GstaadLife

For years we have waited for someone to come up with a plan and the permission to do something with that old, run-down Hotel La Gare in Saanen. Over the past decade, various architects have tried to get construction permission to rebuild the Hotel La Gare but so far no consensus could be reached. Now Fabian Reichenbach of the eponymous architecture firm based in Gstaad believes he has the answer, and is trying again with what is described as a smaller more 'Saanenlike' project. Coming in midst of the Saanen renaissance, this one feels like it has a chance, so let's hope for some sanity on the planning commission because anything is better than the current eyesore. 

Just one careful German owner. Never even lived in. Taki's gonna love this ...

Now it is certain - the Institut «Le Rosey» is moving to Schönried. Le Rosey has bought the property of the Fraubrunnen Amt holiday home in Erli (see map below for location) for SFr 25 million. The school is planning to build 8 to 10 new builidngs and to move in winter 2011/2012. Construction cost is estimated at around SFr 45 million meaning the school will probably have to sell at least part of its property on Ried (above Gstaad). As the building permissions are not through yet, the holiday home will continue its work for the time being.

by Diana Oehrli

A letter entitled “Locals Goodbye” that was published in our German language sister publication, Anzeiger von Saanen, has been the talk of the town since it appeared more than one month ago. Signed by over 80 local youth, the letter expresses outrage and sadness over the selling of local real estate to well-to-do guests. Furthermore, it decries the transformation of Saanenland’s villages – namely Gstaad and Saanen with their authentic mountain flavor – into ghost towns that are becoming dominated by ‘unnecessary’ luxury boutiques. On May 11, Der Bund, the regional newspaper in the canton of Berne, picked up the story and printed an article entitled “Gucci statt Gemüse” (“Gucci instead of vegetables”). The article says that Gstaad has the highest quota of billionaires in the world. “And the rich have their special needs: nearly 30 boutiques with fashion from sophisticated houses like Gucci or Prada, line Gstaad’s main street that carries the lordly name ‘Promenade.’” At its May meeting, the commune’s council, addressing the open letter, appealed urgently to landowners to put their financial interests aside and to consider the existent needs of local young people and century-old traditions, when considering future real estate transactions. The letter “Locals Goodbye?!” reads: “Yet again, a business locale on the Gstaad Promenade has been sold to an affluent Gstaad guest.

They are ready - the new number plaques for your chalet in Saanenland. Homeowners in the region will receive a letter from the Gemeinde in the next few days with information about the new official addresses. In this letter you will also be asked if you wish to mount your new number plaque yourself or if you want the Gemeinde to do it for you (no costs involved, but we are guessing that means they'll put it wherever they want). From January 1 2010 only the new address is valid, so it's all over with our quaint chalet names only addresses - but at least then the courier deliveries will actually arrive...

The cantonal police of Bern is warning holiday home renters to be careful with renting their property. In the Bernese Oberland, mostly in the area of Brienz, Interlaken and Oberhasli, tenants have tried to take advantage of holiday home owners by sending checks with a too high rental amount after the contract was signed and then demanding the difference back in cash transfers. Needless to say, the checks, which usually take a few days to process, bounced. Thankfully nobody has been seriously harmed so far but be careful if renting out your chalet.

The teaser ads have been running for the last week depicting a delicate oyster on the verge of opening up to reveal a globe with a resemblance to a fine pearl. And so it was this morning on the Promenade, with the opening of the new Pernet high-end grocery store on the Promenade. A complete hole in the ground just a couple months back, the rebuild of Pernet must rank as one of the most rapidly-completed construction projects in recent memory.

Sure the upstairs apartments and offices aren't even close to being finished, but downstairs and in the basement a real treat for lovers of fine food and fine interiors awaits. Think Harrods Food Hall meets Julius Meinl in Vienna, with a whiff of alpine-style Globus Food thrown in for good measure. First impressions of the new 500 square meter shop are highly spatial, even a touch cold. But it warms on you within minutes, incorporating a nice fusion of old wood, new wood, grey tiling, and glass, punctuated by a few chalet-style animal horns. You'll be impressed with the high-tech feel of the place, from the flatscreen weighing machines with their soothing graphics, to the credit card terminals integrated into the counter. There's even a concertina-style sliding glass wall which we are guessing is extended to divide off the open-plan fruit section so they don't have to keep moving the merch in and out of cold storage.

After a couple of years of back and forth, finally Schloss Blankenburg near Zweisimmen is up for sale. We've been waiting for this since they first thought about selling it back in 2006 (see Schloss Blankenburg will go up for sale). Both public entities and private individuals now have the chance to submit their offers until spring 2009, but the local commune still has the first option to buy. As the property is one of the finer and older ones of the region it will be put under preservation order. So if you are interested, contact KPMG AG real estate, and soon you could be living in a castle dating back to 1380. A rather cool thought, certainly, but here's a little tip...bid prudently as there's no sun in the winter.

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Dominic Longcroft made his first acquaintance with Gstaad and Saanenland when he was a student at Le Rosey. His English parents—also frequent guests of the region—had acquired a chalet in Gstaad in 1980, after their son was accepted by the renowned boarding school. The enthusiasm that Longcroft felt for the region that was kindled at that time has proved enduring. In 2000, after completing his business education in England and after 15 years running his own marketing, services, catering, and public relations business in London, he relocated to Saanenland, and took up residence in an apartment in Lauenen.