towards the Nir Am and Nebi Mari region, possibly using “ATV’”s “dirt-bikes”, “segways”, etc.
Optional Tour Routes: • The ‘Kassam Trail” – a tour of places and sites where Kassam missiles have fallen and caused damage, houses which were reconstructed, points of mourning - ending with a visit to the memorial site in honor of the fallen. • Tastes and Scents of Sderot – an ethnographic tour which will include visiting “open houses” of Sderot residents Fourth Floor: Rooftop Observation Deck from different ethnic backgrounds - North Africa, the former Soviet Union, Ethiopia, Yemen, and others. In addition, a chance to taste or have a meal comprising dishes from the different ethnic styles. An observation deck, with a beautiful view, will be utilized for deck will also have an exhibit of Kassam missiles, which tell •Around Sderot – a tour on foot or bicycle through the neighborhoods of Sderot, learning about a development a view of Sderot and the surrounding area. The observation the story of Sderot in recent years. town and its natural surroundings. The tour should visit the following neighborhoods: Ben Gurion – Sderot’s first residents and immigrants from Caucasus and Bukhara, • Neot Eshkol – a lively, established neighborhood of one-family homes where some of Sderot’s original residents live, •Neot Hadekel – an immigrant neighborhood, •Neot Hameyasdim, Neot Hanasi, Neot Aviv – immigrants from the former Soviet Union 18 • Neot Rabin – the younger generation of Sderot. 19 Third floor
1 1 Study Hall, Classrooms Architectual Spaces and Functions 2 Research and content development Schematic organization for spaces and circulation 2 The Sderot Heritage Center will provoke an uplifting experience of ascent. From the ground floor where we lay the groundwork for the national values we are trying to impart, up to the higher levels where in-depth study and Planning and Circulation research take place in “smart classrooms” and study halls. As already mentioned, The Sderot Heritage Center will serve The architect’s3 plan provides for a hierarchy of alternative as both a comprehensive and flexible venue for a wide- tracks of circulation within the building, in accordance with range of activities in the center itself as well as the technical, the various types of programs. The deeper the experience, First floor informative and emotional focal point for a variety of tours the higher one will rise among the structure’s different levels. throughout the area. This solution allows for smooth circulation, preventing the A fundamental part of planning the building is the drafting of different groups from colliding with each other as they move varied tour scenarios for a visit to The Sderot Heritage Center through the building. and providing a solution for each one of them ranging from On every level, the planning of the various programs will just a visit to the interactive experience on the first floor as include providing for the proper combination of commercial 1 a “stand alone” tourist attraction for an hour or less, or as considerations with the aspects of the content provided. By 1 Entrance Via Lobby and The Hall Of Dilemmas the ”first course” of an in-depth full day or half day program charging for the provision of a variety of attractive services, 2 including catering. we will ensure fostering the Center’s long-term financial 2 Multi-Purpose1 Auditorium And Main Audio Visual Program stability and independence. 3 Exit, Shops 3 BASIC TOUR OPTION OUTLINES SCHEMATIC SKETCHES OF AUDIENCE Brief Tour CIRCULATION: Second floor Brief Tour 1 Sketch of a short and “to the point” visit to the center as part of a tour in the area. 1
1 Entrance Via Lobby and The Hall Of Dilemmas 1 Info-Cafeteria 2 2 Multi-Purpose Auditorium And Main Audio Visual Program 2 Multi-Purpose Event Space 2 2 3 Exit, Shops 3 3 Research and Content Development 3 20 21 Business Plan In Depth Tour Option Outlines
Specially tailored experience according to the Center’s various exhibits, displays and resources: This business plan was prepared taking into account revenues from tour guiding and providing educational activities in both Stage 1 – Begin with the intense ground floor experience and associated tour the Center itself as well as in Sderot and its environs. We provide herein the worksheets containing these calculations.
