Will Bnei Braq rabbis start implementing gender-segregation in the streets?

One thing about Bnei Braq is that it is a big mix, a cholent, perhaps, of types of Litvishe Haredim. You have the far more mainstream people affiliated with rabbonim lik Rav Kanievsky and others, along with being affiliated with the great yeshivas there, and you have the more modern haredim in the more gentrified slice of Bnei Braq with some serious wealth and often a somewhat more modern approach (though these do not necessarily go together). While some crazy extreme chumra-hocking comes out of Bnei Braq, a lot of it is really led in other cities and towns and not in Bnei Braq itself. For example, issues such as mehadrin buses, when they were a thing, never really took hold in Bnei Braq. The various tzniyus signs are not really an issue in Bnei Braq.

Yet now that a Sefardic rav has been appointed in Bnei Braq, that very well might change.

Behadrei is reporting that Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Bnei Braq Rav Masoud Ben Shimon is working now on preparing a list of new decrees for the residents (and visitors, I guess) of the city.

Rav Ben Shimon is planning on trying to decree that avreichim should not have [kosher] phones on while they are learning. It is too much of a distraction and prevents avreichim from truly growing in Torah. That's reasonable and fair. I don't know that it should be a city-wide decree, but yeshivas should be able to implement such a rule if they want to, each for their own avreichim and bochurim.

Rav Ben Shimon complained about when he goes out Friday night to the shul he sees the entire Chazon ish St is filled with men and women walking around, shpetziring, and one cannot even walk int eh street because of the crowds, the mixed crowds. Rav Ben Shimon did not say what, but he said something must be decreed about this matter - perhaps men walk on the sidewalks and women in the street, or vice versa, but something must be done. The problem is not so serious during the weekday but on Shabbos when people are relaxing, he says, it is a big problem and is inappropriate for such a Torah-centric city..

Interestingly, Rav Ben Shimon relates that there was an area that a similar situation greatly disturbed Rav Shach and he asked his talmidim to avoid that area. I say "interesting" because according to the story he related, Rav Shach did not say it is a problem and we must make a city-wide decree. Rather, Rav Shach gave his students specific instructions. yet Rav Ben Shimon wants to make a decree out of it.

Unless the rabbonim he consults with, presumably the other Chief Rabbis of the city, tell him not to start making trouble and making radical changes the public will not like, you can look forward to big changes in Bnei Braq.

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