Immorama_anglais_26

n° 2 6 / s p r i n g 2 0 1 0

T H e

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e s t a t e

di tha Ple sp t as os th e ed is en of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly !

p a n o r a m a

nature is coming to town

Avusy (GE) – Sale

New development, terraced villas in the middle of the countryside From CHF 1 250 500.– Page 74

Coppet (VD) – Sale

New development, "Domaine des Perrières", several apartments for sale Page 7

Interviews with : Manuel Tornare, Pierre-André Loizeau, Benoît Genecand, Peter Wullschleger, Olivier Philippe, Natacha Litzistorf, Vincent Desprez, Yves Lachavanne. P. 23 to 34

World tour Lausanne, United Kingdom, Mexico, Canada, Japan, Burkina Faso, France. P. 37 to 46

web+

Italy, Geneva, United Kingdom.

SALES AND LETS : SEE INSIDE FOR A HUGE RANGE OF OFFERS P. 71 to P. 110 26_jardins en ville_ang.indd 1

Florissant (GE) – Sale Superb 7-room apartment, exceptional views CHF 2 480 000.– Page 80

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Anières (GE) – Sale

Attractive 4-room apartment, view of the lake CHF 1 070 000.– Page 79

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Let’s compete to beautify our city !

he question of green spaces in the urban environment is a subject that can be approached in various if complementary ways. Here, in the developed world where the process of urbanisation is pretty much complete, people are seeing the need to retain or to restore some kind of link with nature. For example, there are plenty of city kids who have no idea where carrots grow, whether in the ground or on trees. The Slow City movement known as Cittaslow – inspired by the estimable Slow Food organisation – strives to promote individual urban cultures, the diversity of ways of life and the autonomy of the citydwellers. It is worth noting that while over a hundred towns all around the world have already adhered to Cittaslow, only one on them – Mendrisio – is in Switzerland. No doubt because we’re too busy – or perhaps too rich ?

editorial

Another approach to this subject derives from the realisation – better late than never – that we have rather neglected the quality of our outside spaces, particularly at the time of building. The client and the architect generally tend to think that their task is over once the building has been constructed and is occupied. They don’t really bother about its surroundings. And, when it comes to the public authorities, doubtless they find it easier to get approval for funds to build a school, a library or a sewage farm than to beautify a square or to brighten up a piece of waste ground. Fortunately though, things seem to be changing – if too slowly in our view – and the landscape architects are now a recognised professional body practising their own discipline. We need to promote their interventions as systematically as possible, for they if anyone can give a boost to the quality of life. Whenever it comes to modifying an important area, our automatic reflex response should be to launch a competition. For example ? Well, in Geneva, there’s the very interesting “Clés de Rive” parking project which could permit the whole area between Rue Pierre-Fatio, the Rive roundabout and the Rue d’Italie to be turned into a pedestrian precinct. It’s the perfect occasion to organise a real international competition for the development of green areas, to create an urban space that we can be proud of and that will add lustre to our city. We should seize the opportunity with both hands ! The creations of our landscape architects have also been winning the affection of the public with entertaining temporary shows. One need think only of the Lausanne Jardins (www.lausannejardins.ch), an event last held in 2009 and next scheduled for 2014 – let’s just hope they get round to putting it on more often. And then there are the one-off creations renewed every year and presented within the framework of the Festival de Chaumont-sur-Loire (www. domaine-chaumont.fr) which is attracting visitors in ever larger numbers. When are we going to have something similar in Geneva ? It would bring in some quality tourism and would certainly please the local population. Finally, at a more general level, we must recall that urbanisation is a massive and worldwide phenomenon. Back in 1950, 30% of the world’s population was concentrated in towns. Today the figure has grown to 50% and is forecast to exceed 60% by the year 2030. In other words, the notion of the improvement of the quality of life and the development of green spaces in the urban environment is not simply the whim of a clique of aesthetes but a vital necessity. This special issue brings you not only the thoughts of a number of local players that we have interviewed but also a whistle-stop tour of the world illustrating the diversity of initiatives and proposals in this field, a range that extends from the granting of tax deductions to encouraging roof gardens in Mexico, to the seedbombs of green commandos in Canada and the USA, through kitchen gardens in London to the agricultural mini-tower designed for Burkina Faso that won the gold medal at the Salon des Inventions in Geneva.

Thierry Barbier-Mueller Chief Executive Officer of SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE n° 26 - Spring 2010 -

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N°26 – SPRING 2010

masthead A publication of

SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE

DE GÉRANCE Route de Chêne 36 – 1208 Geneva www.spg.ch

Publications Department

Tel. : 022 849 65 60 Fax : 022 849 61 80 E-mail : publications@immorama.ch www.immorama.ch

Managing Editor

Thierry Barbier-Mueller

Editor-in-Chief

Christine Esseiva redaction@immorama.ch

Advertising

Edouard Carrascosa edouard.carrascosa@spg.ch Tel. 022 849 65 61 - Fax 022 849 61 80

Real Estate and Distribution Béatrice Repole ; Cécile Heymans

contents Editorial by Thierry Barbier-Mueller . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

réseau Côte vaudoise – a region blessed by the gods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 solidarité Solidarity in action from SPG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 concours SPG/HEPIA competition : “See and see again” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 fiche Biography of a building recorded on a single file card . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 dossier Local : • Nature is coming to town by Thierry Oppikofer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 dossier International : • A bouquet of green ideas by Christine Esseiva . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 label Show us your service charges and we’ll tell you how to bring them down 49 anniversaire SPG Intercity, ten years of developing new lines of business . 53 financement How do you go about financing and insuring your property ? 61 patrimoine Switzerland’s oldest house . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 écologie CO2 tax to rehabilitate buildings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Typesetting and Production

Sandra Cattaud, Johana Couprie, Martine Musy

Subscriptions

Silvia Farinha, Liliana Lima, Simon Jöhr, Michael Polla

Tel. 022 849 65 57/68/69

abonnements@immorama.ch

The following persons contributed to the production of this issue : Claude Atallah D. Bakis-Métoudi Philippe Buzzi Nicole Saint-Jal

J.-F. Assenarre Carine Bosson Martin Dunning Budimir Stoja

Printing, binding

Imprimeries Réunies Lausanne SA, Renens

Cover

Vitamine, Geneva Photos : iStockphoto, Objectif 31

Translation

Huge range of properties on offer : SPG FINEST PROPERTIES Switzerland A home for you in the mountains, in town or by a lake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 SPG Geneva and region – Vaud Villas for sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Apartments for sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Buildings for sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Apartments and villas to let – new development . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Parking places to let . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Commercial premises to let . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

74 79 82 85 90 91

Made by ABC Traductions French version Audited circulation (REMP 2008/2009) : 221 194 copies Print run : 300 000 copies English version Print run : 13 000 copies Published twice a year (spring and autumn) Founded in 1997 In the event of any difficulty of interpretation, the French version shall prevail.

Electronic version www.immorama.ch

SPG Intercity Geneva and region – Vaud – Yverdon-les-Bains Commercial premises to let . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 RytZ Vaud Villas for sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 Properties for sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 Apartments for sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 IFA French border area Apartments for sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 Villas for sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107 Be extravagant ! Mansions and manor-houses for sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109 .... Another extravagance ! Island for sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

n° 26 - Spring 2010 -

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Depuis 40 ans à votre service F O U R N I T U R E E T P O S E - PA R Q U E T S - M O Q U E T T E S SOLS PLASTIQUES - PLINTHES - PONÇAGE - IMPRÉGNATION 154, route d’Aïre - C.P. 25 Tél. : 022 796 83 22 1219 Aïre - Genève Fax : 022 796 83 69 www.welcome-geneva.com/murner - wmurnersa@bluewin.ch

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- Spring 2010 - n° 26

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e ur et is rly ! s en fl e e lea rop s ea is f p Pl t th d o a e th os sp di

réseau Côte vaudoise – a region blessed by the gods

SPG Group : a network of competences

“Domaine des Perrières” at Coppet. New residential construction is flourishing in the Vaud to meet the needs of private individuals coming in from all over the world.

www.rytz.com Côte vaudoise – a region blessed by the gods

espite all of the ups and downs of the world economy, the attractions of the Côte vaudoise remain as strong as ever. Coming from Geneva, the rest of the canton of Vaud, Switzerland, Europe and countries all over the world, households and companies have been voting with their feet and relocating to this region blessed by the gods to enjoy its exceptional amenities and geographical and fiscal advantages. RYTZ & Cie S.A., an associate of SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE of Geneva, is one of the main players in the development of the region. For more than 50 years, the company has been supplying high quality residential properties that meet the expectations of a highly demanding clientele. One of its most recent projects has been the “Domaine des Perrières” at Coppet, where the last phase in the development has just been delivered.

A region blessed by the gods “The key strength of the region is the quality of life,” observes Yves Rytz, director of the Nyon property company. If you live in the Côte vaudoise, you enjoy the benefit of immediate proximity to the urban areas of Geneva and Lausanne, towns which though relatively small boast all the amenities that may be expected of capital cities : theatre, opera, international airport, organisations like the IOC and much more besides. Not to mention to a location on the shores of the biggest lake in Western Europe, with its beaches, ports and incomparable landscapes. The Jura mountains are close at hand, offering a wide range of summer and winter activities, while the high Alps are only ninety minutes away by car or train. And another major attraction is a rate of tax that has drawn in large numbers of foreign residents in recent years. In addition, the Côte vaudoise has the honour to host some of the biggest names in the fields of high technology, the service sector and sport, the jewel in the crown being the world headquarters of UEFA. The presence here of many highly reputed private 8

réseau By Claire Vaudremont

“The key strength of the region is the quality of life.”

RYTZ & Cie S.A. Yves Rytz Director Avenue Alfred-Cortot 7 1260 Nyon (VD) Tél. +41 22 36 36 000 info@rytz.com - www.rytz.com

n° 26 - Spring -

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di tha Ple sp t as réseau os th e ed is en Côte vaudoise – a region blessed by the gods of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly ! and international schools also helps to tip the balance when players on the international scene are choosing between places to relocate.

New building “Domaine des Perrières” in Coppet is comprised of seven properties with three floors and duplexes, as well as twenty buildings with five apartments each.

■ For further information, please go to : www.rytz.com 8

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Projects large and small since 1947 Yves Rytz speaks with passion about this territory to which he is deeply attached, both personally and professionally. Established in 1947, the property management company that bears his name combines the advantages of proximity – the prerequisite for an intimate knowledge of the area – with complete openness to the international markets. This latter aspect has been strengthened since 1988 by his alliance with SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE, a company with the same multi-service profile, active in the fields both of management, brokerage and advice and of property development. The market leader in the Côte vaudoise, RYTZ & Cie S.A. has played an important role in the enormous development of this part of the canton of Vaud over the last fifty years and to this day Nyon continues to break all records for growth in Switzerland. In the field of property development, RYTZ & Cie S.A. has steered through projects of all kinds, large and small, ranging from a handful of villas to whole districts and including major investments such as the Signy shopping centre near Nyon. The “Domaine des Perrières” in Coppet The construction of the “Domaines des Perrières” at Coppet, in cooperation with MR&A architects of Nyon, is one of the firm’s latest major projects. The story began back at the dawn of the new millennium. The seven hectare site sloping gently down towards the lake is ideally situated, just a ten minute walk from all the local services (primary and secondary schools, shops) and from Coppet station, offering direct connections to Geneva, the international airport, Lausanne and the main cities of Switzerland. The district plan approved in 2001 provided for the building of 176 condominium apartments in three phases, forming an unbroken extension of the existing village of Coppet. The buildings are spaced out over a large estate with numerous paths for pedestrians. The residents enjoy the benefit of underground car parks affording direct access to each building. The first phase of the project was the construction of seven three-storey duplex buildings with twin sloping roofs, an outline reminiscent of the traditional houses of the region. Grouped together in an arc towards the rear of the estate, these large comfortable-looking houses are connected on the ground-floor by an arcade of shops and small businesses providing a covered walkway along the edge of the development. The balconies look out over the later phases of the project, offering extensive views across the lake and back towards the Jura. The greater part of the estate consists of more individual constructions, with rows of elegant houses set out perpendicular to the lake and separated by private gardens, an arrangement that makes the most of the views of the water and the mountains. Each house consists of five apartments, two on the ground floor, two on the first floor and one penthouse. These are the sort of town-houses typically found in high class districts but with a resolutely modern architecture of flat roofs and pure lines, with red brick walls lending a slightly English air. Whereas the fronts are rather closed and discreet, the facades giving onto the gardens at the rear have glazed balconies with sliding doors, allowing a maximum of light to flood into the generously proportioned and finely finished apartments that the buyers have been able to personalise during the course of construction. Following the completion of a second phase, the third phase of the district plan has now also come to an end with the delivery of eight new residences containing a total of 56 three to six room condominium apartments, a select address in one of the most sought after residential districts in the Côte vaudoise. ■

- Spring 2010 - n° 26

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ur e is yâ&#x20AC;&#x2030;!

nÂ° 26 - Spring -

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Rue des Rois 2 CH - 1204 Genève Tél. +41 22 321 73 23 Fax +41 22 321 73 23 Natel +41 76 389 73 23 fonseca-fernando@hotmail.com

ÉTANCHÉITÉ - COUVERTURE - SARNAFIL - RÉSINE - ISOLATION - ENTRETIEN - TOITURE Mobile +41 79 601 91 94 benjamin_etancheite@bluewin.ch

Tel +41 22 796 24 14 Fax +41 22 796 09 24

Chemin de l’Ecu 17 E CH-1219 Châtelaine

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Partenaire d’INTERNORM Fenêtres en PVC et bois-métal

Interventions d’urgence suite à:

INCENDIE CHRISTIAN BONALDI SA

Menuiserie Charpente Agencement Entretien 120, route du Pas-de-l’Echelle 1255 VEYRIER/GENÈVE info@bonaldi.ch Tél. 022 784 16 44 Fax 022 784 16 50

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DEGÂTS D’EAUX TEMPÊTE EFFRACTION Tous petits et grands travaux d’entretien pour villas et immeubles

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solidarité Solidarity in action from SPG

This year, SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE is supporting a number of associations active in the field of humanitarian and environmental action. Through its greeting cards for the New Year in 2010, SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE introduced all its clients and partners to ASDI , the Association for the support of integrated development of Moudatt (Mali), an organisation which works on behalf of the health and education of the population and disadvantaged young people.

En 2010, la SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE fêtera ses 50 ans d’immobilier. A cette occasion, elle soutiendra plusieurs associations caritatives qui œuvrent pour la santé et l’éducation de populations ou de jeunes défavorisés. Avec cette carte de vœux, © Massimo Piras

la SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE est heureuse de présenter et d’aider l’association malienne ASDI et vous adresse ASDI signifie CONSTRUIRE en langue tamacheq (langue touareg du Mali)

ASSOCIATION POUR LE SOUTIEN AU DÉVELOPPEMENT INTÉGRÉ (ASDI) de Moudatt Place Notre-Dame 8 – CH–1700 Fribourg

La Direction et les collaborateu rs de L’INFOR MATION IMMOBILIÈR E et d’IMMOR AMA

Coordonnées bancaires : Mohamed Ag Hamma Code SWIFT : ECOCMLBA Compte : ECOBANK Mali Code banque : D0090 – Code guichet : 01001 Numéro de compte : 102077006017 – Clé RIB : 32

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Dans la vallée du Tilemsi, contrée située au nordest du Mali, Mohamed Ag Hamma et Natascha Farenzena ont lancé en 2004 un projet d’entraide dans le but de soutenir la population de la région, régulièrement frappée par la sécheresse et la famine. Fondé sur la constitution d ’un cheptel communautaire de vaches, ce programme humanitaire permet notamment à une famille, pendant toute une année, de bénéficier du lait d’une vache pour sa consommation propre et la production de beurre ou de fromage.

New Year’s greeting card 2010

Solidarity in action from SPG

ASSOCIATION POUR LE SOUTIEN AU DÉVELOPPEMENT INTÉGRÉ (ASDI)

ses meilleurs vœux solidaires pour 2010.

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solidarité

ike many other companies in Geneva, SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE supports generous projects to meet the needs of deprived populations. This is a social role that figures prominently in the company’s mission statement. Following a well-established tradition, SPG is strongly committed to precise actions which have clearly defined objectives and remains in direct contact with the organisers of the programmes and their beneficiaries.

By Robin Charlert

The social action of SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE has diversified over the course of time. For example, when the company now sends out its traditional greetings cards, its message includes the promotion of active support for targeted projects in the humanitarian and environmental fields. In sum, these little steps add up to a certain “solidarity in action” which, though modest when compared with the immensity of the needs, is warmly felt and effective.

“In this way, the company makes available not only its financial support but also its capital of social and professional contacts, as well as its capacity for dissemination and communication.”

Greeting cards over the past 20 years Twenty years ago, SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE had the inspired idea of using the traditional greeting cards that companies send out to their business partners every year to promote generous causes. The principle is simple: each card presents a social or humanitarian action and invites the addressee to contribute – SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE itself being of course the first contributor on the list. In this way, the company makes available not only its financial support but also its capital of social and professional contacts, as well as its capacity for dissemination and communication. In the selection of actions to back, the philosophy of SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE has always been to opt for smaller structures in close contact with specific needs with which it is able to establish and maintain personal and longlasting ties. Over the past 20 years, the main areas concerned have been help for disadvantaged children, health, education and ecology. Among the many projects supported we may cite some recent examples such as the Ecole la Petite Arche in Geneva ; the Fondation Ensemble which takes in mentally handicapped children (2004) ; the Maison Chance Suisse in Vietnam, which 8

■ For

more information :

please go to our website at : www.spg.ch/solidarity email : solidarity@spg.ch

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solidarité Solidarity in action from SPG

Associations supported in 2010 by SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE

di tha Ple sp t as os th e ed is en of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly ! works on behalf of handicapped people and orphans in a disadvantaged district of Ho Chi Minh City (2006) ; the Association d’Aide à Gao, which fights against child malnutrition in Mali (2007) ; the Restavek Foundation, which helps poor families in Haïti (2005) ; the Association un Avenir par l’Ecole, which organises and equips games libraries in Mali (2008) ; the Sourire de Chiang Khong, which cares for children in the north of Thailand (2009) ; Fondation Hôpital de pédiatrie Kantha Bopha of Dr Beat Richner, which takes care of Cambodian children (2003). To mark the 50 th anniversary of SPG in 2010, the company decided to sponsor two projects more directly.

New Year cards sent by société privée de gérance since 2003

The first project, the humanitarian association Cœurs pour tous was founded in 1998 by a group of doctors, nurses and technicians to promote health in the developing countries and, more particularly, to treat heart diseases. Whether in the University Hospitals of Geneva or out in the field (Morocco, Serbia, Mozambique, etc), the association performs operations free of charge for children suffering from cardio-vascular diseases, thus enabling them to be cured and to return to a normal life. The second, the Association François-Xavier Bagnoud focuses on the fight against poverty and AIDS in the developing countries and, more particularly, support for orphans and other children left in the wake of this pandemic. SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE has undertaken to assist the project in the achievement of a very specific objective, namely the construction of eleven wells in Mali which will bring children the basic resource of piped drinking water, which is unfortunately all too rare in Africa. Solidarity on line Greeting cards, targeted sponsorships, competitions between students for ideas and proposals, all of these have given rise to promotional work and the monitoring of results among wider circles of contributors over the course of time. These initiatives on the part of SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE constitute a solidarity in action, which you can access on our website at www.spg.ch. Forms are available on the site for associations wishing to apply for support. In addition, you can view on-line the progress of any project to which you may have contributed. ■

Moudatt

La SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE est heureuse d’aider l’ASSOCIATION POUR LE SOUTIEN AU DéVELOPPEMENT INTéGRé (ASDI) de Moudatt, qui œuvre pour la reconstitution et l’accroissement de cheptels de vaches au profit d’éleveurs nomades, pour la formation professionnelle des jeunes et le développement du maraîchage. SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE Route de Chêne 36 CH–1208 Genève - www.spg.ch

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2010 : ASDI, Association for the support of integrated development of Moudatt (Mali)

2006 : Maison Chance Suisse / Vietnam

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2009 : Le Sourire de Chiang Khong / Thailand

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2008 : Association un Avenir par l’Ecole / Mali

2005 : Restavek Foundation / Haïti

2004 : Ecole de la Petite Arche, Ensemble Foundation / Geneva

2007 : Association d’Aide à Gao / Mali

2003 : Fondation Hôpital de pédiatrie Kantha Bopha du Dr Beat Richner / Cambodia

- Spring 2010 - n° 26

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xxxxxxxx sous-titre

ur e is y !

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annonce adaptation 1/2p. 180x119 mm - Curchod Fils SA - Immorama printemps 07 - 29.1.7

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concours SPG/HEPIA competition : setting the scene in urban spaces

SPG/HEPIA competition : “See and see again”

The SPG/HEPIA competition was held during the period 25-29 January 2010. Under the supervision of Thierry Barbier-Mueller for SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE and Claude Zuber professor of architecture for HEPIA, it brought together a score of students from the landscape architecture section of the Haute Ecole du paysage, d’ingénierie et d’architecture (HEPIA).

Setting the scene in urban spaces

concours

ack in the old days at the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris, the academic year used to be punctuated by the Chenevard, the Godebœuf, the Rougevin, etc., a series of competitions named after the generous patrons who had endowed them in order to sustain the progress of the arts and to encourage the development of talents. Today, this great tradition is being carried on in Geneva by the SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE and the Haute Ecole du paysage, d’ingénierie et d’architecture (HEPIA) with the launch of a competition entitled “See and see again”, calling for proposals to transform existing urban spaces in the city. We report on a fascinating first.

By Richard Quincerot Winners of the 2010 SPG/HEPIA competition : “See and see again” : urban scenographies

Entitled “See and see again : urban scenographies” the 2010 SPG/HEPIA competition invited students from the first, second and third years to produce a mise-enscène for an urban space of their choice in Geneva.The exercise was to be carried out by pairs of students each from a different discipline – architecture, landscaping or civil engineering – who had to get to know each other and learn how to work together for the occasion. It took the form of a marathon workshopElévation lasting: from 25 to 29 January, a period devoted to finding out about the programme, forming the pairs, choosing the sites to work on and then developing and presenting an interdisciplinary project (plans, perspectives, model, video, sound-track, etc).