Stage 2a – Ascend to the second floor for lectures, seminars and interactive workshop programs Stage 2b – Ascend to the third floor for class study, studying with partners or individual research. A. PROJECTED OPERATING REVENUES Entry Fees: In Depth The entry fees are based on research we did into various Visitor’s Centers and other similar types of tourist attractions. In total, the Stage estimated income for the second year of operation is 1,470,000 NIS, or an average of approximately 26 NIS per guest (table #1). 1 1
PROJECTED DISTRIBUTION OF ENTRY FEE REVENUES (NIS) YEAR 2 OF OPERATION 1 Entrance Via Lobby and The Hall Of Dilemmas (TABLE #1): 2 Multi-Purpose Auditorium And Main Audio Visual Program 2 Audience Sector groups/families Individuals per Total admissions Payment per Total 3 Exit, Shops group head
3 Schoolchildren and 12000 240,000 soldiers 300 40 20
Senior Citizens 75 40 3000 28 84,000 In Depth In Depth Internal tour groups, , Stage 2a Stage 2b 200 40 8000 30 240 000 1 1 unions , Families 2500 5 12500 25 312 500
, Foreign Tourists 300 40 12000 35 420 000
, 2 Individuals 4000 35 140 000 3 Sderot & Gaza Border 24,000 2 Residents 400 5 2000 12
1,460,500 1 Info-Cafeteria 2 Multi-Purpose Event Space 1 Study Hall, Classrooms Total Income 53500 3 Research and Content Development 2 Research and content development
22 23 PROJECTED CAFETERIA REVENUES (NIS) YEAR 2 OF OPERATION B. PROJECTED OPERATING EXPENSES
(TABLE #2) As follows in Tables 3-5.
Audience Sector Total admissions Per Capita Cost of Labor & Net Profit Per Total Profit General Operating Expenses were calculated based on a percentage of the projected revenues and will Revenue Materials Capita be approximately 325,000 NIS. Schoolchildren and These expenses include electricity, water, marketing and advertising, and other general operating expenditures. soldiers 12000 6 3.6 2.4 28,800
Senior Citizens 3000 12 7.2 4.8 14,400 General Expenses (Table #3) Internal tour groups , 8000 14 8.4 5.6 44,800 unions Percentage Description Cost
Families 12500 17 10.2 6.8 85,000 Electricity, water 2% of the revenue 29,210 Foreign Tourists 12000 17 10.2 6.8 81,600 General 10% of the revenue 146,050 Individuals 4000 14 8.4 5.6 22,400 Marketing and advertising In absolute terms 150,000 Total 53500 277,000 Total - expenses 325,260
Projected cafeteria profits in the second year of operation were calculated based on study of other similar sites. From the projected revenues, direct expenses, such as materials and labor, were subtracted based on a value-added rate of 40%. Projected cafeteria net profit during the second year of operation is estimated at277 ,000 NIS. Cafeteria Expenses (Table #4)
Cost of Materials 40%
Cost of Work 20%
Total 60%
(These expenses were deducted from revenue in table # 2)
24 25 Projected Balance Sheet (NIS) - second year of operations (Table #6) Guiding Expenses The cost of guiding depends on the number of hours each guide will work, according to two main categories – guiding Entry Fee Revenues 1,460,000 groups and guiding families and will be calculated as part of the tour group package.
