ERUV WILL ‘TRANSFORM’ LEEDS
V THE FIRST Leeds eruv will be “transformational”, a communal leader has claimed. Jonathan Straight, one of the four directors of Leeds Eruv Limited, was speaking after plans for the religious boundary were submitted to the local authority.
Mr Straight said the move was a riposte to those who considered the Yorkshire community a “write-off” after a period of decline.
“We have always had everything we need, except an eruv,” Mr Straight told the JC. “It is very important for our future. We are at a point where the community has been declining and now we’re at a crossroads.”
The planning application from Leeds Eruv Limited — based at Leeds Jewish Representative Council — outlines plans to erect 52 poles around Alwoodley, Moortown, Meanwood, Lidgett Park and Chapel Allerton.
Each pole would be connected by overhead wires designating the eruv area, which allows observant Jews to carry or push items that would otherwise be prohibited on Shabbat.
A statement from the group — whose other directors are Lisa Baker, Robert Dewar and Hilton Lorie — was issued to allay fears that an eruv would “lead to the concentration of a particular minority group and an imbalance in the existing social, ethnic and religious character of the area concerned”.
They pointed out that the eruvs established in London had “no effect whatever in altering the composition
Jonathan Straight is one of the project leaders
of the local population or the pattern of local activities in any way”, beyond benefiting those whose needs they addressed.
Mr Straight, who has worked on the eruv project for more than a decade, predicted that the planning process with Leeds City Council would be
“the easy part”, having painstakingly mapped out eruv boundaries with rabbinic consultants.
He also told the JC that there had been no negative feedback from nonJewish residents, with whom the Jewish community enjoyed “very good relations”.
The application was accompanied by 36 statements of support from Leeds Jews.
Among them was Michael Fielding from Alwoodley, who said: “This is much overdue and will enable those with young children or disabilities, who have previously been prevented from attending communal activities on Shabbat, to once again be a part of the community.”
Mendel Sufrin from Moor Allerton felt an eruv “would also encourage people to move to Leeds who otherwise would have had reservations about moving here due to not being able to carry on the Sabbath. The eruv would hardly be noticeable by the public but would mean so much to us.” The project is expected to cost around £100,000. Initial outlay has been met by Mr Straight and the other directors, partly through the Straight Charitable Trust, of which Mr Straight and his wife are trustees. Once planning consent is granted, the community will be approached for funding.