Swiss celebrities struggle with construction problems at their dream villas
Published: Wednesday, Aug 21st 2024, 10:40
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Former professional ice hockey player Mark Streit is not the only Swiss celebrity who is in a lot of trouble over building a house. Comedian Hazel Brugger, professional footballer Xherdan Shaqiri and ex-professional tennis player Roger Federer are also currently battling with disputes over the construction of their new homes:
HAZEL BRUGGER: Just over four months ago, the Swiss comedian moved into a new home in southern Hesse in Germany with her husband and two children. There is a doormat with "Superbude" printed on it in front of the house, but the 30-year-old is struggling with numerous building defects and an ugly dispute with the construction company is simmering. "Because we were threatened by construction workers on our building site, we recently needed personal protection," Brugger recently let her more than 800,000 followers know on Instagram. She also posted a photo of a car belonging to a private security service. She and her husband Thomas Spitzer have posted dozens of photos of defects in their own Instagram category "Construction": Water connections that couldn't be used, light wells that were too deep and water on the flat roof that didn't drain away.
XHERDAN SHAQIRI: The professional footballer actually wants to build a 270 square meter villa in Rheinfelden AG to the strict Minergie-P standard for 2.8 million Swiss francs. However, a building permit granted in 2022 was revoked. The administrative court upheld an appeal by the neighbors. According to the ruling, the floor area of the villa planned on a 1000-square-metre plot exceeded the maximum utilization rate by over 13 percent. Shaqiri appealed the ruling to the Federal Supreme Court.
ROGER FEDERER: The former tennis superstar has been building a villa directly on Lake Zurich in Rapperswil-Jona SG since 2019. Objections, old development plans, a dispute over the lakeshore path and the pandemic postponed construction several times. There are now six buildings in the shell on the 17,000 square meter site. But Federer and his family will not be living there for the time being. One problem is the building permit for a boathouse. Several objections are pending with the city. An association is fighting for free access to the lake shores and watercourses. It fears that if Federer's boathouse were to be approved, the shore would be obstructed in many places.
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