Promenade de la Treille

Serious but congenial atmosphere At 13 : 00 on 29 January 2010, nine teams of students presented the fruits of their labour. In the first place, the SPG/HEPIA jury was agreeably surprised by the quality of the presentations both in terms of the projections (3D images) and models and of the oral presentations, sometimes hesitant, sometimes enthusiastic, but in any event always sympathetic and engaging. The choice of the spaces As regards the urban spaces selected, the students opted for a small number of sites emblematic of Geneva, most of them situated in the Old Town and on the banks of the Rhône. Ech 1:200 

Passage Montbrillant

Vue de jour

Christelle Brot Mikaël Meyer 29.01.2010

WORKSHOP SCENOGRAPHIES URBAINES_RESE

Place Belmont n° 26 - Spring 2010 -

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di tha Ple sp t as concours os th e ed is en SPG/HEPIA competition : setting the scene in urban spaces of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly ! The sole exception was the Passage Montbrillant. In other words, what the stu-

SPG/HEPIA competition 2010 : members of the jury. Composition of the jury Dominique Bakis-Métoudi, director, SPG Asset Development Thierry Barbier-Mueller, chief executive officer, SPG Group Patrice Bezos, architect Laurent Essig, professor HES Véronique Pittori, art historian Richard Quincerot, town planner Laurent Sallin, professor HES Claude Zuber, professor HES Competitors Aymeric Boireau and Florian Olivier Briffot ; Christelle Brot and Michael Meyer ; Carole Caner and Matthieu Caneravi ; Anne-Claire Douchant and Emil Ham Petersson ; Guillaume Hernach and David Martini ; Pablo Gabay and Stéphane Koularmanis ; Adrien Gros and Guillaume Lancelot ; Paul Lacaze and Ludovic Miazza ; Thibault Laubriat and Sébastien Wolleb. ■ For

more information : www.spg.ch/sponsoring

occasions de célébration : l’idée de compétition crée un suspense, que dénoue la proclamation du vainqueur. Ainsi, plusieurs concours internationaux ont été des temps forts de l’histoire de l’architecture, attirant des centaines de concurrents sur des programmes majuscules, pour la plupart publics, mais aussi privés (le concours pour l’immeuble du Chicago Tribune de 1922, 263 projets, par exemple). très médiatisés, ils furent pour leurs organisateurs d’excellents outils de promotion internationale (comme le concours pour le Centre Beaubourg à Paris, 1971, 681 projets). Ils suscitèrent aussi de furieuses polémiques nourries par la frustration des perdants, avec dénonciations de compétition truquée et appels prophétiques au jugement de l’histoire. le chahut le plus retentissant fut celui organisé à Genève par le Corbusier à la suite du concours international pour le Palais de la société des Nations (1927, 377 concurrents), qui permit aux « modernes » de s’affirmer comme des prétendant légitimes aux plus grandes commandes publiques. Le champ clos de la qualité architecturale De fait, le concours réalise une sorte de coup de force : choisir un projet en présentant ce choix comme impartial, car issu de la libre concurrence, alors qu’il existe en architecture plusieurs conceptions de la qualité. la procédure compense la part d’arbitraire qui existe en architecture par l’organisation d’une compétition : elle produit de la décision, ce qui n’est pas sa moindre qualité ! Pour prêter le moins possible le flanc à la contestation, le concours se définit comme un champ clos, un « autre monde » régi par une seule règle : la concurrence sur la qualité. Au départ, le commanditaire écrit un « programme », qui est en même temps l’énoncé du but à atteindre et le contrat liant les acteurs : ce document est la seule information que les concurrents et le jury aient à connaître. Puis chaque architecte élabore son « projet » dans le retrait de son atelier, sans contact avec le commanditaire ou le jury : il rend sa proposition de manière anonyme, pour que la compétition se joue uniquement sur la qualité des projets. Enfin, le jury délibère à huis clos, pour éviter les fuites et les influences malvenues : son jugement est sans appel, étayé sur un rapport très laconique, offrant le moins de prise possible

à la critique, et sur une exposition des projets, faisant la transparence sur la compétition. Une fois la procédure terminée, le jury dispersé, les projets rendus à leurs auteurs, la polémique peut bien faire rage dans les couloirs ou dans la presse : l’absence de voie de recours la rend à peu près inoffensive. Concours publics : l’organisation comme enjeu Depuis plus d’un siècle, la profession d’architecte utilise l’organisation des concours publics comme un levier d’action pour formater à son avantage ses relations à la commande publique. son argument de base est le don du projet : les architectes risquent gratuitement leur travail dans des procédures d’intérêt général, ne produisant qu’un gagnant et une multitude de perdants. en contrepartie, la profession attend des commanditaires publics qu’ils respectent un certain nombre de conditions : conformité à une norme d’organisation des concours, recours aux conseils d’un architecte pour écrire le programme, jury comprenant une majorité d’architectes, engagement à attribuer le mandat au vainqueur, etc. en suisse, cette stratégie connut un remarquable succès : la puissante société des ingénieurs et des architectes (sIA) eut longtemps un quasi-monopole de l’organisation des concours d’architecture, régis par une norme très unifiée. Aujourd’hui concurrencés par d’autres professionnels de la régulation de la concurrence (en particulier droit des marchés publics), les architectes ont dû concéder une diversification des formes de concours (notamment mandats d’études parallèles, concours concepteurs-investisseurs, etc.), la norme sIA 142 devenant plus souple, mais aussi moins structurante pour l’identité professionnelle. Concours privés : l’excellence comme seul enjeu les concours privés n’ont pas à supporter cette surcharge d’enjeux symboliques ou professionnels. N’étant pas lié par des accords généraux impliquant la puissance publique, un opérateur privé a les mains libres pour organiser des compétitions ne retenant qu’un enjeu : la production d’un projet d’excellence par l’émulation des architectes. Document also available in English imprimé sur du papier

SPG Asset Development met à la disposition de ses clients sa passion de construire et de rénover. En lien direct avec les maîtres d’ouvrage institutionnels et privés, SPG Asset Development assure des missions de pilotage de projets immobiliers (promotion et rénovation). SPG Asset Development

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Disons-le d’emblée, produire de la qualité architecturale n’est pas qu’une lubie de mécène aux poches profondes. Au-delà d’un acte généreux envers le public, une architecture ambitieuse et reconnue comme telle génère une plus-value économique en rendant un immeuble plus désirable, plus concurrentiel et valorisant en termes d’image pour son occupant, en tout cas, voire son constructeur.

Un concours privé est une procédure légère, ne nécessitant que des précautions de bon sens, faciles à mettre en œuvre avec un peu d’attention et d’expérience. Il faut d’abord définir avec précision le défi proposé aux architectes : conception d’un immeuble ou uniquement d’une façade, aménagement d’un ensemble ou seulement d’une place ou d’un jardin, recherche d’efficacité ou création d’une image de marque, etc. Il faut ensuite déterminer l’ouverture du concours : les concours privés invitent généralement un petit nombre d’architectes, présélectionnés selon leur expérience ou leur renommée, dans plusieurs pays si l’on souhaite donner à la compétition une dimension internationale. les invités sont assurés d’une rétribution raisonnable et d’un engagement ferme en cas de victoire. Il faut ensuite fixer les conditions de la compétition : composer un jury faisant autorité, écrire le programme, fixer un calendrier. Il faut enfin piloter le déroulement de la procédure, en offrant les meilleures conditions de travail aux concurrents et aux membres du jury. Chaque organisateur choisit la publicité qu’il entend donner à l’événement : le concours peut rester privé, réservé à un petit cercle d’initiés, ou être valorisé par une médiatisation plus ou moins étendue, selon l’impact du projet et les moyens disponibles. Une procédure légère pour un résultat assuré Aucune procédure ne saurait résoudre à elle seule tous les problèmes du monde. en suscitant une saine émulation entre architectes, le concours d’architecture permet de produire des projets d’une qualité supérieure. les concours privés s’en tiennent à cette fonction de base : ils sont performants et faciles à organiser, avec un minimum de soin et d’expérience. Dès qu’ils se chargent d’autres enjeux, les concours deviennent plus complexes, plus lourds de significations : il faut renoncer à les réduire à une simple procédure et les accepter tels qu’ils sont, l’un des théâtres où se jouent nos relations ambivalentes à l’idée de « libre concurrence ». ■

E-mail : asset @ spg.ch www.spgassetdevelopment.ch

Newsletter N °2

eDItOrIAl

Il suffit pour cela d’une organisation minimale, n’engageant que des moyens comparativement modestes au regard de l’enjeu : la conception d’immeubles ou d’espaces d’une qualité supérieure, créant une image de marque et une attractivité durables.

Les concours d’architecture privés Par Richard Quincerot, urbaniste

Il est surprenant dès lors de constater que les concours d’architecture sont relativement peu pratiqués, en proportion de tout ce qui se construit et s’est construit dans notre région. Et pourtant le rôle de « réhausseur » de qualité d’un concours n’est pas vraiment contesté. Alors, où est le problème ? En premier lieu, sans doute le fait que le concours soit souvent mis sur pied pour des projets emblématiques en a fait un instrument intimidant à l’excès (« mon projet n’est pas suffisamment important pour une telle démarche »).Ensuite, cet instrument est souvent utilisé par des collectivités publiques, dans des démarches obligatoirement très formalistes et plutôt lourdes, dans lesquelles le secteur privé ne se reconnaît pas.

C’est donc l’occasion de rappeler ici que le concours peut se pratiquer pour des objets de moindre importance, et aussi répondre à des exigences de souplesse et de planification serrée. Nous l’avons expérimenté à plusieurs reprises, et sommes d’ailleurs admiratifs de la réactivité et de la réponse presque toujours favorable des divers architectes consultés, de tous horizons et de tous pays. Il reste sans doute un obstacle plus subtil à la mise en place de concours d’architecture et de nature psychologique : la crainte du maître de l’ouvrage de perdre le contrôle (il est plus « cosy » de mandater son architecte après une sélection unilatérale) ; mais c’est oublier que les modalités du concours peuvent laisser un très libre choix au maître de l’ouvrage. Et c’est oublier aussi que, par le biais d’un concours, on se donne la chance d’être positivement surpris par une proposition qui va souvent bien au-delà de ses attentes et de ses objectifs initiaux. Exprimons-le autrement : en prenant l’habitude de poser des questions ouvertes, on se donne plus de chances d’obtenir des réponses intéressantes !

Thierry Barbier-Mueller Administrateur délégué du Groupe SPG

«Q

ue le meilleur gagne ! » Dans bien des domaines, la mise en concurrence des talents est le plus sûr moyen d’atteindre l’excellence. en architecture, c’est le rôle des concours, qui invitent des architectes à rivaliser d’intelligence et de créativité pour produire le meilleur projet dans une situation donnée. Il existe deux types de concours d’architecture. les concours publics sont les plus connus : très exposés et surchargés d’enjeux, il arrive qu’ils suscitent la polémique. Plus discrets, les concours privés atteignent plus sûrement leur but : ils n’ont pas d’autre enjeu que la production d’un projet de haute qualité. le concours d’architecture applique le modèle de la « libre concurrence » à la conception de bâtiments ou d’aménagements précis, pour lesquels une qualité supérieure est recherchée. la procédure consiste à réunir les conditions d’une compétition pure et loyale, où seule la valeur des projets compte. Le concours définit un champ clos où les concurrents et le jury n’ont qu’un souci en tête : élaborer et choisir le « meilleur projet », qui surpasse en qualité tous les autres.

De multiples avantages On sait les innombrables usages politiques, économiques, sociaux, sportifs, culturels... qui sont faits du modèle abstrait de la libre concurrence. sa « main invisible » soulagerait les puissants du souci de gouverner en départageant automatiquement les talents, ce qui conduirait au meilleur état du monde possible. les concours d’architecture sont une application littérale de ce modèle. Ils se voient prêter, du coup, toutes sortes d’avantages : ce serait la meilleure manière de produire un projet, mais aussi de choisir un architecte, de révéler de jeunes talents, de promouvoir la qualité architecturale, d’organiser le débat démocratique, d’observer l’évolution des tendances, etc. Apothéose de l’excellence, les concours d’architecture seraient des « jeux olympiques de l’art », selon la formule de César Daly (premier journaliste d’architecture, XIXe siècle). Pour le meilleur ou pour le pire Plus pragmatiquement, les concours ont valeur d’événements, tranchant sur le cours habituel des choses. Du lancement au jugement, le déroulé de la procédure offre plusieurs www.spgassetdevelopment.ch

News5_fr_28_sanc.indd 1

21/01/2010 16:16:52

For more information on private architectural competitions, please order SPG Asset Development Newsletter No.2 from : asset@spg.ch

26 immocoucours_ang_1.indd 16

dents did was to take a well-established “scene” and occupy or divert it (e.g. vertical kitchen garden in the Place du Rhône or a red lava flow down from the cathedral to the Rues-Basses). Some competitors pushed the notion of mise-enscène by proposing installations such as bundles of hay on the Pont des Bergues, while others offered bigger and more permanent developments such as tiered seating on the Pont des Bergues or the Place de la Madeleine. It must also be pointed out that the competition rules severely restricted the resources that could be used, the students being recommended to focus their ingenuity on an inventive application of simple inexpensive materials. Awards go to localised projects The jury picked out the three most localised projects, i.e. those which established the strongest relationship with the urban spaces selected. Unlike the other projects, which could have been installed more or less anywhere, these three incorporated features which strengthened the particularity of the places, those characteristics which make them unique and different. Christelle Brot and Michael Meyer opted for the Passage Montbrillant leading under the railway lines to Cornavin station.This was, to say the least, a risky choice ; a dark and none too clean underground passageway, long ripe for redevelopment and thronged during the day with bus and train passengers. Their proposal was situated at the level of the central tramway platform ; vertically aligned and brightly coloured strip lights which introduce a transparent symbolic logic into this world of service ducts ; tubes = flows. Inside the tubes, there are loudspeakers which emit ambient noises appropriate to the time of day and which combine the sounds of the town and the country linked by these urban and regional railway lines. Taking the opposite tack, Anne-Claire Douchant and Emil Ham Petersson looked for a peaceful romantic spot well away from city comings and goings.They had been touched by the loneliness of a tree planted in the middle of Place Belmont, a very discreet location half way between the Old Town and the Rues-Basses.To help this solitary planting to enter into a dialogue with the stone of the city and passing pedestrians, they proposed suspending warmly coloured fabrics in random fashion around the tree so that, like its foliage, they would float in the wind, being attached by nylon threads in the fashion of a spider’s web to points of anchorage around the little square. Paul Lacaze and Ludovic Miazza took on a much more exposed location, the intermediate level of the Rue de la Croix-Rouge between the upper La Treille promenade and the Mur des Réformateurs at the foot of the Old Town. Their proposal was to hang a “partition” of coloured threads rising vertically from the edge of the pavement parallel with the city wall, traversing the planted slope and finally merging with the greenery of La Treille. The team produced striking views of this scenographic concept of a light wrapping for the old rampart, which is presently reduced to the status of an uncomfortable transit route. Three equal prizes Considering that these projects were on a par, the jury decided to award three equal prizes of CHF 2 000.– The cheques will be handed over to the students at an official ceremony to be attended by all concerned and to which the press will also be invited. The winning projects will shortly be displayed for public viewing at the HEPIA. The next competition has already been scheduled for January 2011. ■ INTERVIEW : Claude Zuber, professor at HEPIA – In the SPG/HEPIA competition, architecture and landscaping are deliberately combined. Do you think that the two disciplines too often ignore each other ? Less and less I would say. In professional practice, this type of cooperation is a constant. Through this process, we try to anticipate cooperation 

- Spring 2010 - n° 26

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25.01.10 17:27 01/04/2010 15:11:44

di tha Ple sp t as concours os th e ed is en SPG/HEPIA competition : setting the scene in urban spaces of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly ! between neighbouring and sometimes relatively similar fields by encouraging decompartmentalisation and stimulating meetings and professional friendships between students. I should like to add that this way of doing things has intensified since the two engineering schools EIG and EIL merged and reappeared under the new banner of the HEPIA. The same applies to the search for proposals and solutions that comply with the principles of sustainable development in all the study projects that we conduct.

Claude Zuber, professor at HEPIA.

Interview with Christine Esseiva

Prize-winners of the 2010 SPG/HEPIA competition : “See and see again” : urban scenographies

64760_spgp_immorama

– You were alongside the students during this week-long workshop so you will have been there for all of their research, their hesitations, their shaping of the materials. Can you tell us how they responded during the progress of the competition ? As a particular moment in their course, I think their reaction was very positive and agreeable, despite the working conditions and high expectations, namely ; the intensive nature of the work, which had to be completed within a week; the implicit obligation to go straight for the objective, laying down a quick and pertinent hypothesis ; the great freedom of choice of project and liberty to make proposals ; the task of finding a hitherto unknown partner to make up the team on day one; the presence of an external jury of professionals; and, not least, the competitive interest of the prizes. – What criteria were adopted to select the best projects ? The projects presented testify to the quality of the workshop, the frame of mind and level of our students and their proposals. In fact, there were no criteria strictly speaking. The students were left free to choose whether or not to present their work to the jury. Having said that, the work counts for credits in their course of training, making the stakes even higher and more attractive.

– What surprised you most about the course of the competition and the proposals made ? Although we have been conducting this type of workshop for more than five years, I am still surprised at how quickly people who knew little or nothing about each other beforehand are able to establish a productive working relationship and arrive at a joint proposal. As regards the projects presented, I was not really surprised. I have great confidence abilities of the students and the quality 22_cahier:62410_spgp_immorama 19 41-88 1.2.2008 12:43in the Page 59 of the work generally reflects this frame of mind and quality. Place du Rhône – What are the advantages of a competition of this kind in the student’s career ? There are many advantages but the main one for this type of partnership is undoubtedly the opportunity to be confronted head on with the professional world, to come into contact with the players in their field and to see their ideas take shape in a project. ■

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hen was a building last renovated ? Has the roof been repaired recently ? Have water saver taps been fitted ? What’s been done about heat insulation ? Every property manager needs to have the answers to questions of this kind at his finger tips. He has to know every detail of the construction of a building, to chronicle the record of major and minor works, to prepare for any improvements that become necessary and to report development possibilities to the landlord. To help the property manager to record all of the relevant information concerning the life and condition of a building, SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE has joined forces with the sustainable development consultancy Signa-Terre to create the “Fiche Patrimoine”, a computerised asset record card. Full history Philippe Buzzi, head of the Property Management Department of SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE and one of the initiators of this project, explains : “The starting point was the idea of producing a sort of “medical record card” to give a technical diagnosis of the building and to combine it with a “biographical record”, listing past works, the service life of the equipment installed and the works to be provided for in the future. Moreover, apart from facilitating property management by making the data less dependent on the particular manager, the Fiche Patrimoine has other advantages. For example, in a recent inheritance case, the heirs were very happy indeed to find that all the information they needed about the estate was neatly summarised on this file card.” Everything on a single card “The Fiche Patrimoine contains all the relevant information,” points out Jean-François Assenarre, IT manager at SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE, “the building’s biodata, its maintenance record and its energy performance.” And, with regard to this last point, all the necessary expertise and guarantees are afforded by Signa-Terre. After all, this is the company which in 2007 brought out the “ImmoLabel ®”, a certified indicator which rates every building on a scale from A to G, depending on its heating requirements, its emissions of CO2 and its consumption of water and electricity (see our article on p. 49). Signa-Terre has added further sustainable development criteria to the Fiche Patrimoine, such as waste, water, asbestos, noise, etc. “This tool will soon be indispensable,” concludes Jean-François Assenarre, “to help management companies to capitalise their information and to enable landlords to make the right decisions with regard to their real estate assets.” ■

- Spring 2010 - n° 26

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-- Printemps no 22 Spring 20102008 - n° -26

31/03/2010 11:43:19

Nature is coming to town

e ur et is rly ! s en fl e e lea rop s ea is f p Pl t th d o a e th os sp di

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L’écolepour chacun to pour soi! Naturetous, is coming town

Readers, your opinion is important for us ! Would you like to comment on one of our articles or to ask a question ? If you would, just go to our website www.immoranma.ch and enter it under the heading “Respond to one of our articles”. Alternatively, send us an email at redaction@immorama.ch

Green spaces, open spaces, urban spaces : much more than just the lungs of the city

or the first readers of Little Nicholas, it seemed perfectly natural for their hero and his classmates to run riot on the waste ground next to the local primary school. In Geneva back in the 1960s, the old abandoned observatory on the promenade of the same name – right in the middle of the city opposite the Museum of Art and History – used to serve as an unofficial theatre for children’s games. With no supervision or precautions, the kids would scramble up the spiral staircase and jump out of the first floor windows, their fall cushioned by an old mattress. Anything of the kind today would have our own children in fits and our councillors shaking in their boots. We live in an age where “freetime activities” are conducted under the beady eye of school patrols and psychologists and every green space is “managed”. Seriously though, we must recall that huge progress has been made in trying to fulfil the expectations of all age groups with regard to the urban environment. People are very much aware of their green spaces (as they are called in French-speaking Switzerland) or open spaces (as they are called in the German-speaking regions). They are looking for something user-friendly, something attractive and something with a touch of originality here and there. Once again, the city needs to win the affection if not the love of its inhabitants and visitors. Crassly functional architecture is no more in vogue than flower beds left for dogs to do their business. No longer is the client, the public authority or the citizen prepared to put up with mangy vegetation straggling over a mound of building site rubble. The spaces are being reclaimed and people have horizons that reach far beyond their window-boxes. From the heart of an urban landscape that is gradually being remodelled, our contributors offer the readers of IMMORAMA a first insight into this green revolution, a process that is, fortunately, as peaceful as it is ineluctable. ■ 8

dossier Compiled by Thierry Oppikofer

Our questions are answered by : p. 25 Manuel Tornare, administrative councillor, City of Geneva p. 26 Dr Pierre-André Loizeau, director of the Conservatory and Botanical Gardens of Geneva p. 27 Benoît Genecand, independent consultant, president of the Geneva Chamber of Real Estate p. 28 Peter Wullschleger, secretary general of the Swiss Federation of Landscape Architects at La Chauxde-Fonds p. 29 Olivier Philippe, landscape architect, a partner of the TER Agency, Paris p. 30 Natacha Litzistorf, director of equiterre p. 31 Vincent Desprez, professor at HEPIA, Geneva’s university of landscape, engineering and architecture, Landscape Architecture department p. 33 Yves Lachavanne, head of the Parks and Promenades Service of the City of Lausanne

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- Spring 2010 - n째 26

06/04/2010 15:33:37

e ur et is rly ! s en fl e e lea rop s ea is f p Pl t th d o a e th os sp di 1 Yes, a differentiated management of the green spaces of the City of Geneva

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tends to treat each space as unique, taking into consideration the spirit of the place in terms of history, aspect, location, listed buildings, respect for the environment, etc.

2 Slowly but surely. Anyway, they have understood the importance of not surrounding buildings with soulless and often unmanageable no-man’s lands that quickly begin to look decrepit. 3 Yes, on every level. Trees in all their diversity – while favouring the species of our regions – form part of our patrimony. They are not only landmarks but also lungs that are vital for the health of the city. Parks are equally places of conviviality, enabling people to meet, to engage in sport, to dream, to reflect, to have access to beauty. There must also be a symbiosis of flora and fauna to allow the parks to serve their purpose to the full.

It can be done but, in recent years, the parks have often been treated as though they were public squares, forgetting that grass and trees and flower beds are not the same as tarmac. A good example is the Geneva Festival held in the Jardin Anglais. A park is a living breathing organism. It is nature through and through and this must be taken into account.

5 Since 1982, the City of Geneva, thanks to Guy-Olivier Segond, no longer tells people to “keep off the grass” and the protection of these green spaces is now the responsibility of the citizen. Depending on the weather and events, more and more people are being attracted to the parks. It is true that bad behaviour is on the increase and that the local police – alas ! – do not have sufficient resources to prevent wilful damage and even destruction. Still, the authorities are at last thinking of taking action. In the words of the English philosopher Francis Bacon, “We cannot command nature except by obeying her”. 6 Yes, it’s being encouraged even though it’s true to say that more could be done to raise public awareness of this way of helping to beautify the city. 7 Yes, because it’s the whole community that benefits. ■ Questions 1 Is it possible to create, maintain and develop green spaces with an original form, size and variety in an urban universe as dense as that of Geneva ?

Manuel Tornare

Administrative councillor, City of Geneva

“We cannot command nature except by obeying her.” Francis Bacon, English philosopher (1561-1626) In 2008, the City of Geneva, with the support of the Edmond and Benjamin de Rothschild Foundations, renovated the Orangerie, now renamed “Pavillon Plantamour” in the Parc Mon-Repos. The pavilion has been placed at the disposal of the Association La Libellule, the aim of which is to raise public awareness of the observation, integration and protection of nature. Every year, exhibitions, lectures and excursions are organised to help the people of Geneva to get better acquainted with nature and particularly to respect their green spaces. For more information go to : www.lalibellule.ch

4 Should we try to make our parks and large green spaces more “alive” and, if so, how (games, shows) ?

Is it sufficient nowadays to put our green spaces under “the protection of the citizen” to ensure that they are respected by a public not always known for its civic sense ?

Do public, institutional and private clients pay sufficient attention to green spaces and provide them sufficient investment ?

