Municipal council wants to buy a plot of land by the railway station

The municipality of Walchwil would like to develop the area around the railway station. There is now an opportunity to do so.

The Walchwil Municipal Assembly (Gemeindeversammlung: to be held at 8 pm on Wednesday, 4th December in the Gemeindesaal (Municipal hall)) will discuss the 2025 budget and the tax rate, the purchase of a plot of land on the Bahnhofstrasse, and the revision of the Fire Department regulations.

The municipal council of Walchwil intends to purchase a plot of land by the railway station measuring 1,845 square metres, which will cost CHF 1.85 million. In the submission to the municipal assembly, the municipal council writes that the plot near the railway station “is of interest to the municipality for several reasons. The area to the south of the station building, with the goods shed, the Ökihof (public waste disposal depot), the building at Bahnhofstrasse 5 and the as yet undeveloped square, is ideal for the future development of the station area, primarily for the expansion of the Ökihof and the public works depot (Werkhof)."

The municipal council wants to purchase the plot of land at Walchwil railroad station. It offers space for expansion     Photo: Stefan Kaiser)
Plan of the Walchwil Station area    Image:  zvg

Purchase in the interests of the municipality
According to the municipal council, the property is located in a zone ‘that can be used for both residential and commercial purposes (Residential and Commercial Zone 2 with a utilisation rate of 0.47)’. In addition, it is also located within the railway station development plan approved by the cantonal government (Regierungsrat). There are also possibilities for further extensions.

The purchase of the property is in the interests of the municipality. ‘This is primarily because the premises of the public works depot, the Ökihof and the flat on the top floor of Bahnhofstrasse 5 are already owned by the municipality,’ writes the municipal council.

‘Walchwil only has a few options for the location of an Ökihof. One of these is to secure the current location and improve it if necessary,’ writes the SP (Socialist Party). ‘By purchasing the land, the municipality is securing more freedom. The investment also makes financial sense in view of the interest on the building lease .’

The FDP (Liberal party) said: ‘From the party's point of view, this purchase makes sense, ‘particularly with regard to the further development of necessary municipal infrastructure in this perimeter’. It is also the continuation of a strategy ‘that the municipal council launched last year with the purchase of the first flat in this building complex’.

‘The ‘Mitte’ party (Centre party) supports the purchase of the property on Bahnhofstrasse. ‘It gives us flexibility and options for the future,’ writes the party on enquiry. The local SVP party (Swiss People’s Party) did not respond to the enquiry from the Zuger Zeitung newspaper before the printing deadline.

The 2025 Budget and the tax rate are talking points
The revision of the Fire Service Regulations (Feuerwehrreglement) is supported. The SP writes: ‘A budget with a revenue surplus of CHF 1.7 million does not give rise to any objections.’ However: ‘The surpluses of recent years still included an NFA (national financial equalisation) contribution of around CHF 1.5 million.’

In addition, Walchwil could also benefit from the cantonal solidarity contribution (Solidaritätsbeitrag) of around CHF 1.5 million between 2024 and 2027, as decided in the eighth partial revision of the cantonal tax law. ‘Although the municipal council presents these facts transparently in the report, it omits the explicit assessment that the surplus is essentially due to the temporary solidarity contribution, and that the results will therefore tend towards zero from 2028 onwards.’ Nevertheless, the SP Walchwil agrees with the budget and the tax rate of 53%.

This item on the agenda gave rise to discussion among the FDP, ‘in particular regarding the adherence to the previous tax rate’. In principle, the party is of the opinion that the municipality could easily afford a tax reduction from purely financial reasons.
‘Specifically, a group wanted to submit a proposal this time to lower the tax rate by at least one percentage point,’ writes the party. In the end, however, this request was narrowly rejected internally. ‘In particular in the current environment, the FDP does not want to be seen as the party that is fuelling trends, such as constantly rising property prices and ever-increasing immigration due to the additional attractiveness of the municipality.’

In this context, it was important for the FDP to note ‘that, in reality, the tax rate is not the key factor in the property shortage, but that this is largely regulated by suitable local planning and construction activity that is not hindered by rigid restrictive policies’.

The Mitte party supports the budget and the maintenance of the current tax rate. ‘We have a number of projects in Walchwil over the next few years, so it makes no sense to reduce taxes any further at the moment.’