Beach Front Hangout Opens; New Bus Terminal For Basel; HauptPost Demo Raises Eyebrows; Wealth Report Ranks Swiss #1

News For 22 November 2016

Two weeks ago, the lounge/bar Terrazza Hangout opened its doors to great fanfare on the Grossbasel side of the Rhein at the Dreirosenbrücke.  The facility features a large terrace directly overlooking the river featuring beach like sand, a BBQ, outdoor jacuzzi and lounge chairs and sofas.  It is operated by the Rhypark restaurant which has been at the location for many years, and is rebranding its outdoor space to take advantage of the lack of waterfront offerings this year and next.  Both Citybeach and bar Chill am Rhy were not open the summer of 2016.  Although Terrazza Hangout was not ready to open this last summer either, they will likely be the only game in town once next year's summer weather gets underway.

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Traveling long-distance by Bus/Coach has become a popular, low-budget way of traveling. The growing number of connections through Basel make this type of travel a bigger part of the public transportation service. 

There are currently three international bus stops in Basel, all of which meet basic requirements but lack the infrastructure of a customer-friendly bus station, such as waiting rooms and bathrooms.

The city council would like to find a spot to build a bus terminal. A possibility is close to the zoo on Erdbeergraben, where currently plans for a parking garage are being made.  In the meantime, the existing bus stops will be optimized.

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As we reported last week, Swiss Post has announced plans to close the Hauptpost branch next to Marktplatz.  The announcement of the shuttering of services however did not sit well with many of Basel's citizens who organized a demonstration on Saturday.  Over 100 people turned out in the rain on Freiestrasse in front of the Post office to express their displeasure.  The building is owned by the French insurance giant AXA which intends to raise the rent at the upcoming expiration of its contract with Swiss Post.  The Swiss Post in turn has decided that increased rent and declining customer traffic at the branch makes continuing to operate there unfeasible.  Officials appear to have heard the concerns of demonstrators and citizens and have contemplated the possibility of the Canton purchasing the building from AXA to reduce the economic demands on the Post Branch, although concrete discussions have yet to occur.

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The Swiss bank Credit Suisse published its annual Global Wealth Report this week.  The report is a closely watched ranking of nations by the wealth of its citizens.  In 2016, the average per capita wealth for a Swiss citizen declined to 562,000 dollars from the prior years level of 567,000 dollars.  Despite the decline, Switzerland is still ranked richest amongst nations.  The median measure of Swiss wealth, which measures the net worth of the largest number of citizens was also ranked highest in the world at 244,000 dollars, 22 times the European median and 100 times the world median.  The report also offered some sobering data points about global wealth disparity, finding that 10% of the world's population now owns 90% of its wealth.