In this field, should we encourage individual initiatives (window and balcony boxes, competitions, etc) ?

In your opinion, do green spaces, by their nature, have an educational role, a social role (meeting places) and a utilitarian role (getting rid of air pollution, growing flowers and plants) ?

Should the public authorities grant facilities such as tax deductions, subsidies and the like to clients who make the effort to design green spaces of quality ? Do you favour sponsorship in this regard ?

6 7

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dossier Nature is coming to town

Dr Pierre-André Loizeau

Director of the Conservatory and Botanical Gardens of Geneva

“Life is found in the open spaces.”

1 Yes, it’s certainly possible. It’s a concept known as “differentiated management”. The management of different spaces is defined on the basis of their use. High profile spaces that are exposed to heavy use are much more intensively maintained than others that are less visited. The latter, left in their “wild” state, can be home to a great deal of biodiversity. But the level of maintenance also depends greatly on how the public perceives its environment. Unfortunately, “clean and tidy” is all too often synonymous with a loss of diversity, an impoverishment of the space. This in turn means that a lot of work has to be done on changing mentalities. For example, getting across the message that even if late mowing gives a certain impression of neglect, the grass contains an unsuspected wealth of life. 2

I have always been astonished to hear architects refer to unbuilt spaces as “negative” spaces. As far as I’m concerned, the use of the term reveals the way in which these spaces are treated, i.e. as a colourful backdrop totally devoid of life. Yet, in fact, it’s precisely in these spaces that life is to be found.

3 At a time when more than half of the world’s population are urban dwellers, I believe that it is vital to maintain green and living spaces in our cities. For many, these spaces are the only link still attaching people to a reality that is all too often forgotten in urban areas, namely that man is part of nature, on which he depends for his food and survival. Thus, in the city, the essential role of these green areas is educational and social, serving as a constant reminder of this reality. The areas themselves are too small to justify a utilitarian purpose. 4 In their social aspect, the parks can certainly play a role as a festive meeting place. Nevertheless, I would like these spaces to be considered first and foremost as places provided to enable the public to observe and contemplate the natural world of plants and animals in the city.

Questions 1 Is it possible to create, maintain and develop green spaces with an original form, size and variety in an urban universe as dense as that of Geneva ?

Do public, institutional and private clients pay sufficient attention to green spaces and provide them sufficient investment ?

In your opinion, do green spaces, by their nature, have an educational role, a social role (meeting places) and a utilitarian role (getting rid of air pollution, growing flowers and plants) ?

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5 The problems that arise are rarely due to a few thoughtless individuals, though that can happen. On the contrary, they are the result of masses of people, each occupying and trampling over an ever larger place and repeating the same unfortunate actions. In consequence, the size of the green spaces must be determined by the number of visitors to be expected. As a corollary, it may be said that there can be no expansion of the city without making provision for green spaces on an appropriate scale. 6 Every action which helps to make the place we live in more agreeable is welcome. Every action which reminds us that man forms part of the living world is necessary. 7

The difficulty lies in the perception of the quality of an environment. A botanist will probably not have the same understanding of quality as an architect. I fear, therefore, that a subsidy will not achieve the aims for which it has been given as a defender of biodiversity. Moreover, an environment of quality need not necessarily mean additional costs at the time of establishment. The problem has to do more with lack of understanding of the actions to be taken. As far as I know, the state encourages industrialists to ring their sites with fallow land to encourage an increase in biodiversity. Generally, such solutions help to reduce maintenance costs for the areas concerned, to increase biological diversity and to improve the perception of the environment for employees and customers alike because it makes them feel better. ■ 8

- Spring 2010 - n° 26

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e ur et is rly ! s en fl e e lea rop s ea is f p Pl t th d o a e th os sp di 1 It’s a fact that the centre of Geneva is a high density area. However, if you look at the city as a whole, the quality of its green spaces is phenomenal. From where the Rhone joins the canton in the west, it is possible to walk the entire length of the river bank with hardly a road to cross. Within the framework of the Praille-Acacias-Vernet projects, allowance has been made for a “blue” walk along the River Arve. A walk is even better than a space, allowing you to pass through various spaces within an environment of quality. If I have one regret, it is that opportunities can be missed : for example, installing tramways without giving some thought as to how the route could be made greener. In other cases, there is a lack of follow-up in pushing through green spaces. Here, one could cite the example of the plan for an avenue of trees with branches meeting overhead alongside the Uni Mail building to create the effect of a “tunnel of green gloom”. This was simply dropped amid general indifference.

2 The answer is probably no. This question comes at the end of the financial plan. A better cooperation between the public and private sectors would be desirable, for example with regard to the long-term maintenance of the spaces.

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L’écolepour chacun to pour soi! Naturetous, is coming town

Benoît Genecand

Independent consultant, president of the Geneva Chamber of Real Estate

“Don’t lock the green spaces up in conceptual boxes.”

3 The green spaces are multi-functional. We mustn’t try to lock them up in conceptual boxes, green or otherwise. One of their functions today is to interconnect. I think that there is a risk of becoming a bit technocratic if the intention is to specify in detail the use that people will make of the green spaces. For myself, I prefer the German term Freiräume, or open spaces. Somewhere that kids could build huts, act out their adventures ... There were risks but what fun it was ! 4 Not necessarily. Certain events like concerts and plays already take place in the bigger parks or at neighbourhood level. I don’t think that more needs to be done. To go back to the case of the banks of the Rhone, I think it would be a pity if this incursion of semi-wild nature into the middle of town were to be too “structured”, with gravel paths, ice-cream shops and other redundant gimmicks.

5 Yes, I do. I’m not going to join in the chorus that public spirit is in decline, that people are more slovenly, that things are going from bad to worse. It seems to me that, as people are living longer and living better, they can’t all be vandals and layabouts. Things are not getting uglier, dirtier or beyond repair. At the same time, I’m not so naive as to think that a nice new wall will stay clean if the walls around it are covered with graffiti. 6

I don’t there is much point in such initiatives in a big city. Geneva is not a picturesque spa resort. To imagine that 21st century city-dwellers can be drilled into growing geraniums on their balconies is a bit unrealistic.

7 I think that, if the space is genuinely public, it would be better to opt for tasksharing, with the client providing the initial investment and the district then taking over and assuming responsibility for maintenance. It seems to me that this approach, with both partners making an effort, is interesting. It’s hard to imagine the state or a local authority shelling out money directly or indirectly for standard exteriors simply to promote the sale of a development. Public sponsorship or a subsidy could be conceivable if it were a question of genuine green spaces or public amenities, or even statues or murals by local artists. However, that could also generate a lot of red-tape. ■ 8

Questions 4 Should we try to make our parks and large green spaces more “alive” and, if so, how (games, shows) ?

Is it sufficient nowadays to put our green spaces under “the protection of the citizen” to ensure that they are respected by a public not always known for its civic sense ?

In this field, should we encourage individual initiatives (window and balcony boxes, competitions, etc) ?

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di tha Ple sp t as os th e ed is en of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly !

Absolutely ! As we know from the celebrated Swiss army knife, quality and originality don’t depend on size. Nevertheless, there are a lot more challenges to be taken up in highly concentrated urban areas not only in terms of layout but also of intensity of use and the requirements and expectations of the population. If the project is to succeed, it is important to involve the future users at the earliest possible stage.

Peter Wullschleger

Secretary general of the Swiss Federation of Landscape Architects at La Chaux de Fonds

“The authorities must set an example.”

2 Of course they don’t and not only in Geneva ! Very often open spaces are not considered to be real elements in the quality of an architectural project but simply as add-ons that would be nice to have but, when it comes to making cuts, they are the first to go. The importance of open or green spaces for quality in the urban environment or residential areas is often underestimated. Yet, for families with young children, the existence of open spaces nearby is one of the main criteria for choosing their house or apartment or even neighbourhood. 3 Urban green or open spaces always fulfil a number of functions simultaneously, the proportions varying, depending on the location or the imperatives of the place. From this point of view, it is often the social aspect that predominates in town.

4 Not necessarily. Here again, everything depends on the precise location and the object under consideration. Ideas differ on how public spaces should be used. Places that are calm and quiet are just as essential as those that are lively and crowded. On the other hand, if a green space does not give satisfaction because it is badly designed or unattractive, then something clearly has to be done.

Questions 1 Is it possible to create, maintain and develop green spaces with an original form, size and variety in an urban universe as dense as that of Geneva ?

Do public, institutional and private clients pay sufficient attention to green spaces and provide them sufficient investment ?

In your opinion, do green spaces, by their nature, have an educational role, a social role (meeting places) and a utilitarian role (getting rid of air pollution, growing flowers and plants) ?

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5 It’s perfectly clear that the behaviour of visitors to parks and public spaces has changed a great deal over the past fifty years and the same goes for other places as well. This change needs to be taken into account in project planning. Nowadays, it’s possible to produce vandal-proof installations but it’s vital to ensure that the intensive maintenance of certain spaces is written into the long-term investment and maintenance budgets. It is often the case that the respect shown to a place depends directly on its intrinsic quality. The more the configuration of a space fulfils the needs of the users and the better it is maintained, the less the likelihood that it will be vandalised. 6 Though it’s certainly true that this can help to raise popular awareness with regard to the beauty of the environment, such initiatives must be carefully planned and must not seek in any way to substitute for a professional approach to the development of private, semi-private and public green spaces. 7 No, they shouldn’t. An adequate supply and a high standard of quality should be encouraged among clients for green spaces as well as buildings in the strict sense. This is easily arranged under the existing construction laws and regulations. Sponsorship is no more justifiable for the spaces around a building than for its doors and windows. It goes without saying, of course, that public authorities must set an example in their own works. It will be easier to persuade private clients to act virtuously if they can see that the authorities responsible for laying down requirements of this kind in their planning permission procedures themselves assume their responsibilities and set out to create high quality green spaces and developments. ■ 8

- Spring 2010 - n° 26

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e ur et is rly ! s en fl e e lea rop s ea is f p Pl t th d o a e th os sp di 1 If we could just get away from the financial question, there should in theory be

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L’écolepour chacun to pour soi! Naturetous, is coming town

nothing to prevent the emergence of a creative culture of gardens and urban public spaces. The reality, however, is rather different. A conventional, conservative and hyper-functionalist style of thinking still holds sway when it comes to gardens and public spaces.

2 It’s certainly true that there has been great progress. The city has become a place of pleasure and comfort, its dominant values being a leisurely pace and time to lounge about. This imposes a different division of space and that constitutes an enormous challenge in terms of policy. It also represents more than ever an extraordinary tool for the development of our land and building stock. There is, in fact, a real interest on the part of all the players in the city and the investments appear to be sufficient. The one deficiency that may be observed is a lack of resources for the management of these spaces. Given the economic situation, this insufficiency will be long-lasting and that requires us to rethink our methods of drawing up projects. 3 They certainly have this threefold role to a degree and extent that varies according to the context. But the true role of any place is its power to elicit emotion, to astound us. It is not necessary to put on a big show. The emotion can be generated by very simple things, such as a lawn that is well conceived in its geometry and topography, that offers us a clarity and a presence that brings it to life in its environment and confers on it a status other than that of a mere patch of greenery.

Olivier Philippe

Landscape architect, a partner of the TER Agency, Paris

“The city has become a place of pleasure and comfort !”

4 I often like to cite the example of the Parc de la Villette in Paris, designed by the Swiss-American Bernard Tschumi. For Parisians, the park was a real revolution. The surprise for me is not its aesthetic aspect, which is sneeringly dismissed in certain quarters as over-expressive. No, it is the fact that Tschumi has invented the modern urban park, an amalgam of fairground and garden. A place which combines multipurpose usage, a lavish programme of events and equipment, and the tactile and sensual pleasure of a vast flat lawn, accessible to everyone and at all times. Parks, like their 19th century antecedents, are no longer simply a place of nature or a representation of nature. Nowadays, people are looking for very hybrid parks, places epitomising a pleasure that engages all of the senses in different temporalities.

5 From our own experience, parks and gardens are generally treated with respect. Very little damage is suffered, even in so-called difficult areas – for example on the outskirts of Paris where we would be confronted by gangs of youths from time to time during construction. Once parks have been planted, they are much less liable to wilful damage than non-green public spaces. Obviously though, they must be well maintained with any damage being repaired as soon as it is observed.

6 Yes, we probably should, though I confess to a certain suspicion about “beauty contests”, which are often the vehicle for a very reductive and static idea of what can be considered “beautiful”. 7 The idea of tax breaks is very interesting. I think that a system like the one used in the US for works of art would be a real incentive. However, the effectiveness of this type of arrangement depends on developments providing a genuine added value in aesthetic and ecological terms. Accordingly, it would be necessary to make tax deductions subject to delivery of this added value and that would require a selection procedure that could be difficult to set in place. ■ 8

Questions 4 Should we try to make our parks and large green spaces more “alive” and, if so, how (games, shows) ?

Is it sufficient nowadays to put our green spaces under “the protection of the citizen” to ensure that they are respected by a public not always known for its civic sense ?

In this field, should we encourage individual initiatives (window and balcony boxes, competitions, etc) ?

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1 This is a fundamental question which has to do with the quality of life in town.

Natacha Litzistorf Director of equiterre

“People must learn to love the city.”

Everything we do is intended not only to create but also to develop and maintain green spaces in an effective way so that people do not have to go out beyond the city limits to find nature. Among other things, this urban sprawl generates transport and pollution problems. Along with other actors in society, equiterre seeks to develop green spaces and to get people involved in them. Our “pocket handkerchief gardens” exploit little fallow areas, turning these interstices into places in which to breathe and relax. Maintained by the local population, these sites reconcile economy of resources, the social aspect and environmental benefit.

2 Great efforts are being made today but still not enough. We are trying to maintain a dialogue, particularly with general contractors, to get people to understand that quality exteriors represent an added value, even if it cannot always be translated into monetary terms. After all, particularly in France, there are examples of places where well-maintained greens around apartment blocks have increased rental values. In certain cases, negotiations between the different owners and the local authority to establish a simple “pocket handkerchief garden” have made it possible to sort out land management problems. 3 It is clear that they do have the three roles. The greenery creates a social bond ; people come together easily, even if it’s just to admire the same flowers. In terms of the climate, the importance of green spaces is self-evident, even up on the roof or facades. It’s also a known fact that greenery is good for your health – according to a recent study, convalescents get better more quickly if their room in the clinic gives onto a garden !

4 It’s not necessary to organise events every week. However, operations like “rus in urbe” combine both entertainment and education. Apart from that, people often look to the park or public garden as an environment offering peace and quiet. In short, we have to avoid, on the one hand, turning the green spaces into museums and, on the other, making them overly dynamic.

Questions 1 Is it possible to create, maintain and develop green spaces with an original form, size and variety in an urban universe as dense as that of Geneva ?

Do public, institutional and private clients pay sufficient attention to green spaces and provide them sufficient investment ?

In your opinion, do green spaces, by their nature, have an educational role, a social role (meeting places) and a utilitarian role (getting rid of air pollution, growing flowers and plants) ?

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5 It all depends on how the spaces in question have been created or developed. If people take to a place, they will respect it. For example, neighbourhood green spaces don’t suffer too much damage. For rather larger parks, instead of notices and barriers, we recommend educational and preventive measures and initiatives to motivate residents and visitors. Like the “Respect” campaign, it is a long-term task.

6 Admittedly, flower shows and the like are a bit kitsch and old-fashioned but at least they give city-dwellers something of their own to connect them with nature. Having said that, allotments for example can have a concentration of chemical fertilisers that makes them literally polluted sites. But we must not be too purist –growing flowers on your balcony to compare them with your neighbour’s, that is the sort of individual act that can end up giving a general boost to nature in the town.

7 I think that is a very interesting approach. Why not try the carrot rather than the stick ! The public authorities would not lose out financially and it would be an incentive for everyone to improve the quality of our environment. After all, the same policy in agriculture has produced good results for the landscape. We are open to innovative measures, provided that they help us to achieve a higher quality urban environment. ■ 8

- Spring 2010 - n° 26

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e ur et is rly ! s en fl e e lea rop s ea is f p Pl t th d o a e th os sp di 1 I would extend the question to the whole territory of Geneva and the surrounding region. Our course is working on the landscape management of the France-Vaud-Geneva agglomeration and this seems to me to be essential for designing development scenarios with a proper sense of perspective. In Geneva, there is no overall vision. Frankly speaking, there is no innovative policy for the development of public spaces, which must not be seen solely from the viewpoint of “green spaces”. As a result, we are living on the heritage of the past. In other words, our vision is backward-looking whereas Geneva merits public spaces that are worthy of our own times. Of these, there are very few. Still, maybe things will change ... Lausanne seems to have a bolder approach to this field, as may be seen from recent town planning actions, not to mention others such as its “shared gardens”, an interesting experiment in developing small areas, “neglected” spaces, made available to the people of the neighbourhood, such as around trees. My own opinion is that it’s no good just sticking green everywhere. Certain urban areas don’t need to be systematically “greened” and they should become or remain open or be developed on a mineral rather than a vegetable basis.

2 This is the nub of the problem. It’s not really a question of money but rather of planning. When you are going to build, you pay attention to the object, you launch competitions, you make allowances for the unforeseeable so that the work does not suffer. This means that landscaping professionals have to be associated with the project from the start. Nowadays, good work can only be on an interdisciplinary basis. Major projects cannot be carried out successfully through orders from the top. If you have to go back to the specialists once the job has been completed, the impact on the cost of the works can be serious. 3 All three roles at the same time. In urban and peri-urban areas, the highest importance must be attached to the future use of the space and to the expectations of the community. That’s the whole point of development, even though it is all too often forgotten. Attention may also be paid at the same time to the biodiversity that is going to ensue, i.e. the flora and fauna that will colonise the space. The notion of “nature” in the city is not a concept reserved to some environmental ayatollah or other. It is a reality, even if this “nature” is heavily marked by human intervention. 4 This is a question of scale in every sense of the term. It depends on the size and the configuration of the public spaces and green spaces. It is necessary to respect the places and any existing role they may play. For example, it is very fashionable to illuminate certain parks and/or trees but this can disturb their ecosystems. At the same time, it’s also possible to have places where events and activity are welcome, particularly if they don’t last too long – one might think here, for example, of Geneva’s Pont de la Machine. On the other hand, the Jardin Botanique is not an annexe of the Paléo music festival, so all the emphasis should be on the discovery of the plants and their environments. In short, we should not distort the nature of a space – green or otherwise – but should seek to enhance it through appropriate activities. 5 It is a fact that anti-social behaviour is a problem of our times that also has an impact on green spaces, parks and public places. Various measures have been taken – warning notices, video cameras, security personnel – but they are not really convincing. If people, irrespective of age or class, feel at home in an environment of quality, they will respect it all the more. If we take, for example, the Lullier training site (Nature and Environment professional training centre and University of Landscape, Engineering and Architecture), we can see that 8

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L’écolepour chacun to pour soi! Naturetous, is coming town

Vincent Desprez

Professor at HEPIA, Geneva’s university of landscape, engineering and architecture, Landscape Architecture department

“Landscaping professionals have to be associated with the project from the start.”

Questions 4 Should we try to make our parks and large green spaces more “alive” and, if so, how (games, shows) ?

Is it sufficient nowadays to put our green spaces under “the protection of the citizen” to ensure that they are respected by a public not always known for its civic sense ?

In this field, should we encourage individual initiatives (window and balcony boxes, competitions, etc) ?

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Questions 6 In this field, should we encourage individual initiatives (window and balcony boxes, competitions, etc) ?

di tha Ple sp t as os th e ed is en of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly ! the young people who study and work there are less inclined than others to deface the infrastructures with graffiti and the like. At Neuchâtel, the young people of the neighbourhoods and school children were involved in the policy for renovating public spaces when it came to the equipment of playgrounds ... and it worked very well.

6 I am still sceptical about the value of these competitions, which serve mainly to boost the sales of the garden centres. I would prefer to see a raising of awareness of the environment through other types of initiatives with the participation of associations and neighbourhood activities, such as the maintenance of “shared gardens” and the like. And that of course has to be properly organised with specifications to be met. The “Lausanne Gardens” operation made it possible to establish new uses for certain public places in that city which had become run down. Indeed, when we wanted to remove some of the developments created by students on our courses, the local people protested that they wanted them kept.

7 Every incentive to improve quality is welcome. After all, there are subsidies

demie98.pdf 13.01.2009 14:43:19

for solar panels ! But it seems to me that the role of the public authorities in the first place is to show that they are demanding with regard to their contractors and their personnel and to be certain that they secure the resources to match their ambitions. Whether it’s a building, a school or a bridge, the works are always inaugurated in a pristine state and only start to show signs of wear much later. A garden on the other hand takes years to reach the perfection envisaged in the initial project. It’s all a question of finding the resources ! ■ 8

André Blatti MEMBRE DE LA CHAMBRE GENEVOISE DE CARRELAGE ET DE LA CÉRAMIQUE

REVÊTEMENTS MOSAÏQUES CARRELAGES MARBRE

T 022 343 60 06 F 022 342 25 88 P 079 206 67 70 www.andreblatti.ch a.blatti@andreblatti.ch

28, rue Alexandre-Gavard 1227 Carouge

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1 The ever increasing density of urban construction (a very topical issue) necessarily leads to a dearth of open spaces. Thus, to ensure the quality of life of the population, a key task is to maintain and develop open spaces of quality, diversified not only in terms of size and form but also in the uses to which they can be put. Linked together to form a network, our parks, neighbourhood squares, promenades, tree-lined avenues and the little nooks and crannies of nature in between all help to make the city a more attractive place and to meet the expectations of the population. The various Lausanne Jardins shows held since 1997 to popularise contemporary gardens have demonstrated the possibilities of developing urban space thanks to original designs in unexpected contexts, often with the simplest of resources. The future ecodistrict planned for the north-east of Lausanne within the framework of the Métamorphose project will no doubt be an excellent testing ground for various landscaping arrangements that are friendly both to users and the environment. 2 The

city of Lausanne attaches great importance to the development and maintenance of its parks and greenery. Its elected representatives support many projects requiring commitments and investment, such as the restoration of its historic parks, the fitting out of high quality public spaces and differentiated management of its green spaces in order to offer a greater place to nature in the town. Private green spaces, which occupy a large part of the urban territory, do not always have the benefit of the same attention. In new building projects, the external aspects are often treated as poor relations when it comes to the investments allocated for construction. Their incorporation in the planning at the earliest stages and recourse to the skills of landscape architects should permit quality to be improved in this field without necessarily increasing costs.

3 Urban green spaces of course have their own special roles to play, including social, cultural, aesthetic, recreational and ecological. In each specific case, the role will depend on the context and will take into consideration the needs of the users. Accordingly, a differentiated approach to the use of the parks at city level is necessary to ensure that the wishes of each user are satisfied. In 1996, for example, the Parks and Promenades Department of the city of Lausanne initiated its allotment project to make little plots of land available to neighbourhood residents as kitchen gardens. The allotments offer the local population the opportunity to remain in contact with the land and to promote social ties between the generations and between people of different origins. Another example is the development of public spaces to meet the growing demand for places in which people can take a snack on a public bench during the lunch break under the shade of a tree.

4 The parks and larger green spaces must remain above all places that are suitable for taking a stroll and for relaxation and contemplation, places that offer freedom of movement and are devoid of social tensions. Accordingly, we must be careful not to turn them into supermarkets in any effort to make them more “lively”. Nevertheless, this caveat does not exclude the occasional organisation of parties, concerts or film shows, which is in fact what happens in Lausanne’s most beautiful parks on fine summer days.

5 Fortunately, our green spaces are not prone to acts of vandalism. The trees and flower beds seem to be treated with a natural respect on the part of the 8 great majority of the population. On the other hand, Lausanne is not

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L’écolepour chacun to pour soi! Naturetous, is coming town

Yves Lachavanne

Head of the Parks and Promenades Department of the City of Lausanne

“Quality doesn’t necessarily mean additional cost.”

