Kiryat Bialik

In 1924, Ephraim and Sabina Katz, who immigrated from Romania, were the first Jews to settle in the Zevulun Valley in Haifa Bay. Their farm was destroyed in the 1929 Palestine riots. The one house that survived the riots, Beit Katz, was bequeathed to Kiryat Bialik in 1959 and designated for public use.[2]

The town of Kiryat Bialik was established in July 1934 by a group of German Jewish immigrants who received a plot of land from the Jewish National Fund. The residents were mainly free professionals, doctors, engineers and lawyers who lived in private homes with gardens. During World War II, Kiryat Bialik was bombed due to its proximity to the oil refineries in Haifa. In 1950, it was declared a local council, attaining city status in 1976.[3]

Kiryat Bialik in 1944

According to CBS, the ethnic makeup of Kiryat Bialik in 2008 was all Jewish, without a significant Arab population. There were 17,900 males and 19,200 females. In 2003 25.8% of the population was 19 years of age or younger, 15.8% between 20 and 29, 17.4% between 30 and 44, 21.5 from 45 to 59, 3.8% from 60 to 64, and 15.6% 65 years of age or older. The population growth rate in 2005 was -0.3%.The city is ranked medium-high on the socio-economic scale (7 out of 10)[5] Many Jewish immigrants have settled in Kiryat Bialik, from Ethiopia, the former Soviet Union and Argentina.

According to CBS figures for 2002, there were 17,514 salaried workers and 912 self-employed in Kiryat Bialik. The mean monthly wage for a salaried worker was 6,119 NIS; salaried males had a mean monthly wage of 7,851 NIS versus 4,491 NIS for females The mean income for the self-employed was 5,996 NIS. 557 people received unemployment benefits and 2,701 people received a guaranteed minimum income.

The town was known for the Ata textile factory, established in 1934 by Erich Moller.[6]

The Ata plant, which opened in 1934, became an icon of the Israeli textile industry. It suffered from financial problems in the 1960s and closed down in 1985.[7]

According to CBS, there are 9 schools and 6,291 students in the city: 6 elementary schools with 2,540 students, and 3 secondary education schools (2 junior high and 1 high school, under the same administration) with 3,751 students. 63.4% of 12th grade students were entitled to a Bagrut (matriculation) certificate in 2002.

During the Second Lebanon War in 2006, the city suffered hits from 15 Katyushas and other types of rockets sent by Hezbollah.[8]

• Ronen Bergman (born 1972), investigative journalist and author
• Shani Bloch (born 1979), Olympic racing cyclist
• Anastasia Gorbenko (born 2003), swimmer
• Aviv Kochavi (born 1964), Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff.[9]
• Amnon Pazy (1936–2006), mathematician; President of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem
• Revital Sharon (born 1970), Olympic artistic gymnast
• Moti Taka (born 1997), singer
• Zehava Vardi, Miss Israel 1977.
• Yochanan Vollach (born 1945), association football player.

Kiryat Bialik is twinned with:[10]