Cafeteria Revenues 277,000 Manpower & Administrative Expenses Total operating revenues , , Manpower expenses include a full-time director who will also be involved in marketing, a secretary and a custodian/ 1 737 500 maintenance man. The main portion of the manpower expenses are projected to be incurred by the instructors and lecturers. Manpower & Administrative expenses are estimated to be close to 970,000 NIS for the second year of operation General expenses 325,260
Manpower & Administrative expenses 970,000 Annual Projected Manpower & Administrative Expenses (NIS) (Table #5) Total operating expenses 1,295,260 Director / marketing 180,000 Operating Surplus 442,240 Pedagogical director 100,000 Depreciation and upkeep 250,000 Lectures and seminars 80,000 Net Annual Surplus 192,240 Secretary 50,000
Cleaning & Maintenance 100,000 Projected Operating Surplus - The projected results show an expected operating surplus of close to 450,000 NIS. Receptionist 60,000 In the second year of operations, after deducting the depreciation & upkeep of the building and equipment, the projected operating surplus should be close to 200,000 NIS. Total Expenses: Manpower & Administrative 970,000 NIS
This business plan was prepared in good faith and after consultation with various experts in the field. Nevertheless, the possibility of miscalculations or unforeseen developments affecting the area cannot be denied. This is just one more reason why the successful team of non-profits - the Lapid Association and the American Friends of Sderot - are the perfect combination to retain financial responsibility for the Center’s ongoing fiscal health.
26 27 Project Schedule & Timetables
Construction: Content & Multi-Media Production, Installation of Infrastructure & Systems:
The detailed architect’s plans are finished, subject to slight changes which may be suggested by our content professionals Content Production including: Designing a graphic line, photography days, offline, post production, online, narration, The structure’s skeleton is presently in an advanced by Dec. 30, 2011 interactive sound programming, graphics and printing stage of completion, with the top floor to be finished:
Outer stone work, plastering, floor tiles, etc. by Feb. 30, 2012 Installation of Infrastructure and Systems Including: Purchase of equipment, construction of designing décor (including mock-ups) and on-site by March 13, 2003 Completion of building by June 30, 2 0 1 2 installation
Infrastructure, landscaping, paths and access driveways by Jan. 30, 2013
Content: Pilot Testing and Dry Run of Staff & Systems
Ongoing Content Development Staff Training The steering committee and think tank have been working on content develop ment since September 2011 Technical Support of operating and run-up of all systems An external company has been chosen for development of the general and specific concepts. The dry run period should end by April 30, 2013 The resulting proposed theme has been assessed and approved by the steering committee and is included in this proposal Educational teams have been set up for the purpose of finalizing the content for the various spaces within the building.
Next Stages of Content Development Detailed Content Proposal – will be devised with the content development company by January. 30, 2011 PROJECTED OPENING DAY: May 1, 2013
General Planning – within three months from the time the detailed content proposal by April 30, 2012 is authorized; a general plan for every area in the building will be submitted, including content, décor, technology, design and multi-media
Detailed Planning – Detailed planning of the different systems including décor, by July 30, 2012 lighting, technology, multi-media sketches, etc.
28 29 Projected Budget: Development The Sderot Heritage Center is a four-story building with an area close to 16,000 square feet. The following is a table displaying the required PARTNERS IN COURAGE! investment, broken down by floor in US dollars: We have been working intensely to obtain partial government funding for this project. We are hopeful that we will be able to receive up to $2 Million from various Israeli government sources, however, we will need to raise the additional $3,000,000 from private donors and foundations. The following is the suggested dedications schedule for private donors:
Cost of content Sderot Heritage Center Dedication Opportunities Area Construction development, Total cost Floor Main Purpose (square cost per A-V, interior per sq. foot Total Cost feet) square foot design per sq. foot Donation in Dollars Dedication Opportunity Location
Lobby, A-V, 1,000,000 Main Building dedication 1st floor ground Auditorium 4700 $168 $310 $478 $2,250,000 Shops 720,000 Main Auditorium and Audio Visual Program 1st floor Cafeteria, main 2nd multi-purpose 4400 $168 $172 $340 $1,500,000 600,000 Lobby – Hall of Dilemmas 1st floor hall, research
500,000 Main Event Hall 2nd floor Classrooms, 3rd research 3200 $168 $169 $337 $1,070,000 360,000 Info – Cafeteria 2nd floor
roof Observatory 3200 $28 $28 $56 $180,000 360,000 Research/Resource center 3rd floor
180,000 Rooftop Observatory roof Total 15,500 $5,000,000 36,000-100,000 Research/Resource center Classrooms & Offices floors 2&3
30 31