Questions 1 Is it possible to create, maintain and develop green spaces with an original form, size and variety in an urban universe as dense ?

Do public, institutional and private clients pay sufficient attention to green spaces and provide them sufficient investment ?

In your opinion, do green spaces, by their nature, have an educational role, a social role (meeting places) and a utilitarian role (getting rid of air pollution, growing flowers and plants) ?

Should we try to make our parks and large green spaces more “alive” and, if so, how (games, shows) ?

Is it sufficient nowadays to put our green spaces under “the protection of the citizen” to ensure that they are respected by a public not always known for its civic sense ?

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Questions 6 In this field, should we encourage individual initiatives (window and balcony boxes, competitions, etc) ?

di tha Ple sp t as os th e ed is en of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly ! immune from litter louts, a new phenomenon which results in great quantities of rubbish ending up on the ground rather than in the litter bins provided. These bad habits considerably increase the costs of cleaning : in the last ten years, the number of man-hours devoted to this one task has increased from 6 000 to 17 000 p.a., the equivalent of six additional posts. The best way of countering this plague is probably through awareness-raising campaigns and environmental education in the schools.

6 There is no better form of teaching than setting a good example. The temporary gardens established by the Lausanne Jardins shows have enabled visitors to discover flowers and arrangements a whole world away from the traditional balcony box of geraniums. No doubt they have inspired the spontaneous initiatives by local inhabitants who have taken over little areas around the foot of trees in the streets of Lausanne, transforming them into “pocket handkerchief gardens” by planting hollyhocks, cosmos and nasturtiums.

7 It is hard to imagine public funds ever being made available for developing private green spaces. So, it is up to the developers, the property managers, cooperatives and private individuals to subscribe to the sustainable development trend. The task of the public authorities is to set an example by producing developments of quality and promoting new practices that respect the environment. By way of illustration, we would like to see the Lausanne district allotment scheme being extended to the areas around private buildings. The city envisages providing help in planning such places. ■ butty26.pdf 01/02/2010 14:38:26

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PORTALES & BONNET Mazout 26_local_14_sanc.indd 35

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Téléphone: 022 757 17 40 Fax: 022 757 17 55 25/02/2010 15:19:45

06/04/2010 15:33:52

Nature is coming to town

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écoles dutomonde Nature Les is coming town

e ur et is rly ! s en fl e e lea rop s ea is f p Pl t th d o a e th os sp di

mmodossier web+

L’écolepour tous, chacun pour soi! See also Italy, Geneva, United Kingdom on our website at : www.immorama.ch under Immodossier

A bouquet of green ideas

ity dwellers yearn for nature with all their being, with all their senses. They need room to breathe, fresh air, greenery, harmony. They want to swap their drab, grey, lifeless, sterile surroundings for living spaces that are sweet-smelling, fertile and colourful. All over the globe, efforts – often unexpected – are being tried out to integrate nature into the urban environment. The following world tour constitutes a brief anthology of ideas worth bringing to fruition. The ideas selected are obviously adapted to the way of life and the culture of the particular countries, differing to such an extent that they might be summarised in the phrase : “Show me your garden and I will tell you who you are”. For example, in England, a country with a great gardening reputation, a vast campaign entitled “Capital Growth” has been launched with the aim of creating no less than 2012 kitchen gardens in London by 2012, the year of the Olympic Games. In Japan, commercial centres are taking on the appearance of hanging gardens, with a vast range of plants bringing a spirit of zen to the shopping mall. In Mexico, roof gardens are greening the city with a native vegetation that thrives in the harsh climatic conditions. Originality is everywhere evident in one form or another. In Montreal, for example, seedbombs hurled by Canada’s green guerrillas are producing explosions of colour. From a reading of this feature and reference to our IMMOWEB+ site, it will be clear that there is no shortage of ideas. Though the ecological approach is not yet people’s natural reflex, the green revolution is most certainly under way. The city has become a field for experiment, both literally and figuratively. ■ 8

dossier Dossier produced by Christine Esseiva

worldtour Contents p. 38 p. 39 p. 40 p. 41 p. 42 p. 43 p. 46

Lausanne United Kingdom Mexico Canada Japan Burkina Faso France

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By Valérie Hoffmeyer Switzerland

“In Lausanne, the idea blossomed that gardens would be more fitting for public spaces that art or urban furniture.” The full text of this article can be read on www.immorama.ch

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At les Croisettes, the “let’s plant !” experiment was the focus for many events throughout the summer, from the official opening of Lausanne Jardins 2009 in May through to the closing harvest in October.

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di tha Ple sp t as os th e ed is en of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly ! Temporary gardens are all the rage throughout Europe and among the most successful are those of Lausanne. Yet, despite numerous attempts at imitation, they have gained few followers. For an explanation, let us turn to Francesco Della Casa, the organiser of the events in 2004 and 2009. The biggest hit of the 2009 event was an 800 square metre plot of kitchen gardens planted in a rejuvenated orchard : no vandalism, throngs of visitors for the plantings and then a rich harvest of fruit and vegetables grown in situ. Who but Francesco Della Casa would have bet on the success of this garden, situated in the heart of a densely populated district some distance from the centre of town and with a reputation of being difficult ! The architect, editor in chief of Tracés magazine, former spokesman of the Geneva Chamber of Real Estate and organiser of the last two Lausanne Jardins shows is a firm believer in the garden as a “tool” for developing towns and districts in a new, different and sustainable way. Little in the way of vandalism “During the proposals competition for this Lausanne Jardins show, a number of teams showed an interest in this site, newly served by the M2 underground line but situated in a cheerless area hemmed in by blocks of flats. One of the competitors, with the laudable intention of improving the image of the neighbourhood, proposed that all of the balconies should be decorated with the same plant to create a facade effect. Though an interesting idea, it was not at all in tune with the inhabitants. After all, what will it bring them but useless constraints and yet more uniformity ? If people don’t understand the purpose of a development, they feel either imposed on or excluded. And the result is always vandalism,” concludes Della Casa. To deduce from this that plants are more fitting for public spaces than art or urban furniture is but a step and one that the architect does not hesitate to take : “Objects are very often vandalised, plants very rarely.” Visited by around 40 000 people, this exhibition which puts public spaces on show without pretentiousness of any kind, does not appear to have lost any of the impetus it has enjoyed since its launch in 1997 under the vigorous leadership of Yvette Jaggi, the organiser at the time. “One of her inspirations was to associate the municipal Parks and Promenades Department (PPD) with the event from the very beginning, not only to maintain the gardens but also to make a creative contribution. The result is an enviable spur to creativity that has made the PPD one of the top specialists in Europe,” remarks Della Casa. Backing for the project Could the concept be exported elsewhere in Switzerland, to Geneva for example ? “It could indeed, provided that the city manages to get its various departments to back the project and to motivate the authorities to contribute the necessary resources.” In Lausanne, the councillors vote a budget of around CHF 1 million every four years. On top of that, there are contributions coming from other sources as well : in 2009 for example, Lausanne public transport (TL) placed all of its infrastructures at the disposal of the event. Maintenance is provided free of charge by the PPD and some gardens even enjoy the sponsorship of private patrons. And the results ? As there are no entry charges, the show generates profits only indirectly, particularly through tourism. However, according to Della Francesca, the city garners other long term benefits that are real but difficult to quantify. “These range from the reconquest of residual spaces and administrative decompartmentalisation through to certain gardens becoming permanent – twenty or so since the inception of Lausanne Jardins. Moreover, certain contributions also open up a public debate. For example, take the Place du Château in the old town. Ordinarily, it is used for car parking but this year it was planted with thousands of geraniums. This not only launched the idea of returning it to the pedestrian but it also took shape in reality. Everyone has been able to see the benefits and I am sure that its future development will be in this direction.” Can the garden serve to bring the city to life ? “Yes, it can. And also gardeners can inspire the town planners ... who are sorely in need of inspiration !” ■ 8

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affected by the crisis, London has launched an ambitious programme intended to mmodossier create thousands of community gardens. Cucumbers and tomatoes are now to L’écolepour tous, chacun pour soi! be grown on the city’s council estates, on roofs and even on the water. Community gardens are springing up In the middle of the rundown blocks of flats of Blenheim Gardens, flowers, tomatoes and pumpkins are now growing at the foot of the dirt-blackened brick walls. “I told myself that here, instead of muddy flower beds with nothing in them, we could grow vegetables.” In November 2008, Bonnie Hewson, a resident, put the idea to a meeting of the tenants association. “They saw the advantages straight away : people will get to know each other, the teenagers will get involved and there will be less graffiti,” she recalls. In less time than it takes to grow a lettuce, more than 400 flower beds, squares, By Loïc Vennin balconies and even the roof of the prefabricated social centre were converted United Kingdom into community kitchen gardens, giving a lot of pleasure to hundreds of tenants on the estate. “Everybody lent a hand, from the kids to their grand-parents,” says Bonnie. “That’s how the estate got the nickname “Blenheim Gardens Edible Estate” (BGEE). Community gardens like BGEE are springing all over the world but what makes this project special is that it forms part of an ambitious plan to make London a greener place. Baptised “Capital Growth”, the programme seeks to establish gardens dedicated to growing fruit, vegetables, herbs and flowers ready for 2012, the year of the London Olympics. Open to the public and free of charge, the gardens welcome anyone who has green fingers or would to like develop some. Every project that is selected qualifies for free advice and subsidies ranging from £ 200 to £ 1 500 and a budget of £ 150 000 has been allocated for this purpose. Educate, meet, preserve The project has a number of objectives : growing their own vegetables will help out with the housekeeping money of a population hard hit by the crisis ; teaching people to get back to the land will raise awareness of the environment and thus of the problems of global warming ; and, finally, the greening of the city will help to reduce pollution. Nearly a fifth of the United Kingdom’s emissions of CO2 is connected with food products and particularly their refrigeration, transport or growing under glass. All of these effects will be avoided by people growing food in their own gardens. “It’s a win-win situation,” enthuses London’s mayor, Boris Johnson. “Capital Growth” is good for the community and good for the environment too.” BGEE was the first community garden to be registered within the framework of the Capital Growth programme launched in November 2008. Now, a little over a year later, more than 200 gardens of this kind have been established. We have seen a good number of potential sites taking the “edible” route, some like Blenheim Gardens but also schools, balconies and even a barge moored on a branch of the Thames, since renamed “The Floating Garden”. The enthusiasm is infectious : a prison has opened a kitchen garden for its inmates, while the Hilton Hotel in Trafalgar Square right in the centre of London is planning to establish a herb garden on the roof. The latest news is that the London Underground has opened a derelict site to the public covering Southwark station in the south-east corner of the capital. But the town hall does not intend stopping there. There are also projects for planting vines on water reservoirs and fruit trees in the moat area of the Tower of London, the old fortress of William the Conqueror. As for the fruit and vegetables grown in this way, Rosie Boycott, environmental officer in the mayor’s Abbey Gardens in east London. office, has not concealed her ambition to see some of the produce ending up on A community kitchen garden at the the plates of the athletes taking part in the 2012 Olympic Games. ■ 8 time of its first crop.

To go green, London grows greens

ur e is y !

re is ! su let rly n e f e e lea rop s ea is f p Pl t th d o a e th os sp di To beautify the city, to reduce pollution and to help households with budgets

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Mexico :

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Roof gardens take off

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By Patrick John Buffe Mexico

“In parallel with roof gardens, green facades are beginning to appear in the historic centre of Mexico City.”

Mexico. Wall gardens flourish on building facades.

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di tha Ple sp t as os th e ed is en of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly ! At the initiative of Mexico’s town hall, gardens are beginning to appear on rooftops in the heart of the city. However, it will take a few years before they become sufficiently generalised to have an impact on climate change at the level of the capital. A concrete jungle has been spreading out, taking over virtually every green space in Mexico City. Of the green lungs of the capital, only Chapultepec Park has escaped the invasion. In 2007, however, within the framework of its sustainable development policy, the government of the federal district launched a roof garden programme designed to reduce the effects of climate change and urban hot spots. To this end, the city council has, over the past two years, constructed around 12 000 square metres of roof gardens on public buildings, schools, metro stations and, most recently, the terraces of a hospital which now provide patients with a leafy garden walk. According to Martha Delgado, the minister of the environment for the capital, this marks only the beginning of an ambitious ongoing project ; “Our aim is to create an additional 3 000 square metres of roof garden every year between now and 2012.” Pioneer in Latin America By comparison with other places, Mexico City offers a number of advantages for carrying out such projects. For one thing, roof terraces are available not only on large buildings but on most private houses. In addition, Mexico’s native vegetation is perfectly suited to roof gardens, being shallow rooted and requiring only minimal maintenance. This applies particularly to succulents and even more to cacti. They are capable of surviving pollution, high temperatures, water shortages during the dry season and heavy precipitation during the rainy season. A pioneer when it comes to roof gardens, Mexico City is the first country in Latin America to have established a standard setting out the criteria to be respected in this domain. A necessary move as we are talking here not just about putting in pot plants but of having recourse to professional skills to take into consideration the additional load to be supported by the building, the installation of damp-proof membranes, drainage systems and a layer of earth specially prepared to the thickness required for the type of plants to be grown. Tax advantages Since 2007, it has been the government of the federal district which has been financing most of the roof gardens in Mexico, with the equivalent of around one million Swiss francs invested to date. For the future, however, the authorities would like to see the private sector taking the initiative. So far, however, there have been only a few isolated cases, such as that of a large private bank.On the other hand, there is no getting around the fact that the cost of a roof garden – around CHF 100.– per square metre – represents a considerable burden for private individuals. Hence the need for tax incentives. Otherwise, as Sergio Ampudia, professor at the Pan-American University points out, “these roof gardens will have only a token value, since they have to compete with other uses, such as the installation of water tanks, satellite dishes and solar panels”. Under their programme for the development of sustainable buildings, the Mexican authorities are already able to offer tax incentives for new buildings which incorporate ecological features, including particularly roof gardens. But there is more to come. The city council will shortly be submitting a draft law to the legislative assembly of the federal district which will offer, according to Martha Delgado, “fiscal advantages through the reduction of property taxes for private individuals who construct a garden on the roof of their building.” A measure which would see roof gardens becoming an established feature of the capital city. ■ 8

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Canada :

already prepared for battle. Orders are dispatched through Facebook and mmodossier rendezvous are fixed. Bombs in their backpacks, the clandestine gardeners are L’écolepour tous, chacun pour soi! already identifying their next targets : neglected spaces in run-down urban areas. Challenging this scene of desolation, the green guerrillas ready their weapons, leap on their bikes and prepare for their green bomb attack. The method of operation is simple. With the help of instructions gleaned from the Internet, the rebel gardeners gather to prepare an arsenal consisting of seedbombs. It couldn’t be easier. Just take a lump of clay, a bit of compost, soil and water. Insert a few selected seeds of a particularly hardy variety. Mould it into a ball and leave it to harden for a few days. The preferred targets are forlorn spots, difficult to access on foot and crying out for a touch of greenery. Sarah, a graphic designer in her thirties, is a new adept of this urban leisure By Isabelle Paré activity. “The invitation was sent out on a girlfriend’s Facebook page. There were Canada about twenty of us meeting for the first time. We went off afterwards with our bombs and we lobbed them here and there a few days later,” she explains. Recently established in Montreal, the guerrilla gardening movement is winning more and more adherents in the English-speaking countries where citizens by the hundred are getting into the fray and greening the cities with their seedbombs. Others take up their spades by night to create impromptu gardens on public lands. Often conducted as a night-time exercise, seedbombing is the favourite operation for these urban ecologists in search of thrills and green outcomes. Thrown from a distance, the bomb allows them to seed areas that are otherwise difficult to access. “The best places are contaminated land because certain kinds of plant like nettles are good for cleansing the soil. The objective is not to just beautify the city but also to raise awareness through a striking symbol,” affirms JeanSébastien Vermette, an environmental sciences student at the University of Quebec at Montreal (UQAM). Battling with bitumen There are no holds barred when it comes to the battle against bitumen. At UQAM, the students have carried the fight to some of the internal courtyards of the campus to sow tomatoes and beans. Though the university administration took umbrage at first, they decided in the end to assign to them the maintenance of parts of its green spaces, thus creating a few summer jobs along the way. In high summer, the drone of the petrol-engined mower machine is no longer to be heard, replaced by an old-fashioned manual machine. The new kitchen gardens now thriving in the inner courtyard of the Science Pavilion served to provide fresh vegetables for the infants in the UQAM crèche as well as homeless people lodged in a hostel a stone’s throw away. Gradually, some ordinary citizens are turning themselves into gardeners to inject a little dose of chlorophyll into their cities. Though some of their improved gardens are soon raked away by municipality workers, others are tolerated and become an integral part of the urban landscape. In the Mile End district of Montreal, Emilie, a young art student has managed to influence the fate of a green space that Canadian Pacific Railways had fenced off for a real estate development. To raise the awareness of her fellow citizens to the value of this haven, the young woman has created a living work of art with pick and spade. See also Stone and shrubs now mark out an immense Roerich symbol of peace visible Italy, Geneva, United Kingdom from high above, similar to the one used in the Second World War to protect on our website at : churches, hospitals and schools. “For me, this is a powerful symbol. It illustrates just www.immorama.ch how valuable this land really is. Not only for its beauty but for its biodiversity,” she under Immodossier explains. ■ 8

Urban commandos are greening the city with seedbombs

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a fusion of town and garden

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By Johann Fleuri Japan

Fukuoka City. The prefecture of the island of Kyushu represents a marriage of architecture and nature.

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di tha Ple sp t as os th e ed is en of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly ! To create new green spaces despite the shortage of room, Japan has been marrying environment and edifice with the result that green lungs have been emerging all over the archipelago. “Just as the human body can function only through the circulation of the blood, the survival of the urban environment depends on the links established between green spaces and water,” stresses Tatsuya Hiraga, a landscape architect designer with Nikken Sekkei. Since the 1970s, this firm of architects has been advising and proposing greener real estate solutions. “Because of Japan’s lack of natural resources, we have been obliged to develop ecological engineering and to such an extent that the country is now the leader in this field,” continues Tatsuya Hiraga. “Our green technology serves to maintain optimum performance levels with regard to energy, consumption and water conservation, all with a minimal carbon footprint.” The emblem of this Japanese know-how is Namba Parks. In 2003, the architects of the Jerde Partnership and Nikken Sekkei designed a thirty-storey shopping mall with eight floors of garden terraces in the heart of Osaka in the south of the archipelago. Constructed on the site of a former baseball park, the complex has been dubbed “a green oasis” by the local press. Seen from above, the Namba Parks resembles a canyon emerging from the bowels of the earth. The gardens contain clumps of trees, piles of boulders, cliffs and lawns, as well as streams, cascades and ponds. A green lung for Japan’s third largest city which had been suffering from a cruel lack of green spaces. More nature in town ? Yes, but at what price ? “It’s not the garden in itself that is so costly,” explains Fabrice Célestin, a French landscape architect and the first westerner to have been awarded a degree by Japan in the art of the Japanese garden. “When you are creating a garden in a large urban area, it is above all in the logistics that the expense lies. Access to the site can often be difficult and you need big cranes and hoists.” And, in Japan, the garden is no longer in vogue, despite its immemorial tradition. As Fabrice explains : “Over the past few years, the Japanese garden has been steadily declining in popularity. Nowadays, the Japanese prefer to put up buildings rather than to create parks and gardens. The problem is not just a lack of interest on the part of young people but also the fact that space is in ever shorter supply.” “Asian Crossroads Over the Sea” In 1994, Fukuoka City in the north of the island of Kyushu was faced with a dilemma : a prefecture had to be built quickly but the only available site was the city’s last park, a place cherished by the local population. The solution was proposed by the Argentinean architect Emilio Ambasz : “The modern architectural movement proposed the house in the garden. But that was not enough. What we need is a reconciliation, a pact in which both elements, edifice and garden, are one hundred per cent organically integrated.” This inspiration would give rise to the Asian Crossroads Over the Sea (ACROS), a building with an area of 100 000 square metres with fifteen garden terraces giving it the appearance of sloping woodland. The complex contains a museum, a theatre and a multi-level car park. From nature in the edifice to the edifice in nature may sometimes be only one step : a step boldly taken by Nikken Sekkei in 2002.The Pola Art Museum nestling in the luxuriant forest of the Fuji-Hakone-Izu national park in the region of Mount Fuji represents the outcome of ten years of research. “It took a year to study the flora and fauna present on the 5,6 hectare site,” explains Ken Kannari, the architectural designer in charge of the project. “The museum was constructed mainly underground in the form of a hemisphere to provide greater resistance to water pressure and to permit the development of local vegetation.” The result is breathtaking. “When you stand in front of the huge glazed bay of the museum cafe, you can feel the power of this magnificent and constantly changing forest.” Proof, if ever it were needed, that architecture and nature are not incompatible. ■ 8

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écoles dutomonde Nature Les is coming town

Burkina Faso :

Inventions Show in 2009. It is embodied in a multi-level growing system that mmodossier permits the area under cultivation to be increased while limiting water L’écolepour tous, chacun pour soi! consumption and making use of renewable energy sources. This innovation has proved a hit in Africa. Jean-Claude Rey lives at Bellevaux in the Chablais. His chalet in the alpine pastures of Niflon has no running water, just a big tank ready for when the snow melts in spring. At this altitude, the temperature does not allow him to grow as much as down below in the valley and the growing season lasts for only a few months. He observed a similarly short growing season in Burkina Faso during a holiday visit to “the country of honest men” in 1993, though due in this case to the shortage of water and an omnipresent sun. Development aid was then to become an obsession with this trained carpenter and the subject occupied all By Nathalie Pasquier Switzerland his thinking time until at last he hit on the “idea”. Quickly polished up, the project entered the prototype stage and, in September 2008, emerged in the form of a multi-level garden, that was independent and did not guzzle water. Combining all the technologies, it permits a cube measuring 12x12x12 metres to deliver the same yield as a garden with an area of 1 500 square metres. The agricultural growing tower emerges A few recycled pallet rackets are combined to form the skeleton of this modular steel structure. Thanks to its central light well, it is able to offer a number of levels and so to increase the areas under cultivation. Galvanised steel trays are installed on every level at variable heights to make it easier to work the soil. No longer any need to stay bent over in the sun to plant and gather ! Moreover, galvanised sheet steel is a lightweight material familiar to artisans all over the world. These containers are constructed on the spot, thus stimulating the local economy. Movement between levels is facilitated by duckboard gangways. Let us now leave these technical details and turn to some of the many advantages offered by this multi-level garden, starting with water. In Burkina Faso, a market gardener draws on average 4 000 litres of water per day from a depth of around 15 metres. That represents a lot of work and effort, especially as half of the water is lost before it reaches the plants for which it is intended. With the tower watering system, between 60 and 80% of the water can be recovered and channelled to the cistern after watering. How ? Thanks to an ingenious ecological circuit which recovers rainwater and then delivers it through a pipe system to an underground cistern. This is equipped with filters and a photovoltaic pump providing a controlled supply of clean water. Every day, the pump is brought up and oxygenated to prevent the development of bacteria. It operates by solar energy, raising the water to a sprinkler and drip irrigation system which delivers it directly to the foot of the plants. This is a technology which permits yields to be increased. Moreover, deprived of water, weeds do not grow and this reduces the workload. Where sufficient funds are available, automatic systems may be used to adjust watering times and to control water consumption. Here too, the power comes from solar energy, thus ensuring independent operation. Jean-Claude estimates that equipping a garden with a surface area of 200 square metres would generate sufficient electricity to supply light and runs the fridges of five to seven thousand people. Quite apart from settling water and power problems, the tower also provides an effective means of combatting crickets and other harmful insects. The installation of protective netting against the walls is a simple solution which does not Model of a multi-level garden. A few recycled pallet rackets are combined eradicate the insects but stops their attacks. to form the skeleton of this modular steel Another novelty is that the growing trays manufactured on the spot can now be structure. Thanks to its central light well, filled with the native soil. “Though this may be as simple as ABC,” explains Jean- it is able to offer a number of levels and Claude Rey “it tends to get forgotten. Plants need elements essential to their 8 so to increase the areas under cultivation.

multi-level garden to fight malnutrition

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dossier

sier

onde

di tha Ple sp t as os th e ed is en of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly ! growth and it drives me mad to see how some people conceive of growing things

Nature is coming to town

“We have to get back to working with nature, by installing hives alongside gardens again, by using compost and manure...”

sier

r soi!

nowadays. We have to get back to working with nature, by installing hives alongside gardens again, by using compost and manure.” And he goes on to add : “We limit our input to bringing the content but certainly not our European technological approach and our syringes. Over there, we leave people to cultivate the land according to their customs and ancestral lore.” At the bottom of each tray, there is a layer of clay pellets or volcanic stones to ensure drainage and absorption. A natural separator is then laid before adding 20 cm of living earth, rich in nutrients and earthworms, the latter serving not only to aerate and drain the soil but also helping to enrich it. This totally organic method of growing crops could open up a lucrative market to which Africa does not have access for the moment. But, in any event, people remain free to choose a so-called organic method of growing or to opt for reasoned agriculture. Apart from seedbeds, the tower system can also be used for growing spirulina and other blue-green algae which would provide the local people with the protein they need in their diet. It can also permit the production of pre-grains and seed, thus making them independent of the multinational seed companies, a point that Jean-Claude Rey wishes to emphasise : “We will be content to supply the structure. The rest will be produced on the spot. Thus, it is their own economy that the Africans will be able to improve and maybe they will even succeed in exporting their surplus yields to neighbouring countries.” Mini gardens for city balconies Since Jean-Claude’s invention won its gold medal in Geneva in 2009, people have been flocking to adopt his multi-level garden. Assisted by government corporations, he has multiplied his business contacts and has set up a company called Courtirey. After all, though no further proof is needed of the relevance of the growing tower in the developing countries, it is another thing altogether to secure the necessary funds of € 350 to € 400 per square metre ! Hence the idea of adapting the principle of the growing tower to the needs of the developed world. Whether designed for city balconies or for large market gardens, they make it possible for anyone to produce seeds and seedlings or to grow their own fruit and vegetables, not to mention aromatic plants. By applying a charge of around € 2 per tray, Jean-Claude Rey hopes to generate sufficient funds to install some of his gardens in school playgrounds in Burkina Faso, thus ensuring that pupils can have a rich and healthy diet throughout the year. The aim of the project is to fight not just malnutrition but also illiteracy because, over there, kids will not go to school unless they are sure of getting a meal. Jean-Claude Rey could have been content to leave the multi-level garden simply as an attractive contribution to sustainable development but he has insisted on giving it an altogether more human dimension. ■ 8

Jean-Claude Rey, inventor of the multi-level garden.

