From poor neighborhood to role model: district wins coveted city prize

A large stage and lots of spotlights were the backdrop for this year’s “Bäredräcks” award ceremony in the Hotel Schweizerhof early in the morning, before sunrise. On the one hand, the mayor Alec von Graffenried gave his first speech after yesterday’s elections, in which he came second in the fight for the presidential office, well behind the SP woman Marieke Kruit.

On the other hand, the representatives of the Mattequartier were honored for conveying “a feeling of liveliness, color and humor” for their commitment to the city of Bern. The Bärentrust jury requires these three awards in order to be included in the crown of the almost forty-year-old award.

“The agenda with the Sunday elections and the subsequent Zibelemärit leaves little room for a restful sleep,” said von Graffenried at the opening of his speech. But he wasn’t completely innocent of this planning, said the mayor with a laugh.

The village character in the middle of the city

In his speech he built up a tension and circled the winner or winners – or the winning team – with increasing precision. The announcement that an entire district would win the “Bäredräck Prize” was well received by the audience. The applause was huge – for an early Monday morning anyway. Von Graffenried, who lived in the Matte himself for a time, emphasized the village character of the Matte. This forms the foundation for social coexistence. He even said that things worked better in the mat than in some villages.

But he also looked out into the wider world and compared “dr Mättu”, as the district is also called, with the famous Montmartre district in Paris. The “Mon-Mattequartier” is the Bernese counterpart and is in no way inferior to the French arrondissement when it comes to creativity, cultural production and craftsmanship.

With coffee and cheesecake, the audience gets in the mood for the “Bäredräck” awards.

From a slum to a vibrant district

“Yes, we ‘get’ a lot done,” says Guenael Koepplin, President of Matte-Leist. With this ambiguity he addresses the hard work of individuals and the collective achievement of projects. The district is lively and diverse. However, there is no need for much impetus from Leist, says Koepplin.

The mat residents are bundles of energy and move on their own initiative. Thanks to the functioning neighborhood, projects such as maintaining the post office or, more recently, the fight for the continued existence of the daycare center come about.

Guenael Koepplin is happy about the award.

But the great cohesion in the neighborhood is no coincidence. In earlier times, the Matte was the city’s poor district. “The people from the Matte were not welcome in the upper city,” Koepplin knew. This promoted cohesion in the microcosm on the Aare. The flood also strengthened the community. “The people of Mättel have this willingness to help in their DNA – and have always done so.” As a newcomer, he also knows that people will be integrated into the neighborhood without reservation.

The numerous guests at the Schweizerhof are in a lively mood before sunrise.

Winning the “Bäredräck” prize doesn’t actually change anything for the district, says Koepplin. “We’ll carry on as before.” So for him it is also irrelevant who will take over the city council in the next legislative period. “We in the mat are open and can imagine a good collaboration with everyone.”

Further impressions:

Melanie Mettler (left) and Christa Emminger, regional director of UBS Bern, enjoy the event – despite Mettler’s mixed election result.

The city of Bern’s SVP power: (from left to right) Janosch Weyermann, Thomas Fuchs and Erich Hess.

Lorenz Furrer, Bäredräck jury and Pascale Bruderer, former Councilor of States and entrepreneur in a good mood.