Beth Jacob Congregation
New Mikvah
Oakland, California
A Mikvah or Mikveh is a ritual bath design in strict accordance with the Jewish laws of immersion, where one regains family or ritual purity after certain events have occured. The stationary water in a Mikvah is partially from a "natural" source, such as a spring, groundwater wells, or rainwater, and must always be in contact with the original source of water. Immersion in water has always been an important part of Judaism, for it symbolizes a change in status, a transformation or a purification.
Jewish women will immerse in waters after their menstruation period or childbirth and before resuming sexual relations. Men and women, when converting to Judaism, will also immerse in a Mikvah. In addition, there are requirements regarding the amount of “natural” water in the bath, where the Mikvah is located, how the water is stored and how the water is moved to the bath, among other things.
This new Mikvah design project supplements the original inaccessible Mikvah, bath and shower areas built in 1954, and will be used by women only. The project has a graywater collection system on the roof of the existing building to move “natural” rainwater to the Mikvah. The Mikvah has an ozone filtration and heating system that completely disinfects and warms the water allowing for a sanitized immersion experience.
An adjacent restroom for the Congregation’s pre-school children was also constructed. Both the Mikvah and pre-school restroom were designed to meet the requirements of the Americans with Disability Design Standards as well as California's accessibility requirements.