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The world of waste

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dossier

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onde

Nature is coming to town

France :

sier

National School of Landscape Architecture – culmination of the human adventure

r soi!

By Gilles Dusouchet France

“The garden : a space protected from the savagery of the outside world but nurtured by every human adventure.”

web+ See also our articles on the art of the English, Japanese or Italian garden at : www.immorama.ch 46

Immodossier_ang_sanc.indd 46

di tha Ple sp t as os th e ed is en of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly ! Our landscape architects should be grateful for concrete. The massive urban development during the post-war period created a need for “green spaces”. A moment to grant recognition to gardeners hitherto confined to tasks of maintenance and planting. However, an illusory recognition, as explained by Jacques Sgard, a graduate of the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris and designer, during the period from 1950s to the 1970s, of the Parc de la Courneuve and the Parc André Malraux at the foot of the office towers of La Défense. At that time, the landscape architect was never consulted in advance but was left simply to “daub some green” in the space left between car parks and the highway. Nonetheless, a breach had been opened up which was promptly filled during the 1980s by the better structured profession to have emerged from specialist training establishments such as the Versailles School of Landscape Architecture, formerly a mere horticultural college. Having gained the high ground, the landscape architects now reaped the reward of prestigious public contracts. It is this recent history as much as the memory of glorious predecessors – such as André Le Nôtre, the gardener of Louis XIV, or Alphand, the engineer associated with the works of Baron Haussmann under the Second Empire – that characterises the culture of landscape architecture in France. However, the practice of the profession at the present time is subject to processes of standardisation which reflect the globalisation of the market rather than any particular “national genius”. From this point of view, it would be mistaken to speak of a “French school”. With the exception of the Japanese garden, so singular that it resists all imported styles, everything is the result of an inter-blending of which nature is the first example. Moreover, though the fact is often forgotten, the landscape architect is a nomad whose craft leads him to scour the world in search of rare or hardy species. Such is the paradox of the contemporary garden, heir of the Garten (in German) or hortus (in Latin), both signifying “enclosure”. A space protected from the savagery of the outside world but nurtured by every human adventure. On the other hand, the rather small professional world in which French landscape architects are constantly rubbing shoulders and sizing each other up has produced something better than a school – a fertile dialogue between the rigour of design and the inventiveness of landscaping, between surveyor and botanist. If now partly resolved, this opposition of principle is rooted in the vision of historic gardens, from the rigorous rectilinearity of Vaux-le-Vicomte, through the chinoiseries of the Désert de Retz, to the rockeries and picturesque settings of various English gardens such as those at Buttes-Chaumont. Pushing the idea to the limit, the contrast may be seen between those who favour a setting that has been landscaped and those who create the forces underlying its organic dynamism. In other words, we are back to the old conflict between form and substance. The “hard line”, that is to say a rigorous design in harmony with the physical surroundings, is represented in the work of landscape architects like Michel Corajoud, to whom we owe the Park de Gerland at Lyon and the promenade along the quays in Bordeaux, and Gilles Vexlard of Latitude Nord, responsible for a number of leisure centres and an urban neighbourhood of Marne-la-Vallée, as well as Riem Park in Munich. Vexlard’s gardens track the course of the sun and are rooted in the geology of the place. The other side of the coin is represented by Gilles Clément, a thoroughgoing botanist who has given us, in particular, the Parc André Citroën in Paris and the gardens of the Quai Branly. His practice highlights spontaneous growth and landscape metaphors. The inventor of the “garden in motion”, he sees his work as the mirror of a utopian vision, namely living in peace with nature pacified. We must also mention the Chaumont-sur-Loire garden festival, a temporary laboratory dedicated to lateral creation, in which plastic artists and gardeners work hand in hand. One of the apparitions here was Patrick Blanc’s “vertical garden”.The future can already be seen foreshadowed in resource-thrifty city centre parks developed on exiguous sites and slotted into pedestrian precincts. And we must not forget the nocturnal illumination which has become part and parcel of the landscaper’s art through the inspiration of technical creators like Yann Kersalé. ■

- Spring 2010 - n° 26

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nÂ° 26 - Spring 2010 -

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Immodossier_ang_sanc.indd 48

- Spring 2010 - n° 26

20/04/2010 16:03:24

label

Your energy check-up : “ImmoLabel® is a powerful tool for measuring energy consumption of a building,” explains Philippe Buzzi of the Property Management Department.

Show us your service charges and we’ll tell you how to bring them down

label

snap-shot of the energy consumption of a building – that is the service offered to owners and property management companies by Signa-Terre S.A., a dynamic new arrival on the real estate scene. Taking up this offer, SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE has already scanned 90% of the 780 properties it has under management.

By Valérie Hoffmeyer

What does a building consume in terms of heating, electricity and hot water ? Too much or just right ? What scope do I have for improvement ? Is it worth having the water pipes examined ? In the past, the only way to get an answer to these questions was to have every building checked from top to bottom on the spot. That meant looking at the performance of the boiler and analysing the SIG water and electricity bills in relation to the type of building and the occupancy level and then comparing the result with other buildings that had already been assessed in the same way. A tall order and one that many owners would hesitate to take on, especially as they could not be sure of getting any benefit in the end. However, there are lots of things – often quite simple – that can be done to improve the energy performance of a building, provided that the sources of waste can be identified quickly. Not only do they deliver benefits that can be quantified in both financial and environmental terms but they also give a head start for legislation to come. It was against this background that professionals from the fields of real estate, energy and information technology came together to establish Signa-Terre S.A. and to offer ImmoLabel®, a tool capable of evaluating all these parameters. “Thanks to this resource, SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE is set to complete an energy inventory of its entire portfolio of properties under management, i.e. about 780 buildings,” explains Philippe Buzzi of the Property Management Department. The corresponding report was sent out to every owner at the beginning of 2010.

“SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE is set to complete an energy inventory of its entire portfolio of properties under management, i.e. about 780 buildings.”

All the data on a single A4 sheet Yet another label ? Maybe, but this one has the merit of converting a mass of disparate data (SIA standards, SIG bills, cantonal statistics, different types of property management methods, etc) into plain and simple language. Namely, that 8

■ For more information, please contact :

Tél. +41 22 849 62 06 Fax +41 22 849 67 45 E-mail : gerance@spg.ch www.spg.ch ■

See also :

our article

fiche , page 20

n° 26 - Spring 2010 -

26_Immolabel ang_1_sanc.indd 49

EC O

Show us your service charges and we’ll tell you how to bring them down

e ur et is rly ! s en fl e e lea rop s ea is f p Pl t th d o a e th os sp di

21/04/2010 13:49:13

O EC

di tha Ple sp t as label os th e ed is en Show us your service charges and we’ll tell you how to bring them down of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly ! of the energy consumption label to be found on every household appliance. This

“Obviously, we can’t force people to do anything but we hope that an owner who is classified as red for heat – i.e. a top priority case – will take the necessary steps. Owners, managers, tenants, we all stand to gain.”

* HES-SO Valais-Sion and University of Geneva, Sciences and Environment faculty

This is the ImmoLabel® applied to measure the energy consumption of all of the buildings under the management of SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE.

26_Immolabel ang_1_sanc.indd 50

is the one that tells you whether your dish-washer is classified A (green : top of the class, economical and durable) or G (red : bottom of the class, an energy guzzler). The result of the check-up is a six-point report, providing an overall summary of the performance of the building at a glance. “We want the whole diagnosis to fit on a single A4 sheet,” explains Laurent Isoard of Signa-Terre. “This allows us to see immediately the classification obtained and, depending on the figures, to indicate whether there is a major heating problem or just a simple leak.” It is worth noting that the difference in consumption between two classes amounts to 50%, a far from negligible figure when it comes to one or more buildings. “ImmoLabel® is a powerful tool for measuring energy consumption of a building,” explains Philippe Buzzi of the Property Management Department. To obtain this information, the team needs to start with a minute and painstaking analysis. “We have to gather all the data connected with the service charges of the building and that means a total of around fifty parameters, nearly all of them forming part of the databases kept by the property management companies. This enables us to cooperate with them in the very heart of their management system. The data are then broken down and fed into a computer tool that we have developed in conjunction with two of the leading universities of French-speaking Switzerland.”* The output consists of three indices corresponding to established standards, an approach that enables us to utilise the existing instruments and to address our business partners in terms with which they are familar. The indices are as follows : 1. Heat consumption index (HCI - mJ/ m² p.a.). This is compulsory in Geneva for buildings constructed after 1993. It measures the energy consumed to heat 1 m² of a dwelling for one year. This index enables us to take account of the overall thermal performance of the building. The average for the canton stands at around 570 mJ/m², the maximum authorised under the Geneva law being 600 mJ/m². The figure for a building complying with the Minergie ® standard is around 150 mJ/ m². 2. Energy index (EI). Deriving from the SIA 2031 specification of the beginning of 2009, this index is the most comprehensive, we are told by Mr. Buzzi of SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE, because it covers not only heat consumption like the HCI but also electricity consumption. However, the signs suggest that this precious commodity will be increasingly a cause for concern in the coming decades. It is likely that this label will become mandatory in Switzerland. 3. Climate index (gCO2 /mJ). Also derived from the SIA 2031 specification, this index takes into account all emissions of green house gases per unit of energy consumed by the building. “These data are supplemented by three further indices which refine the evaluation by taking into account the occupancy rate, namely the total water consumption of the building (m³/m²), plus the total consumption of electricity in the common areas (mJ/m²) adjusted by the consumption of water and electricity per occupant (m³/occupant and kWh per occupant). And all of this is done without setting foot in the building, a task which would otherwise have taken a great deal of time without necessarily obtaining precise and reliable results”, continued Mr. Buzzi. As the ImmoLabel® is based on solid data, the margin of error is small. Reactions anticipated The next step will depend on the reactions of the building owners when they receive their own ImmoLabel at the start of 2010. Furthermore, the diagnosis provided comes with a table of priority actions for use by those who would like to pursue the analysis and conduct an assessment of the returns on investment in the event of renovations. As Mr. Buzzi points out, “Obviously, we can’t force people to do anything but we hope that an owner whose heat consumption is classified as red – i.e. a top priority case – will take the necessary steps. Owners, managers, tenants, we all stand to gain.” ■

- Spring 2010 - n° 26

21/04/2010 13:57:26

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- Spring 2010 - n째 26

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e ur et is rly ! s en fl e e lea rop s ea is f p Pl t th d o a e th os sp di

anniversaire Ten years of developing new lines of business

SPG Intercity celebrates its tenth anniversary. SPG Intercity, a company which serves a mainly international clientele, is celebrating the tenth year of an existence that has been characterised by the development of new lines of business and evolving client profiles.

Commercial property

www.spgintercity.ch SPG Intercity : Ten years of developing new lines of business

anniversaire

fter ten years of constant adaptation to an evolving market, new lines of business and an ever more diversified clientele, SPG Intercity has now come of age.

SPG Intercity came into being thanks to an opening of the property market created by the partial abrogation of Switzerland’s Lex Friedrich (1998). Hived off from its parent, Société Privée de Gérance, the company could not have had a more auspicious start, with an enthusiastic management and a market there for the taking with foreign clients at long last authorised to acquire commercial premises in Switzerland. Offices were opened immediately at three sites in Geneva, Zurich and Basle and very soon major clients were knocking at the doors of this newcomer – Swiss through and through but with a distinctively British flavour. Let’s look back over this success story. “What has changed in ten years ? Absolutely everything and to start with our whole approach to the business,” explains Martin Dunning, CEO and mainspring of the project, together with the chief executive officer of SPG Intercity,Thierry Barbier-Mueller.” Initially created to represent foreign clients like Polo Ralph Lauren or Colgate-Palmolive in dealings with local property owners, the company extended its activity in precisely the opposite direction, acting as an intermediary between local landlords and companies seeking to establish a foothold in Switzerland. “It was through this gradual extension of our tasks that we came to acquire expertise in various aspects of commercial property that in fact constitute different lines of business.” Martin Dunning expands on the cultural origins of these jobs, all largely inspired by the real estate business of the common law countries and above all Britain.“They are the true masters. Over there, property is a real culture, perfectly transparent and communicated with an unrivalled seriousness. The English have a bible of their own that explains – chapter and verse – how to go about valuing a property. On the other side of the Channel, if you make a mistake in this field, you face going to gaol !” Other lines of business So, what are these lines of business that didn’t even exist in this country ten

By Valérie Hoffmeyer

“ SPG Intercity acts as an intermediary between local landlords and foreign companies seeking to establish a foothold in Switzerland. ”

■ For

more information, please contact :

SPG Intercity Geneva Route de Frontenex 41 A 1207 Geneva Tél. +41 22 707 46 80 Fax +41 22 707 46 77 E-mail : geneva@spgintercity.ch www.spgintercity.ch

n° 26 - Spring 2010 -

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di tha Ple sp t as anniversaire os th e ed is en Ten years of developing new lines of business of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly ! years ago ? Well, all of them stem from the arrival of foreign companies wishing to

“Our job is to offer our clients properties to buy and sometimes to establish a real property portfolio. And then we take care of finding them tenants.”

The changes in the client base were reflected in the activities of the agency, which can boast of the installation of Apple in the former Hollywood cinema on the rue de Rive. The fact that SPG is contacted by such big international names is due particularly to our connection with Cushman & Wakefield, a powerful sponsor for the company from the outset as the management of SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE had already signed an agreement with this international network before the Swiss commercial property market was opened up to foreigners.This alliance places at the disposal of the 20 staff in the Geneva office the services of 13 000 professionals at 150 sites all around the world.

newsletter N° 2

We don’t think there is a single taxpayer in any country whatsoever who thinks the taxation to which he or she is liable is too favourable − and the Swiss taxpayer is certainly not an exception to the rule !... Nevertheless in this area Switzerland does enjoy a generally rather favourable situation when compared with other countries. And whereas up to now people have tended to focus on a comparison of corporation tax in various countries, a recent study has opportunely examined the taxation of a company’s salaried employees, with a view to a hypothetical relocation. And the result is eloquent ! Switzerland is up among the leaders, that is, among the countries applying the most clement taxation to qualified employees. This statement is valid in particular for the cantons of Zürich and Geneva, since the study takes account not only of federal tax but also of cantonal and municipal taxes and social charges. Thanks to the SPG Intercity Group’s experience all over Switzerland in the field of corporate relocation consulting, we have been able to assess the extent to which this criterion of taxation of employees who are liable to be expatriated is important for companies envisaging a location in Switzerland. Which shows just how useful we think the information contained in this newsletter is and how it is sure to fuel the debate on Switzerland’s enviable attractiveness in this area... An attractiveness which we hope the country will be keen to preserve and even enhance !

Thierry Barbier-Mueller

Markus Wüst Members of the Board of Directors of SPG Intercity Geneva - Zurich - Basel

General tax treatment of expatriates: increasingly a crucial factor for a relocation or the establishment of a subsidiary Switzerland extremely well-placed For decades the large multinational companies have considered only a single factor when they had to decide on where to relocate their head office or a regional office: corporate taxation rates. It has in fact long been accepted that workforces (salaried employees and managerial staff) were very immobile and that employees were therefore recruited locally at a location. But for about ten years now the location criteria for a multinational or for the partial relocation of a company have really changed, owing to the fact that with the globalization and interconnection of markets, the salaried employees and managerial staff of a company are also called upon to move outside of their national borders for a while. Thus the major groups are studying with everincreasing attention the fiscal and social benefits offered to their expatriate employees. These benefits are now as important as the tax breaks offered to newly-established companies. And for good reason. The transfer of a highly-qualified employee or executive represents a considerable expense for the employer. If the latter wants to guarantee the employee the same purchasing power and the same standard of living as that which the (future) expatriate enjoyed in his/her own country, he will have not only to compensate him for the removal and settlement expenses in the host country but also to cover all or part of the housing and schooling expenses if the expatriate has children. In addition and most importantly, it may be that the fiscal and social levies on the employee in the host country are higher than in the country of origin, which will necessarily incur higher labour costs for the employer if he wants to guarantee his employee a net income identical to that which he or she enjoyed in the country of origin. The figures are informative enough when it comes to measuring the burden for a company of the

cost of a mission abroad for one of its executi ves. Whereas an unmarried German national will "cost" his employer € 147,098 per annum in Germany if he is to be left with a net income of € 75,000 a year, the employer will have to spend € 167,330 on average in the European countries, China and the United States (that is, +29%). This expense may even rise as high as € 215,247 in Slovenia, which is three times the expatriate’s disposable income. The proportions are even higher for a German family with two children, since the average cost of expatriation to the company is virtually equivalent to what the employee costs in Germany, where a couple with children enjoys substantial social deductions (€ 209,320 as against € 119,415, +78%). A very recent comparative survey has for the first time reviewed the level of expatriates’ taxation in 20 countries, including Switzerland. This research, which was conducted by PriceWaterhouseCoopers and the ZEW (Centre for European Economic Research1), compares 20 countries - that is, 20 different tax regimes and 20 different socialsecurity systems - in order to determine the places where the cost of relocating a highly-qualified employee are the least high. Taking the example of German expatriates (either single or married with two children) and of American expatriates, the conclusions of this extensive survey are gratifying for Switzerland: in all the scenarios mentioned above, the Swiss Confederation comes out extremely well since it is always among the two or three most advantageous countries for a foreign employer (see chart). And even though the data taken into account (direct federal tax plus cantonal and municipal taxes plus social-security charges) are those of the canton of Zürich and it is known that other cantons, including Geneva or Vaud, have tax

2005

E ditorial

■ For

invest in real estate not only to occupy a building but to rent it out to others for example. “Our job is to offer our clients properties to buy and sometimes to establish a real property portfolio. And then we take care of finding them tenants.This is a service which is equally attractive to Swiss investors and we now work for them as well.” The latest development is to find sites for carrying out turnkey construction projects. “This is what we did for the watchmaker Frédéric Constant in the heart of Geneva’s Watch Valley.That was not quite what the client had in mind at the beginning but we persuaded him that that’s where he belonged !”

more information :

SPG Intercity publishes a number of newsletters every year in connection with its business. Subscribe by sending an email to geneva@spgintercity.ch n°1 : The impact of the IAS/IFRS accounting standards on property values and undertakings. n° 2 : Framework conditions offered to expatriates : increasingly crucial for a relocation or the establishment of a subsidiary. n° 3 : New forms of collective investment in the property sector. n° 4 : The weight of real estate in company balance sheets.

www.spgintercity.ch/fr/portraet/newsletters cabeza n26.pdf 27/01/2010 09:45:40

Made in Geneva In short, all of this opens up markets and does away with frontiers. Not least the French border that surrounds Geneva and blocks access to land and properties, making them scarce commodities in the territory of the canton. “Whether at cantonal or national level, these borders simply do not exist for our clients. The prestige of Geneva, the strength of the brand means that this is where they have to be, whether it’s 10 minutes away or even 30.That accounts for a lot of our clients – and their employees – for whom we find properties here in Vaud, as well as in other Swiss cantons through our offices in Zurich and Basle. Human resources The company staff are mainly fluent English speakers drawn from the Geneva international set. “Our Property Studies Institute (Institut d’Études Immobilières) trains extremely good professionals.To work in our field, you need a specialisation and, for the moment, that is an experience acquired on the job. Our team consists of people from a variety of backgrounds in terms both of culture and of basic training.We have biologists and marketing experts rubbing shoulders with specialists who have come from the construction industry. But all of them have honed their skills in our own rather special niche market and are passionately involved in their work. As we come to the end of our first ten years in business, our team, just like our range of services, continued on p.56 8 is tuned to perfection. ■

ENTREPRISE GENERALE DE NETTOYAGE

022 734 86 80 www.cabezanettoyage.com 54

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Brève « 2003 Retail »

anniversaire

Ten years of developing new lines of business

some reFereNCe deAls

di tha Ple sp t as os th e ed is en of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly !

2000 – mCi worldCom / Ge

Brève « 2001 Retail »

MCI Worldcom was the first client of SPG Intercity in 2000, the telecommunications company taking over an old SIG building at Plan-les-Ouates. The deal negotiated by SPG Intercity granted the company the right to terminate from year to year, thus achieving great flexibility in its long term lease.

2001 – The Phone House, Geneva.

2001 – the phoNe hoUse / Ge

Brève « 2001 Retail » 2002 – Gucci, Neuchâtel.

Following signature of an exclusive mandate for the set up of The Phone House in Switzerland, it proved possible to open 18 sales outlets in the main cities within one year. The head offices of the company (since taken over by Swisscom) were established in the heart of Geneva.

2002 – GUCCi / Ne

SPG Intercity was mandated to sell the two buildings (15 000 square metres) forming the European headquarters of SGI in the difficult economic climate following the events of 11 September. Within twelve months, we had succeeded in selling both buildings, one to Gucci and the other to New Wave.

