Jews have been building in Jerusalem 3000 years

Jerusalem Mayor: U.S. Policy Set by the Palestinian Press - Nahama Duek (Yediot Ahronot-Hebrew, 19Mar10)
Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat said in an interview: "I don't understand why the Americans are upset....No government has ever frozen building in Jerusalem, not a Labor government or Kadima. I think it would have been wise if the Americans had come and learned the details before they took a position."
"There are detailed, public master plans for the good of all....If the Americans had come and learned the plans, they wouldn't have reacted as they did. To my regret, their policy was set according to what appeared in the Palestinian press."
Q: So what's the proper solution?
Barkat: "To keep building. That is the only solution. Jerusalem can't be frozen. This was never part of the negotiations and it needs to be removed from the agenda. I believe we must end the crisis with the Americans. Our fate is bound together, intertwined with one another, but let them come and learn the territory. I'll be happy to guide them."
See also Jerusalem Mayor: Building Freeze "Undermines Peace" - Jonny Paul (Jerusalem Post)
"Demanding a freeze in the city is an obstacle and undermines peace," Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat told the London think-tank Chatham House on Monday.
Anticipating that the population of Jerusalem would grow to 1 million by 2030, the mayor said he needed to build 50,000 apartments to meet the demand for housing.