Wednesday, August 12, 2015
Jewish families purchase old rehabilitation centre
MEMBERS of the Hasidic Jewish community, turned away by the town's university after a health and safety row in 2013, have returned in larger numbers this summer after buying a disused rehabilitation centre outside the town, the Cambrian News understands.
The annual visitors from the Hasidic Jewish community — mostly from north London — have been coming to Aberystwyth for more than 20 years for their summer holidays.
Large numbers of the community have been left out in the cold for the past two years, however, after being blocked from staying in their usual holiday accommodation at Pentre Jane Morgan student village following a "minor fire" caused by a lit candle.
The incident led university bosses to say the visitors could no longer hold candle-lighting ceremonies in the houses because of health and safety concerns, despite the community arguing it was "integral to their religion".
The stand-off led to the Jewish community making alternative holiday plans in 2013 and 2014, alth ough some families continue to rent properties in Aberystwyth to carry on the tradition of their regular holidays.
After staying in and around the town in significantly smaller numbers in the last two years, some families in the community are now understood to have taken matters into their own hands by buying the £435,000 former Rhoserchan rehabilitation centre in Penrhyncoch.
Senior member of the community Myer Rothfeld told the Cambrian News that they were "still looking" to come back to the town in larger numbers and were "explo ring options".
"We are still not all here at the moment," he said.
"As far as I understand, it is two or three families that are there now."I'm not sure about the place [in Penrhyncoch] but we are still looking to find a way for all of us to come back if we are welcome."
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