Ashkelon

Ashkelon
City
City of Ashkelon
The city's beachfront district, with the Thalassan Ocean (foreground).
Nickname:  "The Beach City"
Country	Yisrael
District	Western
Founded	c. 2000 BCE
Rebuilt and continuously inhabited	c. 578 CE
Founded by	Mordecai ben Bar-Lev
Government
• Type	Strong Mayor-Council Form
• Body	City Council
• Mayor	Yossi Jacobi (Constitutional Liberal)
• City Council President	Uzriel Mizrahi (Constitutional Liberal)
• Minority Leader	Noami Normstein (Conservative)
Population  (2020)
• Total	398,671
Demonym(s)	Ashkeloner Ashkelonian
Ethnic groups
Time zone	UTC-3 (WST)

The City of Ashkelon, commonly referred to as Ashkelon, is a large metropolitan city in western Yisrael, on the western coast bordering the Thalassan Ocean. It is the third largest city in the country by population (nearly 400,000), edging out Modiin by thirty-thousand citizens.

In antiquity, it was a major port and walled city, used by the Kenanim, the Plistim, and then the Yisraelim. Towards the end of Latin rule of Yehuda, the ancient city was destroyed and abandoned.

A couple centuries later, it was refounded as a trading port in the early 6th-century by Yisraeli Jews under Latin sponsorship. It has transformed over the millennium and a half into a prosperous large-sized city and a center for maritime and industrial economic activities, as well as a major West Scipian transportation hub. It is notable as one of only a handful of Yisraeli cities with indoor smoking bans.

The city remains a frequent foreign tourist attraction, drawing crowds of over 2 million every year. It is a "global city" and has the second-largest economy for a metropolitan area in North Scipia. The city has the 35th highest cost of living in the world. A "party capital" in Scipia, it has a lively nightlife and 24-hour culture.

It is the headquarters of the Roth Group, the largest Yisraeli conglomerate. The Royal Yisraeli Political Academy system has one of its four campuses located inside the city.

Geography

Climate

Ashkelon has a Periclean hot-summer climate, with nearly year-round sunlight. Wind currents from the southeastern North Thalassan Ocean bring cold air up from eastern Oxidentale, moderating the humidity slightly and limiting rainfall to the winter months, usually between October and April.

The city averages temperatures in the mid-60s °F during the winter, and upper 70s and low 80s °F in the summer months. The above-average hot temperatures often bring thermal discomfort to its residents and visitors; freezing temperatures and snowfall are rare, even during the peak of the winter. The winter is characterized by steady, intense rainfall, usually between January and March, while the summer typically experiences numerous heat waves from warm fronts coming up along the West Scipian coast from storms originating from currents east of Sante Reze.

Cityscape

Architecture

Ashkelon is known for its eclectic architectural styles from throughout its history. The oldest early medievel era housing was built using neo-Latinic style, often mortar with sandstone and small walled gardens and entrance-ways. In the early 18th century under the early Kingdom, new Belisarian styles from Arthurista were highly influential, bringing Georgian architecture into Yisrael for the first time.

The late 19th and early 20th centuries were characterized by a number of foreign and domestic architects, often from the modernist and Art Deco schools. During the rebuilding after the widespread destruction in the Year of Blood and the West Scipian Wars, classicist, Art Nouveau, and post-modernist designs began to proliferate.

Neighborhoods

The city has numerous neighborhoods defined by distinct demographic populations and geographic iconography.

The Beach and Marina Districts cover much of the beachfront properties along the coastline, populated by hotels, office buildings, private villas, yacht clubs and marinas and both public and private beaches. It is the most expensive area of the city, with rents and mortgages putting most residents out of reach. Consequently, it is a very wealthy and exclusive zone of private residents. It is overwhelmingly Chiloni/Masorti, with several famous private and gated communities located on the beachfront and further inland in the district, such as "Aleph Bet Gimel Apartments," the "West Dock Village," and "Goldburg Luxury Estates."

Demographics

The city population is highly self-segregated, mirroring other Yisraeli cities. A self-described "immigrant" city, Ashkelon has a large foreign-born and foreign expatriate population, as well as native-born city dwellers with strong ethnic, religious, and cultural immigrant customs and subcultures.

Yisraeli Jews make up almost 88% of the population, followed by 10% being Yisraeli Christians. The remainder are foreign-born or foreign residents.

The city has over 500 shuls and over 75 churches. The largest foreign group in the metropolitan area are Sydalenes, followed by Arthuristans and Ottonians. Many work in business, others in fashion and the arts.

Media

The local newspaper of record is the Ashkelon Coastal Intelligencer. The city has over a two dozen radio stations.

Network television dominates both cable and satellite television in the city, with a 2019 survey by the Ashkelonian Daily News finding that network TV commands 61% of the market compared to cable TV's 25% and satellite TV's 14%.

Government and politics

Municipal

Form

Ashkelon has a Strong Mayor-Council form of government. The current mayor is Yossi Jacobi (NLP). After the 2020 elections, Jacobi remained one of the highest-elected officeholders from the CLP. However, upon the party's dissolution in April 2021, Jacobi joined the Nat-Libs. As with the Con-Libs post-2020, he remains one of the most prominent left-wing politicians in the country.

The City Council has 15 seats, all elected "at-large." After the 2020 municipal elections, the then-current City Council President is Uzriel Mizrahi (CLP) commanded a 8-7 coalition with the Alliance of Greens, Seculars, and Workers. The then-Minority Leader Naomi Normstein (Conservative) formed a coalition opposition with the Alternative for Yisrael. However, with the fall of the Con-Libs in April 2021, the City Council Con-Libs splintered, with most joining the Nat-Libs and the Alliance member joining the Party of the Left. However, two ex-Con-Libs joined the AfY, and a spring coalition emerged of an AfY-RCP-Independent majority on City Council, making CLP-turned-AFY Councilman Zalman Yager the new City Council President as of May 6, 2021.

Infrastructure

The city has few high-ways and is mostly local roads. The city traffic has a reputation for being slow and congested. Yisrael Weekly rated Ashkelon as the second-worst traffic city in the country in 2017 and 2019.

A private bus system with public subsidies operates in the city center, with a light rail company operating a outer-city passenger and commuter train line called the "Outer Loop."

The West Scipian Railway has a terminus starting in the city's Downtown District, connecting north to Phillipopolis, Sydalon.

List of prominent births and residents

• Noah Feldman (b. 1959) - former President of Yisrael and former Governor of the Western District.
• Yaakov Luzzatto (b. 1957) - prominent Knesset politician.
• David Roth (b. 1988) - prominent Conservative politician; currently Minister of Justice under President Yitzchok Katz and formerly Mayor of Yerushalayim.

See also

• Cities in Yisrael
• Yerushalayim