Shading appendix · shading study for a zoning plan
Shading appendix for a plan: how much sun each neighbour gets today, and after
One table, per neighbouring building and per apartment in it: hours of direct sun on 21 December between 09:00 and 15:00, before the plan and after it. In the language the committee uses to reason its decision, before the objections begin.
What the committee counts
21 Dec
The shortest day of the year. The sun is lowest and shadows are longest; this is the worst case every committee checks.
09:00–15:00
"Six hours of effective radiation". Hours outside the window do not count: the sun is too low to enter a window.
Under 2 of 6 hours
The threshold the Tel Aviv district sub-committee used in May 2025 to dismiss an objection: "a reasonable added shadow".
SI 5281
The Israeli green-building standard. Clause 1.1.2 makes a shading study a threshold condition.
Israeli law sets no numeric shading threshold. "Two of six hours" is committee practice, not a standard — the document says so explicitly, so a single decision is never presented as law.
What the document contains
Site map: the planned building and every neighbour within the influence radius, in a scaled 3D model.
Sun-hours table for 21 December, 09:00–15:00, per neighbouring building — today and after the plan — and the difference.
Per-apartment detail: which apartments lose hours, how many, on which floors.
Plan isolation: the effect of this plan alone, and separately the cumulative effect with the approved plans around it.
Routing line: who loses, how much, and against which threshold (two of six hours; SI 5281 clause 1.1.2).
Method appendix: height sources, sun path, assumptions — in the format the climate consultant attaches to their appendix and cites as a source under regulation 87(g).
Who, and when
Developer, before deposit
While height can still change. A document that says "the added shadow is negligible, and that is geometry" — or a risk map showing which height draws an objection.
Climate or environmental consultant
Before hand-building the site model for the hundredth time. You receive the model and the table; you sign your appendix.
The plan's architect
When the committee requires "examination of the mutual effect in terms of shading" (TA/5000 §3.2.5(c)(2)) before deposit.
What committees have already said
„less than two hours out of 6 hours of effective radiation… a reasonable added shadow”
The objection was dismissed on the developer's table alone. Whoever brings the table beats whoever comes without it.
„a plan with a building above 20 floors is not deposited without a climate appendix”
In Tel Aviv the appendix is a threshold condition, not a recommendation.
„first hearing 30.11.2022, approval 31.07.2024, appeal decided 25.02.2025”
Two years and three months. The developer offered the neighbours money because there was no way to show there was no harm.
How it is computed
A 3D model of the building under review and every neighbour within the influence radius, from municipal heights, permits and transaction data — not a general estimate.
The sun path is computed from true solar time at the site, on 21 December, in the 09:00–15:00 window, floor by floor and apartment by apartment.
Two states per neighbour: today, and after the plan. The difference is the number the committee asks about. One plan isolated from every other plan around the address, or cumulative — as needed.
Recurring questions
What is the difference between a shading appendix, a shading study and a shadow report?
The same document under different names: an analysis of the shadow the planned building casts on its surroundings on the shortest day of the year. "Appendix" when attached to a plan, "study" when the committee requires it as a threshold condition, "report" in the SI 5281 context.
Who signs the appendix?
The plan's climate or environmental consultant. The document is prepared for attachment to their appendix, with the method and sources laid out so they can explain them at the hearing. Apricity appears as a source, as Ladybug or Radiance do today.
How long does it take?
The site model already exists for every address in Israel. Once the plan documents arrive (drawing, rights table), the document is ready within a few days.
Does it replace the climate appendix?
No. The climate appendix also covers wind and thermal comfort. The document covers the shading chapter — the part rebuilt by hand on every project — and attaches to it.
What if the result is inconvenient for the developer?
The number is the number. If the plan drops a neighbour below the threshold, it is better to know before deposit, when height or setback can still change, than at the objections hearing.
Send an address and a plan number — you get a scope and a timeline back.
No sign-up form and no sales call. A written answer within one business day.