Brève « 2002 – Gucci/Cortaillod » 2003 – L’Occitane en Provence, Geneva.

2003 – l’oCCitANe / Ge

Occitane en Provence, one of the labels of the Clarins Group, appointed us to find them a sales outlet in the pedestrian precinct in the heart of Geneva. We enabled the company to obtain the necessary area by arranging the acquisition of two adjacent properties, negotiating the conditions of the lease and the purchase of the shares in one of the locations.

Brève « 2003 Retail » Brève « 2002 – Gucci/Cortaillod » 2004 – hewlett pACKArd / Ge 2005 – Apollo real estate advisors (AREA).

www.spgintercity.ch

Despite the large number of buyers for the Hewlett Packard building in Meyrin, we managed to acquire this industrial site for Fordinvest at a price of 10 million within just a week. We then re-let all the vacant areas in the building to big name clients such as Sanofi, Hôpital de la Tour and Firmenich. 

Nous habillons vos projets Finalisez vos rêves grâce à la Générale du Bâtiment. Nous répondons présents à tous les travaux d’installations sanitaires, menuiserie, carrelage, peinture, électricité, chauffage, parquet, agencement de cuisine, nettoyage... Avec l’assurance du professionalisme qui nous caractérise, nous mettons à votre service des entreprises genevoises et vous assurons un résultat de qualité.

CP 744 • 1211 4 • T. Retail 022 809 63 70 Brève «Genève 2001 »• F. 022 809 63 71• louis.roulin@cuisinelle.ch

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Pl th d

ur e is y !

e ur et is rly ! s en afl pe e o e as is l f pr e Pl t th d o a e th os sp di

anniversaire Ten years of developing new lines of business

Some reference deals

2005 – Apollo real estate advisors (area) / GE This was our first exclusive cooperation with a foreign investment fund, AREA. Representing the company in the acquisition of a centre with an area of 32 000 square metres was to concentrate in a single project all of our expertise in investment, leasehold development, loan negotiation and project management. Eight subsequent acquisitions would follow this same strategic pattern.

Photos pour brèves SPG Intercity 2006 Nissan in the Canton of Vaud.

Brève « 2006 Nissan (case study) »

2006 – Nissan / vd

When Nissan decided to establish the European headquarters of its top-of-therange car firm Infiniti in Switzerland, the company appointed us to find the ideal location. Following our advice, Nissan opted for the lease of a building in the A-One Business Centre in Rolle.

2007 – lvmh / ne

In this case, we succeeded in bringing together investor, builder and user in a sophisticated construction project, designed to enable each party to ensure perfect control over its risks and costs. This resulted in a lease being concluded with LVMH for watch-making workshops at La Chaux-de-Fonds.

2008 – CFF / TRANS-EUROPE PROJECT / NE

When SPG Intercity was appointed by CFF (Swissrail) to lease more than 13 500 square metres of space, we drew up a completely new commercialisation plan entitled “ Red Line ”. This proved so successful that a higher education institution (HE-Arc) agreed to take the whole package. We provided CFF with constant assistance throughout the 10 months of negotiations leading up to signature of the lease.

Photos pour brèves 2007 LVMH in SPG LaIntercity Chaux-de-Fonds.

Brève « 2007 – Rentals »

2008 CFF TransEurope project in Neuchâtel.

2009 – Edwards life sciences / vd

Edwards Life Sciences appointed us to find a site to serve as the headquarters for its European activities. After Nyon had been selected as the location, we were responsible for steering this project through to a successful conclusion, defining the specifications, selecting partners and monitoring the works, construction and fitting out. ■ murner o n25.pdf 29.07.2009 09:03:25

2009 Edwards Life Sciences in the Canton Brève « 2009 – Edwards » of Vaud.

n° 26« -2009 Spring–2010 Brève Edwards »

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depuis 1978

SANITAIRES - FERBLANTERIE INSTALLATIONS, DEPANNAGES ET ETUDES DE PROJETS

JACQUES DALLAIS & FILS tr e

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p Le développement durable et la protection de l'Environnement

26, av. Petit-Senn - 1225 Chêne-Bourg T 022 348 61 91 - F 022 348 20 28 - E bontuyaux@hotmail.com

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ENTREPRISE DE NETTOYAGE

ENTREPRISE DE NETTOYA M. NOYA M. NOYA

Tél. 022 736 Fax 022 736 Natel 079 203

6, rue des Eaux-Vives 1207 Genève 6, rue des Eaux-Vives 1207 Genève

Tél. 022 736 23 05 Fax 022 736 24 70 Natel 079 023 67 55

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ARTISANS ASSOCIÉS S.à r.l. 60

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Gypserie - Peinture - Papier peint - Carrela

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e ur et is rly ! s en fl e e lea rop s ea is f p Pl t th d o a e th os sp di

ﬁnancement How do you go about ﬁnancing and insuring your property ?

The Finance and Insurance department analyses the financial position of persons wishing to buy a home and helps them to find the most appropriate financing and insurance.

The challenges of the real estate business

How do you go about financing and insuring your property ?

or the majority of households, the acquisition of a home is the most important investment they are going to make during their lifetime. Moreover, as the acquisition is also very much a one-off affair, most households have little occasion to familiarise themselves with all the different financing and insurance products available on the market. As a result, when people come to make this biggest ever purchase, they are often unprepared and end up having to place their trust in the first person to come along. Being aware of this problem, SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE decided to put its know-how at the service of the public. Thus, since the beginning of 2010, a website has been made available to provide interested parties with personalised advice free of charge concerning financing and insurance offers. IMMORAMA has been to see the designer of this service, Budimir Stoja, head of the Financing and Insurance department of SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE.

– What services have traditionally been provided by your Financing and Insurance department ? Budimir Stoja – Thanks to the high volume of business conducted by SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE, we are able to operate a service in two different fields : On the one hand, financing : When somebody wants to buy and finance a property or to renew a mortgage or to ask for a building loan, we analyse the situation and point him in the direction of the best offers. On the other, insurance : We help our clients to find the form of life 

financement By Nadine Villars

“As a specialist service of SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE, we do not depend on any particular bank or insurance company.”

Budimir Stoja, Head of the Financing and Insurance department of SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE.

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ﬁnancement How do you go about ﬁnancing and insuring your property ?

“Our independence is certified by two supervisory bodies : FINMA, which protects the customers of the financial markets and the Register of Insurance Intermediaries established by the Confederation in 2007 in accordance with the Federal Act concerning the supervision of the insurance profession LSA.”

di tha Ple sp t as os th e ed is en of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly !

insurance that will allow them to make the most of the tax advantages to which they are entitled by law.

These two fields are anything but transparent. The possibilities offered by the banks and the insurance companies are multiple, complex and constantly changing, all of which makes it hard for non-professionals to find their way through the maze. Our role is to make sure that the logic of the market operates in favour of our clients by identifying in each individual case the most advantageous solution out of the whole range of offers available. – How are you able to offer independent advice free of charge ? – As a specialist service of SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE, we do not depend on any particular bank or insurance company. This means that we have complete freedom to recommend the offer best suited to the individual client, taking into consideration solely the advantages that he will enjoy. This service is an expression of the wish of SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE to offer its clients a comprehensive service covering all aspects of real estate, a service that is provided free of charge. It goes without saying that, like any other broker, our Financing and Insurance department is remunerated by the bank or the insurance company to which we send a client. However, our independence is certified by two supervisory bodies : FINMA, which protects the customers of the financial markets and the Register of Insurance Intermediaries established by the Confederation in 2007 in accordance with the Federal Act concerning the supervision of the insurance profession (LSA).

■ For

more information, please contact :

Budimir Stoja, Financing and Insurance Department SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE Tel. +41 22 849 61 32 Fax +41 22 849 67 72 E-mail : budimirstoja@spg.ch Fill in the form on our website at : www.spg.ch/financementetassurances

– What is the motivation for SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE ? – In the first place, it’s a question of image. By helping people to get their bearings in the labyrinths of financing and insurance, SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE affirms its competences and underscores its readiness to improve the transparency of the market. It is also wagering on the future. In the age of the “knowledge economy”, a major property company like ours can no longer be content just to sit still and administer its offices. No, it has to devote an increasing amount of time and effort to sharing information and its knowledge of the property sector. ■

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hadès g r a p h i s m e

– How did you get the idea of opening this service to the general public ? – Well, to advise the clients of SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE, we need in any case to have an in-depth knowledge of the financial and insurance markets. So, why not make this knowledge available for the benefit of others, irrespective of whether they are clients of SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE ? We were encouraged to take the plunge by the development of the Internet with all its associated facilities for contact. And the experience has proved us right. Today, any interested party, whether landlord or tenant and whether or not in contact with SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE, can come to us for free and impartial advice on mortgages and insurance. Contact can be made by a telephone call, by making an appointment with one of our staff, or by going to the Internet and filling out the questionnaire accessible on www.spg. ch/financementetassurances. In either case, our response always comes in three stages : first of all, we recall the general conditions of our profession ; then we analyse the constraints and opportunities available to our interlocutor ; and, finally, we recommend one or more offers, explaining what it is that makes them particularly attractive in the present state of the market. It goes without saying that the consultation is entirely confidential.

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Installations sanitaires ferblanterie sàrl

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Service d’urgence 24/24 | tél. 022|885 03 85 ou 022|329 36 04 1 7 , r u e F r a n ç o i s - D u s s a u d - c p 1 6 2 8 - 1 2 11 G e n è v e 2 6 f a x 02 2 | 8 8 5 0 3 8 8 o u 02 2 | 3 2 8 9 0 0 9 | w w w. n ln°- s26a n- iPrintemps t a i r e . c h2010 -

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source d’inspiratione

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Décoration - Revêtements de sols, murs & plafonds Rideaux - Stores intérieurs - Recouvrement de sièges

Rue de la Servette 25 | 1201 Genève | 022 918 08 88 | www.lachenal.ch

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e ur et is rly ! s en fl e e lea rop s ea is f p Pl t th d o a e th os sp di

patrimoine Switzerland’s most ancient house dates back 5873 years !

Switzerland’s most ancient house dates back 5873 years !

Switzerland’s oldest house is in the canton of Berne. An application is to be made for it to be registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

patrimoine

he discovery made by archaeologists at Sutz-Lattrigen in the canton of Berne during the summer of 2007 is quite simply incredible ! These are the remains of Switzerland’s most ancient house, which is thought to be 5873 years old !

By Peter Sanders

The news received only a few lines in the local press but the discovery is in fact of national importance. The house is the oldest construction in the whole country and an application is shortly to be made for it to be registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

“The archaeologists are categorical : this is the oldest ground plan of a house that can be documented and dated with precision !”

On the shores of Lake Biel Back in the 1980s, the archaeological service of the canton of Berne drew up a full inventory of all the finds made along the shores of Lake Biel and this resulted in eight sites being listed and excavations carried out along about 3 km of the shore in the commune of Sutz-Lattrigen. The archaeological works on the west shore were completed in 2006 but further works were conducted underwater on the eastern side up to the year 2008. It was at this stage and in this location that the archaeologists made their amazing find on the lake bed. 3863 BC It was a team of divers from the archaeological service of Berne that made this historic discovery at Sutz-Lattrigen, a small village situated on the northern shores of Lake Biel. According to dendrochronological analysis, the structure dates back to the year 3863 BC and was probably completely restored in the year 3856 BC. The archaeologists are categorical : this is the oldest house plan in Switzerland that can be documented and dated with precision ! This region had already been known previously for remains going back to the time of peoples who lived in wooden houses built on piles a few metres from 8 the shores of the lake.The vestiges of these stilt houses, now seriously

A diver takes a sample of wood for dendochronology dating. n° 26 - Spring 2010 -

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di tha Ple sp t as patrimoine os th e ed is en Switzerland’s most ancient house dates back 5873 years ! of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly ! threatened by erosion, are among the most important discovered in Switzerland. Pile dwellings to be listed as UNESCO world heritage sites ?

Palafitte is the name given to the piles on which wooden houses were built on lakesides in the remote past and, by extension, to the houses themselves. This is an historic discovery at both regional and national level. The confederation and the cantons concerned are seeking UNESCO world heritage listing for the palafitte sites to be found in Switzerland (particularly in the Three Lakes region – Lake Biel, Lake Morat and Lake Neuchâtel), Germany, France, Italy, Austria and Slovenia. www.palafittes.ch

TRAVELEC ■ For more information, please contact :

Divers engaged by the canton of Berne are currently conducting research on them, combining anti-erosion measures with their excavations. Archaeology and conservation of the national heritage During a press conference, councillor of state Bernhard Pulver, director of culture and public education at the department of public education of the canton of Berne stressed the importance of the discoveries on the shores of Lake Biel, saying “Archaeology and conservation of the national heritage constitute the basis of the social and cultural heritage of our region and so form a vital element in the cultural policy of Berne.” He also recalled the conflicting requirements to which archaeology and conservation of the heritage are subject and emphasised that a constant effort was made to balance the interests on both sides. Research continues At the present time, archaeological sites located at Sutz-Lattrigen in front of the parkland of the Rütte estate are being closely monitored for erosion. As they are among the most important in the country from the point view of their scientific and historical significance, the research work could continue for several years yet.

Electricité - Téléphone Câblage informatique

These archaeological remains on the shores of Lake Biel are no longer the

the archaeological service the canton of Switzerland as a Téléphone: 022of 798 99 88 affair of the canton of Berne alone but of the heritage www.travelec.ch of Berne by e-mail : adb@erz.be.ch

Fax : 022 791 06 36

whole ! ■

Chancy / Genève

travasa@travelec.ch

- Printemps 2008 - no 22

Entreprise Générale de Nettoyage

29, rue Voltaire 1201 Genève

Tél. : 022 345 90 12 Fax : 022 345 90 15 Natel :079 206 67 66

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écologie CO2 tax to rehabilitate buildings

e ur et is rly ! s en fl e e lea rop s ea is f p Pl t th d o a e th os sp di

CO2 tax to rehabilitate buildings

The building programme will provide landlords with both an incentive and assistance to renovate their properties more effectively and so save energy.

écologie

n Switzerland, a tax on CO2 has been applied to fossil fuels since 1 January 2008 and the rate of this tax was increased on 1 January 2010. The additional revenue will permit CHF 200 million to be allocated to improving the thermal efficiency of buildings and encouraging the use of renewable energy sources.

By Jean-Louis Emmenegger

By way of introduction, let us recall that the CO2 tax is levied on all fossil fuels used for energy purposes, such as heating oil, natural gas and coal. The tax is applied by the Customs Administration and paid directly by the purchaser to the supplier. It must be noted, however, that fuels like petrol and diesel are not affected by this tax.

“Thus, the CO2 tax encourages a thriftier use of fossil fuels and greater reliance on energy sources that produce little or no CO2.”

For the Federal Council and the Parliament, this CO 2 tax is a so-called “incentive tax”, the direct effect of which should be to increase the sale price to the end-user. Thus, it encourages a thriftier use of fossil fuels and greater reliance on energy sources that produce little or no CO 2 . It also increases the attractiveness of investments designed to implement more efficient technologies for heating systems that use oil. Application and redistribution In Switzerland, a tax on CO2 has been applied to fossil fuels since 1 January 2008. This is indeed a tax on CO2 and not a form of excise duty. In accordance with the law, the revenue generated must be redistributed to the population – in the form of a small reduction in social health insurance premiums – and to businesses in proportion to their payroll. The revenues collected since 2008 are to be redistributed in 2010. It will be noted that businesses can arrange to be exempted from the CO2 tax if they give the Confederation an undertaking to limit their carbon dioxide emissions. Increase with effect from 1 January 2010 With regard to the amount of the CO2 tax, the mechanism for charging the tax is rendered more complex by the lapse of time between the charging of the tax and the taking into account of the national annual result for CO2 8

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écologie CO2 tax to rehabilitate buildings

“As the construction sector is the field which offers the greatest potential for energy savings, a national renovation programme may become a vital pillar of Switzerland’s climate policy.”

di tha Ple sp t as os th e ed is en of lea sur pr fle e op t i er s ly !

emissions in relation to the targets laid down in the law. This comparison may result in an increase in the amount of the tax two years later. Thus, in 2009, the tax would have had to double if CO2 emissions had not fallen by more than 10% in 2007 as compared with the reference year 1990. However, as emissions were reduced by 11,2%, the target was achieved and the tax in 2009 remained at the same level as in 2008, namely CHF 12 per tonne of CO2 emissions. For 2010, however, the specialists had predicted that the CO 2 tax would be increased. Their forecasts have turned out to be correct. As the target of 13,5% for the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions between 1990 and 2008 laid down in the CO2 tax law was not achieved, the Federal Council decided to triple the tax with effect from 1 January 2010. This meant that the tax on heating oil rose from 3 centimes to 9 centimes per litre (i.e. CHF 36 per tonne of CO2). Due to the impact on the sale price of heating oil, this increase will appear directly in the heating bills of landlords and tenants. There is at the moment no reason to suggest that further increases will not be coming in the future. The target for the reduction in CO2 emissions by 2012 is 14,25% in comparison with 1990 but, according to the specialists, this figure will be very difficult for the country to achieve. The Buildings Programme The proposal to use the CO2 tax revenues to finance the Buildings Programme was discussed by the federal houses of parliament last spring. As it is desirable to encourage and actively assist owners to improve the insulation of their buildings and to promote renovations which could bring about energy savings through a reduction in the consumption of heating oil, parliament considered that part of the revenue generated by the CO2 tax should be allocated to incentives favouring energy savings in buildings. As the construction sector is the field which offers the greatest potential for energy savings, the Buildings Programme may become a vital pillar of Switzerland's climate policy. It was against this background and within the framework of a partial revision of the CO2 tax law that parliament decided on 12 June 2009 to establish the Buildings Programme with a funding of CHF 200 million to be derived from the CO2 tax. In particular, these measures will relate to the renovation of the fabric of the building (insulation for roofs, internal and external walls, floors and ceilings, replacement of windows, etc). One third of the specially targeted funding will be allocated to promoting the use of renewable energy sources and recovering waste heat. The amounts in question will be assigned by the cantons on the basis of a framework agreement to be concluded between the Confederation and the cantons.

■

For more information :

– Federal Office of the Environment (FOEV) www.bafu.admin.ch/co2-tax – The Buildings Programme www.leprogrammebatiments.ch – Cantonal subsidy programmes Energy departments of each canton – USPI (the Swiss Union of Real Estate Professionals) www.uspi.ch – “Special edition for landowners”, 4th edition 2009, published by OFEN (the Swiss Federal Energy Office)

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Cantonal plans According to the FRI, the real estate federation for French-speaking Switzerland, an organisation representing around 20 000 landlords, the recent decision of Parliament will help to improve the thermal efficiency of buildings in tangible, specific, direct and sustainable ways. In addition, it will also be a boost for undertakings active in this area, which will now be able to develop new technologies to reduce the consumption of fossil fuels. This national rehabilitation programme will be established in coordination with the development plan of the Conference of cantonal energy directors. The FRI and the cantonal real estate chambers are in discussion with the cantons to get them to complement the federal aid package with cantonal support as a means of encouraging landlords to carry out a massive rehabilitation of their buildings. As far as taxes are concerned, the FRI intends to call for the granting of specific measures to promote thermal renovation. ■

- Spring 2010 - n° 26

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G E N E V A

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G E N E V A

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• vente@finestproperties.ch • www.finestproperties.ch SPG FINEST PROPERTIES • Route de Frontenex 41 A • CH-1207 Geneva • T +4122 707 46 60 • F +4122 707 46 66 n° 73 24 - Printemps 2009 -

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Property pages Houses for sale

SALES

A V U S Y ( G E ) : N E W B U I L D S F O R S A L E Houses

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THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

Les Résidences de Champagne Terraced houses in the middle of the countryside • South/south-west aspect • Rural setting • Traditional architecture • Under floor heating and centralised ventilation

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• Meticulous finishings • Wooden floor • Comfortable interior • Plot of 140 m2 to 375 m2

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Price between CHF 1 250 000.– and CHF 1 500 000.–

Information : Residential Sales Department –

Société Privée de Gérance

Route de Frontenex 41 A – 1207 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 61 40 – vente@spg.ch – www.spg.ch

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- Spring 2010 - n° 26

What is the best financing for this house ? – Tel. 022 849 61 32

21/04/2010 16:39:08

Property pages Houses for sale

SALES

G E N E V A A N D S U R R O U N D I N G A R E A S : F O R S A L E Houses THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

2. THôNEX – This plot of approximately 1 000 m2 is superbly maintained and equipped (automatic watering, etc.) It has a large open plan living area, a fitted kitchen, 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and a basement with a large room, laundry room and bathroom. Option of building a veranda. Private sale. CHF 2 850 000.–

SO LD

1. COINTRIN – Pleasant semi-detached house designed in a contemporary style. Spacious and plenty of natural light, it has 3/4 bedrooms and a separate studio flat. Outdoor pool. Plot of more than 590 m2. Private sale. CHF 2 480 000.–

3. VERNIER – Located on a large flat plot of land, very sunny, this attractive detached house has a clear view of the Geneva countryside. Modern architectural style. Living space : 240 m2. Private sale. CHF 1 500 000.–

4. COLLONGE-BELLERIVE – Magnificent house of 300 m2 situated close to Lake Geneva with a clear view of the Geneva countryside. Top-of-therange finishings and option of installing a private lift. Indoor pool. Private sale. Price on request.

NOTICE TO OWNERS

5. CORSIER – Superb luxury house with 4 bedrooms, 4 shower rooms, gym, home cinema and games room. Swimming pool and pool house. Living space : approximately 300 m2, terrace : 85 m2, plot : 1 300 m2, interior courtyard with parking spaces. Private sale. Price on request.

For our exclusive clients we are seeking in Geneva on the left bank : DETACHED HOUSE, LAND AND APARTMENT FOR SALE. Quick sale and discretion guaranteed. Contact us on 022 849 61 40.

Information : Residential Sales Department –

Société Privée de Gérance

Route de Frontenex 41 A – 1207 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 61 40 – vente@spg.ch – www.spg.ch

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Property pages Houses for sale

SO LD

CES OBJETS CONSTITUENT THESE PROPERTIES UNE SÉLECTION ARE A SELECTION DE NOTRE FROM PORTEFEUILLE. OUR PORTFOLIO. CONSULTEZ-NOUS CONTACT US FOR POUR AN UNE EXHAUSTIVE PRÉSENTATION LIST EXHAUSTIVE.

6.VEYRIER – Tastefully and carefully renovated, this charming farmhouse of 300 m2 is extremely comfortable due to its large living spaces. Plenty of natural light, authentic style, built from stone with visible beams. 6 bedrooms. Plot : more than 1 300 m2. CHF 3 490 000.–

7. COLOGNY – This delightful detached house situated on a flat plot of land of more than 900 m2 has a clear view of the lake. Built on one level, it has a large living room with fireplace and access to the terrace and garden, an attractive fitted kitchen, 2 bedrooms and bathroom. Area : approximately 120 m2. Price on request

8. CHAMBESY – Attractive semi-detached house, overlooking Lake Geneva, with a plot of land of more than 300 m2. Quiet setting and complete privacy. Needs some renovation work. 3 bedrooms + large room with sloping ceiling. Living space : 200 m2. CHF 2 575 000.–

9. COLLONGE-BELLERIVE – This house is situated close to the port, on an attractive plot planted with trees of approximately 1 000 m2. It is in perfect condition and has a view of the open countryside.This house has 4 bedrooms and an independent studio apartment. Floor space : 280 m. CHF 2 700 000.–

N AO vis TICE

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SALES

G E N E V A A N D S U R R O U N D I N G A R E A S : F O R S A L E Houses

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10.VEYRIER – Superb detached house, situated on a flat plot of land, very well maintained, planted with trees and hedges. It has 4 bedrooms, 3 shower rooms, a beautiful winter garden and a pleasant terrace. Living space : 140 m2. CHF 2 395 000.–

For our exclusive clients we are seeking in Geneva on the left bank : DETACHED HOUSE, LAND AND APARTMENT FOR SALE. Quick sale and discretion guaranteed. Contact us on 022 849 61 40.

