Federer, the villa and the protests of the residents – Corriere.it

On the court, he won 20 Grand Slams and changed the face of tennis, but now Roger Federer he will have to bring out all his determination (and grit) to get the better of the citizens of Rapperswil-Jona, a tourist resort of 26,000 inhabitants, near Zurich, in Switzerland.

But what’s going on? On the shores of Lake Zurich Roger Federer is building a villa. But more than a residence, it looks like a small city, so much so that it has been renamed Federer Town. It includes six buildings and is being built on an area of ​​18,000 square metres. Before the Covid pandemic spread throughout the world, the Swiss tennis player bought – it was in 2019 – the land (there are rumors of an expense between 40 and 60 million francs, roughly the equivalent in euros) with the aim precisely to build the mega-villa, designed by a prestigious studio of South African architects. Here Federer wants to live with his wife Mirka and the two sets of twins Mila Rose, Charlen Riva, Lenny and Leo. Of course, money is not an issue: the Swiss economic weekly Bilanz estimates that his assets amount to 750 million francs. And the earnings are still substantial, given that every year he receives 30 million, thanks to a ten-year contract, from the Japanese sponsor Uniqlo (without forgetting the million-dollar contracts with Mercedes, Rolex and Barilla, among others).

But Federer has to deal precisely with the citizens of Rapperswil-Jona. Along with the six buildings, the former champion wants to build three large swimming pools (one indoors, one outdoors and one with water features), some tennis courts, an underground car park and a boathouse, which can be reached from the shore with a 20m pier. The residents, however, have been declaring war on it for years. They accept only the luxurious abode prevents free passage along the pedestrian path that runs along the lake. Of course, Federer wants to defend his privacy and that of his family. But the fact is that this situation is delaying the work on the complex: some lawsuits brought forward in the past to prevent construction in the area have been lost by the protesters, others, such as the one to have a pedestrian crossing built, are still in progress.

In the area there are also those who try to earn something by joking about the story. the case of a local hotel: it has created a large billboard on which one can read, as reported by the Watson.ch portal, dear Roger, waiting for your house to be ready, you can get a room with us. Federer is currently waiting for his villa. Citizens permitting.