Jerusalem International YMCA

The cornerstone for the Jerusalem YMCA was laid in 1928 by Lord Plumer, the British High Commissioner for Palestine. Purchased from the Greek Orthodox Church Patriarchate, the cornerstone was placed on a plot of land in the West Nikephoria section of Jerusalem. Many YMCA leaders around the world attended the opening ceremony of the building on April 18th, 1933. Every detail of the building, such as its elegant arches, domes, and towers, was described in the world press, which hailed it as a wellspring of cultural, athletic, social, and intellectual life. Until 1991, the YMCA stadium was the only soccer stadium in Jerusalem. American architect, Arthur Loomis Harmon of Shreve, Lamb, and Harmon, designed the building, which still stands today. Developers razed the stadium to make way for a luxury housing project known as King David’s Court.