Information : Residential Sales Department –

Société Privée de Gérance

Route de Frontenex 41 A – 1207 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 61 40 – vente@spg.ch – www.spg.ch

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- Spring 2010 - n° 26

Have you fallen in love with a house ? – Tel. 022 849 61 40

21/04/2010 16:39:31

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n° 26 - Spring 2010 -

77 21/04/2010 16:01:21

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Property pages Houses for sale

SALES

R I V E G A U C H E : F O R S A L E Houses THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

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Société Privée de Gérance

Route de Frontenex 41 A – 1207 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 61 40 – vente@spg.ch – www.spg.ch

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- Spring 2010 - n° 26

Have you fallen in love with an apartment ? – Tel. 022 849 61 40

21/04/2010 16:39:37

Property pages Apartments for sale

SALES

G E N E V A A N D S U R R O U N D I N G A R E A S : for sale Apartments THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

2. COLOGNY – This 5-room apartment with plenty of natural light runs from the front to the back of a luxury apartment building in a quiet setting surrounded by private and secure grounds, close to the town centre. Its 159 m2 area includes 3 bedrooms and 3 shower rooms. Balcony : 2 x 14 m2. Lock-up garage and indoor parking. Private sale. CHF 2 490 000.–

ap ga ar rde tm n en t

1. COLLONGE-BELLERIVE – This 5-room apartment extends from the front to the back of the building and has a view of the vineyards and lake. Its living space of 117 m2 includes a living room/dining room with fireplace and 3 bedrooms. It is close to public transport, schools and shops and is in a quiet setting. Balcony : 6 m2, outside parking. CHF 1 349 000.–

4. PETIT-SACONNEX – Spacious 6-room apartment in an attractive building, in one of the sought-after districts of Geneva, close to international organisations and the town centre. Large lounge, 3 bedrooms. Area : 192 m2. Balcony : 21 m2. Lock-up garage. CHF 2 500 000.–

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3. ANIÈRES – In a rural and quiet setting, charming 4-room apartment of 97 m2. It is comprised of an open plan living space with dining area opening onto the kitchen, 2 bedrooms with access to the balcony, fully fitted bathroom. Garden + terrace : 45 m2. Leisure facilities and shops close by. CHF 980 000.–

5. BERNEX – This delightful 5-room apartment is situated in a small apartment building, close to shops and public transport. It is in good condition and its rooms are bathed in an abundance of natural light due to its lovely, fully south-facing terrace. 2 large bedrooms, bedroom/office. Living space : 87 m2, terrace 30 m2. Outside parking. CHF 750 000.–

6. ANIÈRES – Attractive 4-room apartment situated in a residential area in a quiet and green setting. Its area of 97 m2 is extended by two balconies of 22 m2. It includes a lounge with fireplace, 2 bedrooms, a bathroom and a garage. CHF 1 070 000.–

Information : Residential Sales Department –

Société Privée de Gérance

Route de Frontenex 41 A – 1207 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 61 40 – vente@spg.ch – www.spg.ch

You can find all our offers at www.spg.ch

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Property pages Apartments for sale

THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

sp ac io us du pl ex

SALES

G E N E V A A N D S U R R O U N D I N G A R E A S : F O R sale Apartments

8. ONEX – This 6-room apartment extends from the front to the back of a relatively new building. It is in good condition and the rooms have plenty of natural light. Public transport, shops and the town centre are close by. Its area of 143 m2 includes 3 bedrooms with access to the garden. Balcony : 8 m2, garden : 121 m2. 2 lock-up garages. Quiet, comfortable, garden of 121 m2. CHF 1 250 000.–

SO LD

7. CHAMPEL – Superb duplex, which extends from the front to the back of the building, has 10 rooms and is situated in a luxury building, close to shops and bus stops. Large and with plenty of natural light, it has an open plan living space, dining room, 4 bedrooms including one with a sauna, 4 shower rooms and a lock-up garage.Area : 300 m2. Balcony : 19 m2 and terraces : 109 m2. CHF 5 950 000.–

10. FLORISSANT – This vast 8-room apartment, which extends from the front to the back of the building, needs some work and has lovely wooden floors and high ceilings. It has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. Double garage. Living area : 206 m2. Balcony : 17 m2. Loggia : 23 m2. Quiet and sought-after area. CHF 2 600 000.–

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9. MEINIER – Situated in a small rural building, this charming triplex is surrounded by greenery. It is close to bus stops, schools and shops. This 179 m2 apartment has a spacious lounge/dining room, 3 bedrooms, dressing room, 2 bathrooms. Balcony : 15 m2. Double lock-up garage. CHF 1 550 000.–

11. FLORISSANT – Superb 7-room apartment in a quiet and green setting situated close to shops and bus stops. It has an exceptional view and plenty of natural light. Its area of 152 m2 includes a lounge, dining room, kitchen, 3 bedrooms, a dressing room and 3 shower rooms. Double garage. Balcony : 7 m2. CHF 2 170 000.–

12. CHAMPEL PARC APARTMENT BUILDING – On the south hillside of Crêts de Champel, plan to build magnificent and spacious 6-room apartments of 200 m2 + 38 m2 of balconies, including one with a 156 m2 roof terrace.The closeness of the shops, bus stops, parks and the town centre makes this an ideal place to live. From CHF 14 700.–/m2

Information : Residential Sales Department –

Société Privée de Gérance

Route de Frontenex 41 A – 1207 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 61 40 – vente@spg.ch – www.spg.ch

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- Spring 2010 - n° 26

The panorama of property – www.immorama.ch

21/04/2010 16:40:07

Alu c

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Property pages Buildings for sale

SALES

geneva and vaud : for sale Buildings THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

2. SAINT-PREX – Between Morges and Rolle, this administrative office is situated in a fast-developing area (industrial zone B). It has offices on the ground floor and 1st floor and 30 outside parking spaces. Gross floor area approximately 900 m2. Large area remaining to be built on ! Gross return : 5,69%. CHF 2 300 000.–

SOr ar LeD

1. NYON – Relatively new building in excellent condition, in an industrial and small business zone. Easy access for large trucks (unloading dock). Mixed commercial (91%) and apartment (9%) building on 3 levels. Good guarantee of rental income, which could increase the current gross return from 5,18% to 6,77%. Leases in progress. CHF 12 600 000.–

3. CITY CENTRE – Left bank, close to the city centre, on the ground floor of a mixed-use PPE (commonhold) property built in 1992. For sale – 8 lots of shops and administrative offices, 6 of which are occupied, of 653 m2 with 258 m2 of warehouses. Option of separate sale, these properties have a gross return of 6,19%. Lot from CHF 385 000.–

4. GENEVA – In the heart of the Old Town and its tourist attractions, this rare property is in an enviable location.The property has 7 apartments and a shop on the ground floor. Good guarantee of rental income ! Needs some work. CHF 4 900 000.–

Information : Property Investment Consulting and Sales Department Société Privée de Gérance – Route de Chêne 36 – 1208 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 65 54/51 – transim@spg.ch – www.spg.ch

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- Spring 2010 - n° 26

fallendeincœur love with – Tel. 022 022 849 849 61 40 VousHave avez Le you panorama le coup de l'immobilier pouran unapartment ? appartement ? – www.immorama.ch – Tél. 61 40

21/04/2010 16:40:20

Property pages Buildings for sale

SALES

G E N E V A A N D S U R R O U N D I N G A R E A S : F O R sale Buildings THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

6. LAUSANNE – Freestone building from 1800 renovated in 1989, mixed commercial (on 2 levels) and residential property. Excellent commercial location, 2 shops of 587 m2, office of 126 m2 and apartments over an area of 827 m2 on 6 floors + lower and upper ground floor – Good guarantee of rental income. Sold to the highest bidder. Gross return 4,49%. CHF 15 500 000.– © iStock

5. CHÊNE-BOURG – In the heart of the Old Chêne-Bourg, building from 1830 with Piedmontese architecture including a shop on the ground floor + warehouses/workshop, on the 1st floor : 2x3 rooms, 2 rooms and attic to be converted. Plot : 456 m2. Needs renovation work and extension. CHF 2 070 000.–

Non-contractual photo

7. LAUSANNE – Mixed-use building built in 1575 and renovated in 1988, in pedestrian zone 100 m from the M2. Commercial premises on 2 levels, office, warehouse and 6 apartments on 4 levels. Good potential for improving the occupancy level. Gross return 6,64%. CHF 5 175 000.–

8. GENEVA – At the crossroads of the Tranchées, Bastions and Russian Church districts, this XVIIIth century town house, fully renovated and in excellent condition, has 2 upper floors, a ground floor + converted basement. High ceilings, wooden floors, mouldings, charm and character guaranteed ! Sold rented or free of any occupant depending on agreement. Confidential private sale. Price on request.

Information : Property Investment Consulting and Sales Department Société Privée de Gérance – Route de Chêne 36 – 1208 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 65 54/51 – transim@spg.ch – www.spg.ch

You can find all our offers at www.spg.ch

cahier immo_ang_8_sanc.indd 83

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Property pages Buildings for sale

SALES

geneva and vaud : for sale Buildings THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

10. GENEVA – In a very sought-after district, close to the city centre and all amenities, this office building includes offices, shops, conference rooms and 18 parking spaces. Gross return : 5,74%. CHF 11 300 000.–

9. CITY CENTRE – Shop of 66 m2 situated on the ground floor currently used as a beauty salon : 2 beauty treatment booths, 2 nail manicure tables, 2 hairdressing seats. Free from any lease, available immediately for similar or any other activity excluding catering.Theoretical return : 6,60%. CHF 1 000 000.– (commission not included)

Non-contractual photo

11. PLAINPALAIS – Shop of 69 m2 on 2 levels in a PPE (commonhold) property from 2008, currently used as an office. Very well situated between Plainpalais and Bastions in a pedestrianised shopping zone. Free from lease. CHF 630 000.–

12. FRENCH-SPEAKING SWITZERLAND – For sale in French-speaking Switzerland, well-situated shopping centres, good return, quality tenants, brand name reliability, parking available in very busy mixed-use area. Price on request.

Information : Property Investment Consulting and Sales Department Société Privée de Gérance – Route de Chêne 36 – 1208 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 65 54/51 – transim@spg.ch – www.spg.ch

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- Spring 2010 - n° 26

The panorama of property – www.immorama.ch

21/04/2010 16:40:30

Property pages

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Property Investment Consulting and Sales

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Property pages Apartment for rent

RENTALS

cha m p e l ( G E ) : F O R R E N T Apartment THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

Magnificent apartment extend from the front to the back of the building of approximately 180 m2 with a balcony on each side In a luxury property Luxuriously furnished in a ”contemporary style“ with top-of-the-range fittings, it includes designer furniture and has 3 bedrooms including one with an adjoining dressing room, 2 fully fitted bathrooms/shower rooms, 1 office, 1 lounge, 1 living room, 1 modern fully fitted kitchen. 1 underground parking space. Available immediatly. Rent on request.

Information : Residential Rentals Department – Société Privée de Gérance Route de Chêne 36 – 1208 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 61 50 – locresid@spg.ch – www.spg.ch

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- Spring 2010 - n° 26

The panorama of property – www.immorama.ch

21/04/2010 16:40:34

Property pages House for rent

RENTALS

C O l l onge - b e l l erive ( G E ) : F O R R E N T House THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

Spacious house situated close to the lake and 15 minutes from the centre of Geneva Authentic charm • House of 300 m2 on 2 levels + basement. • Ground floor: living room with fireplace opening onto the dining room with access to a fully enclosed garden of 2 400 m2, fitted kitchen, bedroom with shower room and office. • First floor : 3 shower rooms, 4 bedrooms including master bedroom with bathroom, dressing room and balcony. This house can be rented furnished. Availability : to be agreed. Rent on request

Information : Residential Rentals Department – Société Privée de Gérance Route de Chêne 36 – 1208 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 61 50 – locresid@spg.ch – www.spg.ch

Subscribe to our Newsletters : publications@spg.ch

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21/04/2010 16:40:35

Property pages Apartments and houses for rent

lak e

THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

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RENTALS

gen E V A and surrounding : F O R R E N T Apartments and houses

2.VERSOIX – Charming 4-room apartment of approximately 125 m² on 2 levels, situated on the 2nd floor of a small building. It has 2 bedrooms, a bathroom with separate WC, fitted kitchen.The living room has a sloping ceiling and fireplace. Large balcony with view of the lake and Alps. Independent furnished studio apartment of approximately 35 m2. Available immediately. Rent on request.

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1. ANIÈRES – Detached 6-room house on one level with garden of approximately 1 800 m2. 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms/shower rooms, living room/dining room with fireplace, fitted kitchen. Converted basement with bedroom and bathroom, sauna with shower and games room. 2 garages. Cellar. Available immediately. Rent on request.

4. PETIT-SACONNEX – Elegant 8,5-room apartment extending from the front to the back of the building on the 5th floor including entrance hall, 2 reception rooms (library/TV room, living room) with balconies, 3 bedrooms with balcony, dining room with cloakroom and guests’ WC, new fitted kitchen, tradesmen’s entrance, 2 bathrooms, dressing room. Close to international organisations. Available immediately. Rent on request.

fa m ily

c th lose e t lak o e

ho us e

3. GRAND-SACONNEX – 6-room semi-detached house of approximately 180 m2 comprising a bedroom with dressing room, 2 children’s bedrooms, new fitted kitchen opening onto the living room with library and fireplace, fully fitted bathroom with jacuzzi, shower room, a room in the attic. Converted basement. Lock-up garage, covered parking space and outside parking space. Garden of approximately 462 m2. Available immediately. Rent on request.

5. PORT-LEMAN – Adjoining 5-room house on the edge of the lake of approximately 160 m2 with garden of 340 m2, 3 bedrooms, fully fitted kitchen opening onto the dining room and living room, garage. Co-owned swimming pool with pool house, private beach, private mooring space.Available immediately. Rent on request.

6.THÔNEX – Large 7-room detached house of approximately 275 m2 with enclosed garden of approximately 627 m2, 4 bedrooms, modern fully fitted kitchen, living room/dining room, 2 bathrooms and a shower room. Converted basement with sauna and wine cellar. Garage and 2 outside parking spaces.Available on 1st August 2010. Rent on request.

Information : Residential Rentals Department – Société Privée de Gérance Route de Chêne 36 – 1208 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 61 50 – locresid@spg.ch – www.spg.ch

cahier immo_ang_8_sanc.indd 88

- Spring 2010 - n° 26

The panorama of property – www.immorama.ch

21/04/2010 16:40:44

Property pages New apartments for rent

RENTALS

F R O N T E N E X ( G E ) : F O R R E N T E x c lusi v e ! THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

Meil High leure q er q ualit é uali ty o de vie f life , fa , low ible c o er e nerg nsomm y co ation nsum d ptio ’énergi n e

Around a private patio in the heart of town, 5 elegant apartments for rent, situated in a unique district, close to the harbour and parks These modern apartments have been awarded the MINERGIE® ecological label and are of generous sizes ranging from 175 m2 to 252 m2, extended by terraces or balconies. An elegant and luxury property with contemporary architecture. Underground parking is available to residents. NEW Available : to be agreed Monthly rent between CHF 8 800.– and CHF 10 900.– Information : Société Privée de Gérance

UILD

Route de Frontenex 41 A – 1207 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 61 40 – vente@spg.ch – www.spg.ch

You can find all our offers at www.spg.ch

cahier immo_ang_8_sanc.indd 89

n° 26 - Spring 2010 -

21/04/2010 16:40:46

Property pages

RENTALS

Parking spaces for rent

Your personal parking space for the price of a parking fine !*

AVA I L A B L E R E G I O N S : Geneva (city centre, left and right bank) / Eaux-Vives / Malagnou Grange-Canal / Chêne-Bourg / Chêne-Bougeries / Thônex / Puplinge Vandoeuvres / Veyrier / Vessy / Carouge / Plan-les-Ouates / Meyrin Saint-Jean / Charmilles / Sécheron / Montbrillant / Grand-Pré / Versoix Châtelaine / Vernier / Petit-Saconnex / Grand-Saconnex / Le Bouchet Plainpalais / Vésenaz / Bernex / Perly / Satigny / Le Lignon / Grand-Lancy Petit-Lancy / Avully / Onex / Meinier / Corsier / Cologny. * Monthly rent from CHF 50.–

Rentals Service Open continuously from 8:30 to 16:30

SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE Rentals Service Route de Chêne 36 - 1208 Geneva Tel 022 707 46 46 - Fax 022 849 61 07 location@spg.ch - www.spg.ch SPG-RYTZ Group

autopub parking_ang.indd 1

cahier immo_ang_8_sanc.indd 90

- Spring 2010 - n° 26

The panorama of property – www.immorama.ch

19/04/2010 15:03:39

21/04/2010 16:40:47

Property pages Commercial premises for rent

CES OBJETS CONSTITUENT THESE PROPERTIES UNE SÉLECTION ARE A SELECTION DE NOTRE FROM PORTEFEUILLE. OUR PORTFOLIO. CONSULTEZ-NOUS CONTACT US FOR POUR AN UNE EXHAUSTIVE PRÉSENTATION LIST EXHAUSTIVE.

location

area

price M2/year

advantages

RETAIL Montagne 136

72 m2

CHF 360.– In a renovated and dynamic shopping centre situated in the middle of a high-class district, 72 m² shop.

Florissant 2

130 m2

CHF 406.– Fully-equipped hairdressing salon, Florissant – Tranchées corner, top location.

Saint-Georges Center

8 500 m2

CHF 550.– Minergie® building, ecological “must have”, ideal for large business. Ideal from 1 000 m2

Louis-Dunant

2 300 m2

CHF 469.– International organisations and UN district. Close to the airport and motorway.

CNTC

6 857 m2

from CHF 340.– High-tech building. Close to the town centre and train station. From 484 m2.

Veyrot 39

2 246 m2

CHF 350.– Meyrin. Spacious floors with plenty of natural light, from 1 000 m2.

CHF 500.– Luxury building. Close to the United Nations.

RENTALS

gen E V A and surrounding areas : F O R R E N T Commercial premises

OFFICES

Moillebeau 56-58

118 m2 and 147 m2

Cours de Rive 10

450 m2

CHF 1 000.– Magnificent PPE (commonhold property) space on a floor of 450 m2 of ultra modern offices in a prestigious building. Mix of design and charm. Fully equipped. False technical floor, cooled air, large server room. Kitchen and two sets of toilets. Direct access by two lifts. Ideal location on the Rive roundabout in Geneva city centre.

Mines 15

1 000 m2

CHF 475.– On the 2nd floor of an attractive modern building, 1 000 m² of offices to be converted as the tenant wishes. Parking spaces available.

Sénebier 20

257 m2

CHF 561.– Attractive offices in the lawyers’ district, close to Bastions park.

Geneva

1 000 m2

Attractive price Banking district. Magnificent town house of approximately 1 000 m2 on four floors plus basement. Welcome desk, small company apartment. Private lift. Air conditioning. Available immediately.

Information : Commercial Rentals Department – Société Privée de Gérance Route de Chêne 36 – 1208 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 62 00 – locom@spg.ch – www.spg.ch

Are you looking for offices in the city centre ? – Tel. 022 849 62 00

cahier immo_ang_8_sanc.indd 91

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Property pages Commercial premises for rent

RENTALS

gen E V A and surrounding areas : F O R R E N T Commercial premises THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

1. UNITED NATIONS – In an attractive modern building with plenty of parking. Fully renovated offices. More than 2 300 m2 for rent ! CHF 469.– /m2

2. COURS DE RIVE 10 – Magnificent offices of approximately 450 m²

in a designer building in the town centre. Panoramic view. Parking spaces available.

CHF 1 000.– /m2

3. GRAND-LANCY – Very attractive offices of approximately 116 m2 situated on the ground floor of a modern building. Very reasonable price. Available mid-2010. CHF 220.– /m2

4. MEYRIN SATIGNY – Quiet offices with plenty of natural light. Area of approximately 2 246 m2, open plan layout on the 1st and 2nd floors. Plenty of parking available. Green setting. Close to motorways. CHF 350.– m2/an.

Information : Commercial Rentals Department – Société Privée de Gérance Route de Chêne 36 – 1208 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 62 00 – locom@spg.ch – www.spg.ch

cahier immo_ang_8_sanc.indd 92

- Spring 2010 - n° 26

Do you have offices for rent ? – Tel. 022 849 62 00

21/04/2010 16:40:59

YOUR MANAGER OF SUSTAINABLE RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY In the field of sustainable development, SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE takes tangible steps to reduce the energy impact of buildings. It also encourages its clients, partners and employees to be aware of the advantages and the economic and environmental stakes of ecological housing.

OUR TANGIBLE STEPS : • To create sustainable housing, the MINERGIE® label and eco-districts • To increase the value of your property, green renovations • To save energy, rigorous management and ecological diagnos • To save water, appropriate ﬁxtures • To pollute less, daily ecological gestures • To ﬁght against deforestation, ecological paper and less consumption • To live better, soft mobility • To make towns more attractive, quality architecture • To keep you informed, quality publications To find out more :

www.spg.ch/ecology

SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE Route de Chêne 36 / CH - 1208 Geneva / Tel.: +41 22 849 61 61 www.spg.ch SPG-RYTZ Group

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Property pages Commercial premises for rent

RENTALS

gen E V A and surrounding areas : F O R R E N T Commercial premises Redefining business space for high technology and innovation

Redefining business space for high technology and innovation

charmilles new tech center Rue de Lyon 105 to 111 — 1203 Gen eva Areas

charmilles new tech center – – – –

available areas from 154 m2 to 6857 m2 option to rent floors of 1000 o r 2000 m2 price from 340.-- / m2 availability : October 2010

Rue de Lyon 105 to 111 — 1203 Geneva Technical specifications

Fields of activities – – – – – – – – –

Areas electronics mechatronics available areas from 154 m2 to 6857 m2 medicalto rent floors of 1000 o r 2000 m2 option graphics price from 340.-- / m2 agrifoo d stuffs : October 2010 availability information technologies construction pharma ceuticals and chemistry Fields of king activities watchma�

electronics – mechatronics – medical – Rentals graphics – agrifoo d stuffs – information technologies – SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE – construction Commercial rentals ceuticals – pharma Route de Chêne and 36 chemistry watchma� – king 1208 Geneva

– – – – – – –

access control lifts and goods lifts technical false floor cooled air fibre optics truc� k�access tunnel warehouses in the basement Technical specifications

– – – – – – –

access control lifts and goods lifts technical false floor cooled air fibre optics truc� access tunnel +41k� 22 849 62 00 warehouses in the basement +41 22 849 67 04 (fax) locom@spg.ch www.spg.ch

Rentals � � a nagement M� SOCIÉTÉ PRIVÉE DE GÉRANCE Commercial rentals Centers Shopping & Business Route de Chêne 36 1208 Geneva

+41 22 849 62 00 60 +41 22 849 67 04 61 (fax) locom@spg.ch sbcenters@spg.ch www.spg.ch

Information immobiliere.indd 1 � � a nagement M�

SOCIÉTÉ- PRIVÉE GÉRANCE Spring DE 2010 - n° 26 Shopping & Business Centers Route de Chêne 36 1208 Geneva

cahier immo_ang_8_sanc.indd 94

10.08.09 15:13

You can find all our offers at www.spg.ch

+41 22 849 62 60 +41 22 849 67 61 (fax) sbcenters@spg.ch www.spg.ch

21/04/2010 16:41:01

Property pages Commercial premises for rent

RENTALS

gen E V A and surrounding areas : F O R R E N T Commercial premises THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

5. GENEVA – Banking district. Magnificent town house of approximately 1 000 m2 on four floors plus basement. Welcome desk, small company apartment. Private lift. Air conditioning. Available immediately. Attractive price.

