The Confederation unveiled on Monday its new project to build an accommodation and training building in Magglingen (BE) to encourage elite army sport. The initial project sparked an outcry from part of the population due to the height of the building set at 23.8 meters.
The Federal Sports Office presented the revised version of the contested project to the population of the commune of Evilard-Magglingen. From now on, the new building is planned to be seven meters shorter and have a wooden facade. It should therefore blend in better with the landscape, making it more discreet.
The future building will have to offer 140 places for athletes. Its commissioning is scheduled for the end of 2030. In the meantime, a temporary building will offer 90 additional beds from 2025. The Magglingen national sports center can currently no longer cover the need for places and must refuse athletes.
A first draft criticized
Presented in 2020, the initial project attracted criticism due to the height and location of the building. The municipality and part of the population noted that the facade, which was to be made of concrete, did not respect the municipal regulations concerning constructions, nor the spirit of the place. A petition entitled “No to the Magglingen tower” had collected 689 signatures.
The new version of the project is still subject to adaptations. It will be published at the earliest around the end of 2025, according to the military procedure for approving plans and will leave a possibility of appeal.
Questioned by RTS, Roland Seiler, member of the petitioning committee, said he was satisfied, but not entirely: “We still have the impression that this is not the best place for such a project. Now we have to discuss with those responsible to see if we can’t place it in another place, already asphalted,” he said Tuesday in La Matinale.
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