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The Shul of Bal Harbour to Double Its Size

The Shul of Bal Harbour, Florida, one of the largest Chabad centers in the world, will be doubling its size in a $20 million expansion, with the groundbreaking ceremony set to take place Thursday. The center’s new wing will feature state-of-the-art facilities for education, prayer and social gatherings.

From the Miami Herald:

The Jewish communities of Surfside, Bal Harbour and the surrounding areas will soon have more educational opportunities for their children, places for prayer and festive social gatherings.

The Shul of Bal Harbour, the diverse and thriving Orthodox synagogue/social center at 9540 Collins Ave., will soon double its size with a major expansion of its building facilities. The shul will hold a groundbreaking ceremony dinner on the evening of Feb. 4 to celebrate the official beginning of the new construction.

The shul, which already occupies a 34,000-square-foot structure, will expand north on adjacent land the Chabad-Lubavitch-inspired synagogue has owned since the early 1990s. This land will eventually include approximately 40,000 square feet of new buildings not including on-site parking facilities. “We’ve grown to the point where we just do not have enough space for our programs,” said Rabbi Sholom D. Lipskar, the founder and spiritual leader.

He said the building project should cost about $20 million, including upgrades being made to the existing facility. According to architect and shul member Jaime Schapiro, actual construction will begin in approximately three or four months and should be completed in two to two-and-a-half years.

Click here to continue reading at the Miami Herald.

Photos courtesy of The Shul of Bal Harbour

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Rabbi Sholom Ber Lipsker's son gets an Aliya with the Rebbe in honor of his Bar Mitzvah in 1989.
Rabbi Sholom Ber Lipsker’s son gets an Aliya with the Rebbe in honor of his Bar Mitzvah in 1989.

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12 Comments

  • Shimon

    Wow the 1% are doing well!
    Maybe Bernie Sanders will win and all the people on the bottom will stop having to work 3 jobs just to survive while people in the top get all the benefits.

    • Boruch

      If Bernie sanders wins, we will become the Soviet Union where we all compete who could arrive to grocery store earlier to get food before they are ‘sold out’ after the few potatoes and eggs are emptied out.

  • Spread the wealth

    Would be nice if some of this money could be given to Bais Menachem of North Miami beach. That building has been waiting over a decade to be completed with no end in sight.

  • BMNMB

    if BMNMB did programs they deserve money. Money needs to be raised through fundraising and mivtiyoim..which clearly doesn’t happen….hire a shaliach to do regular shalchius then talk….

  • Blessings

    How about Torah, Tefilla (with a minyan) and Tzedakah to seek Hashem’s bracha?

    Yesha koach for the great work done by all the Lipskers, who came from Europe with nothing, and all the Rebbe’s shluchim. Truly inspirational.

    Shimon and other naysayers: Take a lesson. Hatzlacha.

  • anonymouse

    its tied up because there is no community standing behind it, no one in NMB cares if it’s built or not
    and as the kicker there is no money to complete it

  • to Mr. Anonymouse

    Spelling is # 1.
    You can’t compare NMB to Bal Harbour!
    I have been into both Shul’s and I see actives daily in Bal Harbour,preschool, Aleph, seniors events, social hall. While in NMB nothing that attracts money to build a big building, help the community grow, and Mission statement.
    Fundraising is the key. Events bring $. Community outreach to Lubavitchers. Shiurim, and leadership is lacking.
    I wish both buildings success.