6. Sécheron – On the 2nd floor of an attractive modern building, 1 000 m² of offices that can be converted as the buyer wishes. Parking spaces available. CHF 475.– m2/an

7. Vernier / aIRport – In the superstructure of a new shopping centre in Vernier, approximately 5 000 m² of new ultra-modern offices. Available from 800 m2. CHF 350.– m²/an.

8. MOILLEBEAU 56-58 – Luxury fully equipped offices from 120 to 150 m². Ideal for watchmaking company. CHF 500.– m2/an.

Information : Commercial Rentals Department – Société Privée de Gérance Route de Chêne 36 – 1208 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 62 00 – locom@spg.ch – www.spg.ch

Are you looking for offices in the city centre ? – Tel. 022 849 62 00

cahier immo_ang_8_sanc.indd 95

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Commercial premises for rent

Y V E R D O N - L E S - B A I N S : F O R R E N T Commercial premises

RENTALS



Property pages

  YVETECH | Yverdons-les-Bains For rent | Hight tech industrial site 

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 

  

  

   



 INFORMATION :  

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

   SPG Intercity Geneva S.A. – sheilLa sklar      Route de Frontenex, 41 A – 1207 Geneva     Tel. +41 22 707 46 09 | Fax +41 22 707 46 77     sheilla.sklar@spgintercity.ch | www.spgintercity.ch

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- Spring 2010 - n° 26

AreNos you bureaux interested our officesvous in the town centre ? – Tel. 46 70 au in centre-ville intéressent ? – Tél. 022022 707707 46 70

21/04/2010 16:41:15

Property pages Commercial premises for rent

RENTALS

m orges : F O R R E N T Commercial premises

 lake geneva park| Morges

  For rent | Divisible office area

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 

Office premise from 890 to 11 800 m2  

Business centre comprised of three interdependent buildings    

 Optimum location and access   

www.lakegenevapark.com 

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  



            

Are you looking for new premises ? – Tel. 022 707 46 79

cahier immo_ang_8_sanc.indd 97

n° 26 - Spring 2010 -

21/04/2010 16:41:20

Property pages Commercial premises for rent

RENTALS

geneva : F O R R E N T Commercial premises

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 

   FOR RENT |Geneva airport   

 



          

 INFORMATION:           SPG Intercity Geneva S.A. – SOPHIE CARLIEZ      Route de Frontenex, 41 A – 1207 Geneva      Tel. +41 22 707 46 80 | Fax +41 22 707 46 77    sophie.carliez@spgintercity.ch   www.spgintercity.ch 

cahier immo_ang_8_sanc.indd 98

- Spring 2010 - n° 26

AreNos you bureaux interested our officesvous in the town centre ? – Tel. 46 70 au in centre-ville intéressent ? – Tél. 022022 707707 46 70

21/04/2010 16:41:35

Property pages Commercial premises for rent

RENTALS

Lausanne : F O R R E N T Commercial premises

 geneva | United nations district  FOR RENT | Office space

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 

     

      

   

                     

 



INFORMATIoN :  

 

SPG Intercity Geneva S.A. – SOPHIE CARLIEZ         Route de Frontenex, 41 A – 1207 Geneva       Tel. +41 22 707 46 80 | Fax +41 22 707 46 77       sophie.carliez@spgintercity.ch | www.spgintercity.ch      

Are you looking for new premises ? – Tel. 022 707 46 79

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Property pages Commercial premises for rent

RENTALS

geneva : F O R R E N T Commercial premises

   

 

         

  



           

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Are you interested in our offices in the city centre ? – Tel. 022 707 46 70

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Property pages Commercial premises for rent

CES OBJETS CONSTITUENT THESE PROPERTIES UNE SéLECTION ARE A SELECTION dE NOTRE FROM PORTEFEUILLE. OUR PORTFOLIO. CONSULTEZ-NOUS CONTACT US FOR POUR AN UNE EXHAUSTIVE PRéSENTATION LIST EXHAUSTIVE.

TYPe

AReA

PRICe M2/YeAR

ADVANTAGeS

ReTAIL Vernier (GE) ARCENTER Crissier (Vd)

200 - 900 m2

On request New shopping center on 2 levels, underground car park. Retails spaces can be fitted according to the tenant request.

4 000 m2 can be divided from 1 000 m2

CHF 280.– Retails space situated in the existing very attractive shopping zone. Easy access and underground car park.

2 600 m2

CHF 230.– In the heart of “littoral Parc”, ultra modern complex to welcome all types of showrooms. Highly visible from both highway and train. Outdoor and underground parking space available.

Geneva Centre

600 m2

CHF 650.– New office space to be fitted out as the tenant wishes.

Geneva Centre

3 000 m

Upon request Fully renovated property in the heart of Geneva. Can be divided from 940 m2.

Geneva -Airport

2 400 m

CHF 480.– New luxury independent administrative building. Spaces to be fitted out according to the tenant requirements.

Vernier (GE) ARCENTER

500 m2 8 400 m2

CHF 360.– New luxury office building on 4 floors. Office space can be fitted out according to the tenant request – 2 800 m2 dividable from 500 m2. Underground car park.

Geneva -Airport

5 100 m2

CHF 390.– On request Magnificent area of 5 100 m2 of office space. Completion planned for September 2010.

Geneva -Airport PATIO PLAZA

4 000 m2 can be divided from 1 000 m2

CHF 480.– High-tech building situated very close to Geneva international airport. Well-designed spaces with plenty of natural light allowing open plan or partitioned offices. Can be divided from 1 000 m2.

3 000 m2

CHF 280.– Luxury property extremely visible from the motorways. The project is in line with sustainable development and energy saving standards and meets all the requirements of an office building.

5 000 m2 can be divided from 350 m2

CHF 325.– Terre Bonne. New building situated close to the A1 motorway. Areas can be divided from 600 m2. Property of high environmental quality – Minergie label.

Rolle (Vd) A-One Business

2 100 m2

CHF 270.– Independent building in the A-One Business Centre-

Etoy (Vd)

10 000 m2

Etoy (Vd) design centre

RENtALS

G E N E VA A N D l A U S A N N E : F O R R E N T commercial premises

OFFICeS

Crissier (Vd)

Nyon (Vd)

2 100 m2 dividable per floor as of 618 sq m. Outdoor and underground parking space available. Upon request Landmark office development in the heart of the littoral

park. Excellent visibility from major transport links. Over 100 parking places available.

P P

SMALL BUSINeSS AND INDUSTRIAL SITe Plan-les-Ouates (GE)

8 000 m2

On request Luxury new building with Minergie label, situated close to the motorway.

Are you LOOKING for or wanting to SeLL a shop in the city centre ? Do not hesitate to contact our “ReTAIL” department : Cécile Albet on 022 707 46 70

Information : SPG Intercity Geneva S.A.

Route de Frontenex, 41A – 1207 Geneva – Tel. 022 707 46 00 – Fax. 022 707 46 77 geneva@spgintercity.ch – www.spgintercity.ch

...Call us to arrange a visit – Tel. 022 707 46 00

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Property pages Houses for sale

SO LD

CES OBJETS CONSTITUENT THESE PROPERTIES UNE SÉLECTION ARE A SELECTION DE NOTRE FROM PORTEFEUILLE. OUR PORTFOLIO. CONSULTEZ-NOUS CONTACT US FOR POUR AN UNE EXHAUSTIVE PRÉSENTATION LIST EXHAUSTIVE.

1. CHAVANNES-DES-BOIS – 4 km from the Coppet motorway exit and from Versoix, modern detached house to be built. Quality construction and choice of finishings. Very quiet setting. With clear view of the countryside and the Jura. CHF 1 715 000.–

2. PRANGINS– 4,5 room detached house + kitchen on a plot of 1 748 m2 in a residential area.With superb garden planted with trees and a covered terrace of 30 m2. Situated close to the town centre and all amenities. Optimum sunshine, away from all noise. CHF 1 990 000.–

3. GENOLIER – Chalet-type detached house comprising 5 rooms + kitchen, situated at the top of the village, in a very quiet residential hamlet. Close to Nyon/St-Cergue train station. Enclosed plot of 1 045 m2. Quiet setting and view of the Alps. CHF 1 595 000.–

4. CRANS-PRÈS-CÉLIGNY – Charming detached house of 8 rooms + kitchen. Its dominant position gives it a wonderful view of the lake and the Alps. Living space of 260 m2 + basement. With outdoor swimming pool. Plot of 1 124 m2 attractively planted with trees and very well maintained. CHF 2 950 000.–

SO LD

qu ie ta re a

SALES

vau : for sale Houses

5. COMMUGNY – Spacious detached house of 6 rooms + kitchen. Situated close to Terre Sainte Secondary School, in a very quiet residential area. Plot of 1 270 m2 planted with trees. Traditional construction, renovated in 2009. Living space of approximately 260 m2. CHF 3 150 000.–

6. GIVRINS – Attractive property situated in the north of the village, on the edge of farmland with a view of Lake Geneva, the Mont-Blanc massif and the Jura. Excellent orientation, no noise and “Nyon” motorway access 5 km away. Lovely garden with swimming pool. CHF 3 200 000.–

Information : Sales office - Rytz & Cie S.A. Avenue A.-Cortot 7 – 1260 Nyon – Tel. 022 36 36 010 – vente@rytz.com – www.rytz.com

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All our property offers at www.rytz.com

21/04/2010 16:42:06

Proje

DEVELOPMENT 路 SALES 路 RENTALS 路 PPE (COMMONHOLD) 路 MANAGEMENT

YOUR PROPERTY IN FRENCH-SPEAKING SWITZERLAND

RYTZ & Cie S.A. is the leading property company on the Vaud coast between Geneva and Lausanne and is a subsidiary of the SPG Group, providing its clients with expertise in rental management, brokering, valuation and property developments. It was established in 1947 and has all types of properties in its portfolio : houses, apartments, PPE (commonhold), parking spaces, plots of land and luxury properties. ISO 9001 certified, it offers a high quality, efficient and local service. As part of the SPG Group, which is solidly established in Switzerland, RYTZ & Cie S.A. can provide its customers with a network of skills and multi-service know-how.

RYTZ & CIE S.A. Avenue Alfred-Cortot, 7 1260 Nyon Tel. : +41 22 363 60 00 Fax : +41 22 363 60 20 E-mail : info@rytz.com www.rytz.com

SPG GROUP, A NETWORK OF EXPERTISE FOR COMPREHENSIVE PROPERTY ADVICE

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Property pages Properties for sale

SALES

vaud : F O R S A L E Properties THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

1. GILLY/BURSINS – Magnificent winegrower‘s property from the XVIIIth century, fully renovated. It has a clear view of the vineyard and overlooks the lake and Alps on the south-east side. Living space of 420 m2. Plot planted with trees with a magnificent garden, pergola and a small pond. CHF 3 500 000.–

2. FEchy – This attractive 6,5-room property is situated in a charming wine-growing village in the heart of La Côte. It is in an exceptional location with a dominant position, in a residential area of luxury properties, very quiet with optimum sunshine and a splendid view of Lake Geneva and the Alps. 5 minutes from the motorway access, 20 minutes from Lausanne and 25 minutes from Geneva international airport. CHF 3 400 000.–

Information : Sales office - Rytz & Cie S.A. Avenue A.-Cortot 7 – 1260 Nyon – Tel. 022 36 36 010 – vente@rytz.com – www.rytz.com

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Are you looking for a house to buy ? – Tel. 022 36 36 010

21/04/2010 16:42:10

Property pages Apartments for sale

CES OBJETS CONSTITUENT THESE PROPERTIES UNE SÉLECTION ARE A SELECTION DE NOTRE FROM PORTEFEUILLE. OUR PORTFOLIO. CONSULTEZ-NOUS CONTACT US FOR POUR AN UNE EXHAUSTIVE PRÉSENTATION LIST EXHAUSTIVE.

1. FOUNEX – In the village centre, splendid new apartment of 2,5 rooms + kitchen. PPE (commonhold) property area of approximately 80 m2 + 2 balconies, cellar, wine cellar, gym and carnotzet. Completion autumn/winter 2011. CHF 753 000.– + garage

2. NYON – Close to the town centre and in a luxury apartment building, magnificent duplex attic apartment of 211 m2 + terrace of approximately 28 m2 in total + large closed garage for 2 cars.View of the Alps and lake. CHF 2 200 000.–

3. GENOLIER – Luxury apartment of 4,5 rooms + kitchen situated on the ground floor of an area of 220 m2 with patio of 17 m2, a terrace of 65 m2 and a private garden of 235 m2. T his apartment is aimed at an exclusive clientele. Modern architecture with wide plate glass windows providing optimum natural light.With a panoramic view of the lake and Alps. CHF 3 700 000.– + garages

4. CHAVANNES-DES-BOIS – Magnificent apartment of 6,5 rooms + kitchen with fully enclosed private garden of an approximate area of 700 m2 with pergola. Quiet and sunny location. Lock-up garage for one car + an inside parking space and an outdoor parking space. CHF 1 480 000.–

5. ARNEX-SUR-NYON – Luxurious and spacious apartment of 2 rooms + kitchen, area of approximately 140 m2 + patio of 17 m2, in luxury apartment building. It is not overlooked and has a panoramic view of Lake Geneva and the Alps. A vast terrace of approximately 89 m2 is also a feature of this apartment + indoor lock-up garage for one car. CHF 2 275 000.–

6. GLAND – Magnificent duplex apartment of 5,5 rooms + kitchen in a charming PPE (commonhold) property of 15 apartments. Traditional type construction with attractive finishings. Floor space of approximately 160 m2, i.e. 4 bedrooms, 3 shower rooms, lounge and large fitted kitchen with dining facilities. Close to all amenities (schools, post office and train station). CHF 865 000.–

SALES

vaud : F O R S A L E Apartments

Information : Sales office - Rytz & Cie S.A. Avenue A.-Cortot 7 – 1260 Nyon – Tel. 022 36 36 010 – vente@rytz.com – www.rytz.com Do you want to sell your house ? – Tel. 022 36 36 010 Titre

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Property pages Apartments for sale

SALES

F rench b order area : F O R S A L E Apartments CES OBJETS CONSTITUENT THESE PROPERTIES UNE SÉLECTION ARE A SELECTION DE NOTRE FROM PORTEFEUILLE. OUR PORTFOLIO. CONSULTEZ-NOUS CONTACT US FOR POUR AN UNE EXHAUSTIVE PRÉSENTATION LIST EXHAUSTIVE.

1. AMPHION-LES-BAINS – Waterfront apartment with a magnificent view of Lake Geneva from its terrace. It is comprised of a fitted kitchen opening onto the lounge/dining room, 2 bedrooms, a bathroom, 2 WCs, a cellar and parking in the basement. EUROS 418 000.–

2. Annemasse – Relatively new property from the 90s, attractive 2 rooms + fitted kitchen with balcony, cellar, good condition. Parking. EUROS 140 000.–

3. GAILLARD – Close to the Moëllesulaz border, attractive 2 rooms + fitted kitchen situated on the 5th floor with balcony and a magnificent view of the Salève mountain. Cellar and garage in the basement. EUROS 185 000.–

4. GAILLARD – Attractive 2-room apartment of 54 m² + kitchen opening onto a dining area, lounge, one bedroom. 1st floor. Cellar in the basement, quiet location, close to amenities. EUROS 140 000.–

5. GAILLARD – Luxury property with 5 rooms + fitted kitchen opening onto a dining room of 110 m² of living space with balconies. Cellar and garage. Good orientation. EUROS 410 000.–

6. GAILLARD – With a magnificent view over the Salève mountain, 3 rooms + fitted kitchen extending from the front to the back of the building, situated on the 6th and last floor with 2 balconies. Cellar in the basement. EUROS 212 000.–

Information : IFA 3, place Porte de France (50 m from Moillesulaz customs) – FR - 74250 Gaillard Tel. +33 (0) 450 87 05 80 – Fax +33 (0) 450 87 08 23 – ifa@wanadoo.fr – www.agence-ifa.fr

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Do you want to sell your house in neighbouring France ? – Tel. +33 (0) 450 87 05 80

21/04/2010 16:42:22

Property pages Houses for sale

CES OBJETS CONSTITUENT THESE PROPERTIES UNE SÉLECTION ARE A SELECTION DE NOTRE FROM PORTEFEUILLE. OUR PORTFOLIO. CONSULTEZ-NOUS CONTACT US FOR POUR AN UNE EXHAUSTIVE PRÉSENTATION LIST EXHAUSTIVE.

1. VETRAZ-MONTHOUX – Detached house of 145 m² on 2 levels and 1 230 m² of fully enclosed land planted with trees. 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, basement with cellars, laundry room and garage. Quiet location. Perfect condition. EUROS 495 000.–

2. LE LYAUD – Country setting for this detached house in good condition. Fitted kitchen with access to the terrace, open plan living space with fireplace and access to the garden, 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, mezzanine office, fully fitted basement. Attractive plot of 1 586 m² entirely planted with trees. EUROS 405 000.–

3. MESSERY – Close to Lake Geneva, attractive house on one level on an enclosed plot of 1 600 m² planted with trees and good orientation. It has a fully fitted kitchen, lounge, dining room with fireplace, 2 or 3 bedrooms with bathrooms and dressing rooms. EUROS 490 000.–

4. REIGNIER – Relatively new detached house on two levels + separate apartment of 2 rooms + fitted kitchen. Attractive fully enclosed plot of 948 m² planted with trees. Quiet location. EUROS 480 000.–

5. Thonon-les-bains – Magnificent property with architecture from the thermal baths era, facing the lake. It has 3 floors of living space of approximately 270 m2 + basement and has several reception rooms, a kitchen, 8 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms. The garden of 1 280 m2 is fully enclosed and planted with trees. Independent annexes. Price on request

6. VETRAZ-MONTHOUX – This detached house is in a very attractive location and has a fitted kitchen opening onto a dining room, 6 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, basement with double garage, plot of 1 335 m². Clear view. Price on request

SALES

F rench b order area : F O R S A L E Houses

Information : IFA 3, place Porte de France (50 m from Moillesulaz customs) – FR - 74250 Gaillard Tel. +33 (0) 450 87 05 80 – Fax +33 (0) 450 87 08 23 – ifa@wanadoo.fr – www.agence-ifa.fr

Are you looking for a house in neighbouring France ? – Tel. +33 (0) 450 87 05 80

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Property pages Be extravagant !

SALES

B E E X T R A V A G A N T ! F R A N C E : M A N S I O N S A N D M A N O R H O U S E S F O R S A L E THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

1. HAUTE-VIENNE – Situated in the Limoges region (airport, train station), in pretty and tranquil countryside, which is hilly and well protected, this superb XVIth and XVIIIth century mansion of approximately 1 000 m2 comprises on the ground floor : an entrance hall, office, library, three lounges, dining room, kitchen, service rooms and a comfortable 3-room apartment. On the first floor : six bedrooms and six bathrooms, a library, various rooms and an apartment. Above this, music rooms and an attic. The whole building has been restored and the decorative elements preserved (panelling, fireplaces, wooden floors, moulded ceilings). Some attractive outbuildings and a swimming pool with pool house complete the whole, set in pretty wooded grounds with a pond, all on 38 hectares. EUROS 1 620 000.– 2. SARTHE – Situated 240 km west of Paris, very easy access by motorway and train, this beautiful XIXth century mansion is located in a beautiful hilly setting. It has a living space of approximately 700 m2 and comprises on the ground floor : an entrance hall, a small and a large lounge, office, dining room and kitchen. On the first floor : five bedrooms, three bathrooms or toilets. On the second floor : the former bedrooms and an attic. The whole building has pretty decorative elements : oak floors, marble fireplaces, oak staircase. The outhouses have been converted into reception rooms. The secondary house has four rooms. The grounds, of an area of 7 hectares, are hilly and wooded and have an ornamental lake. EUROS 1 040 000.–

3. VENDEE –This mansion, which was built a century ago by the family that still owns it, is situated 15 km from the beaches of the Atlantic and less than 2 km from the nearest shops. It comprises on the ground floor a hall, two lounges opening onto a loggia, a dining room, office and service rooms (large kitchen, laundry room and linen room). The reception rooms have oak floors and sculpted stone fireplaces, the ceilings are moulded. Each floor has an area of 220 m2. The first floor comprises 8 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and several toilets. Above there are secondary bedrooms and an attic. The mansion is surrounded by beautiful grounds in an English style of approximately 5 hectares planted with large trees : oak trees, Virginia tulip trees, acacias and conifers. EUROS 590 000.–

4. TOURAINE-POITOU – Approximately 20 km from Chinon, in the heart of a lovely town with all amenities, an outstanding town house from 1805, with annexed house, outbuildings, main courtyard and garden of 3 214 m². Living space of approximately 320 m² excluding convertible attic and the basement. High quality residence with beautiful original decorative elements. Ground floor : access by two steps of approximately 160 m². Height of the ceilings 3,70 m. Superb series of linked reception rooms. Oak floors. Inside shutters. Vast entrance hall of 40 m², office and dining room (with fireplaces). 1st floor : 4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 1 large shower room and WC. 2nd floor : convertible attic over the whole area. Basement : under the whole area, vaulted, freestone, tiled with baked clay. Former kitchen for use as a laundry room, storerooms, wine cellar, boiler room and 6 000-litre aquarium. EUROS 700 000.–

More information available from Béatrice Repole Société Privée de Gérance – Route de Chêne 36 – 1208 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 65 63 – beatrice.repole@spg.ch

Visit our website www.immorama.ch

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Property pages ...Another extravagance !

SALES

. . . another e x travagance ! C H I L D R E N ' S B AY C AY : E X U M A , B A H A M A S THESE PROPERTIES ARE A SELECTION FROM OUR PORTFOLIO. CONTACT US FOR AN EXHAUSTIVE LIST

Etats -Unis Mexique

OCÉAN ATLANTIQUE Floride

BAHAMAS Bird Cay

Cuba

A nti

Haïti

ll es Vénézuela

OCÉAN PACIFIQUE

Colombie Pérou

Brésil

Dream plots of land to build on Paradisiacal island divided into 14 plots on the beachfront or seafront. A caretaker and maintenance service are on site to ensure security of the property and provide all the benefits of life on a private island, without having to worry about upkeep. Area : 167 hectares. Price on request.

More information available from Béatrice Repole Société Privée de Gérance – Route de Chêne 36 – 1208 Geneva – Tel. 022 849 65 63 – beatrice.repole@spg.ch

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Visit our website www.immorama.ch

21/04/2010 16:42:45

R E S P E C T U E U X D E L´ E N V I R O N N E M E N T .

durable. Un ur du développement gage largement en fave é. De Notre entreprise s‘en ier abattent est remplac pap de eurs niss four ise que nos exemple: chaque arbr ificats de réduction d’ém CO 2 par des cert de ns ssio nos émi de vous plus, nous compensons res déchets de CO 2 afin prop nos t men stam ns con of fre encore sions et nous diminuo Swissprinters IRL vous climatiquement neutre. rinters.ch garantir une impression savoir plus : ww w.swissp en r Pou ie. olog d‘éc matière d‘autres avantages en @sw issp rinters.ch info 53, 53 349 21 53 49 , fax +41 Con tact : tél. +41 21 349

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Votre architecte ﬁnancier Acheter • un appartement • une villa • un terrain • une résidence secondaire • en Suisse • en France voisine Construire • un logement • une habitation Minergie Rénover • un bien immobilier Grâce à notre connaissance unique du marché, nous vous proposons des solutions calquées sur vos besoins. Planiﬁez et construisez avec nos spécialistes au 021 317 27 27 ou sur www.bcge.ch/simplissimmo

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