Jerusalem's Digging Problem: Who Pays for Progress?

Jerusalem is in the middle of a massive construction boom — light rail expansion, high-rise towers, entire neighborhoods being remade. But for the residents living through it, the city feels less like it's serving them and more like it's digging around them. With the highest municipal tax rates in Israel, residents get no signage, no alternative routes, no noise abatement, and no end dates. Elderly residents can't navigate, parents with strollers are trapped, and small businesses watch customers disappear while paying full arnona. This episode explores what the social contract of municipal taxation actually promises, and how cities like Philadelphia, Montreal, and Nelson, New Zealand have built formal mechanisms for compensating construction-disrupted businesses — and why Jerusalem hasn't. Episode #124072 — open it directly at myweirdprompts.com/124072