Les Diablerets, January 8th August 2020
Dear Friends of Isenau,
As announced in our last press release, published in July 2020, the Isenau 360° Working Group is continuing to further develop the project and will be able to count on a complete file as soon as the legal case (oppositions to the territory plan, under review by the Swiss Federal Court) has been solved.
We need to put in place all the framework conditions to enable the project to be accepted by the various administrative authorities.
This means that we need to strengthen the equity capital to cover the various investment costs required to set up this new „cooperative company“ and cover the costs related to the operation of the gondola lift, particularly during the start-up phase. Sufficient equity capital is one of the conditions required by the canton to secure the cantonal funding.
The ropeway installation will operate independently in the form of a cooperative owned by all of us, friends of Isenau.
The operation will be carried out in cooperation with an operator authorized by the Federal Office of Transport.
It is therefore essential to finalise as soon as possible the necessary equity financing.
This can be achieved either through the Isenau Foundation (allowing a Swiss tax deduction) or through the future „cooperative company“ which will own the infrastructure.
At this stage, these are only pledges which will be activated as soon as the project can be launched. You can confirm your support to the project with a donation to the foundation or a subscription to the future cooperative society at via the following link : click here to support Isenau.
As you know, the Isenau 360° Working Group has been commissioned by the Isenau Foundation. As the project is in its final stage, the Foundation and the Working Group have decided to align their governance in anticipation of the next steps.
This is reflected with the addition of several voluntary members of the Isenau360 Working Group to the Foundation Board:
– Eric Mermod was elected as the Commune’s representative on the Foundation Board and took over the role of Chairman,
– Thierry Weber and Philippe Gallaz are elected as free members of the Foundation Board.
– Stéphane Bise is appointed manager in charge of administrative and accounting, via a non-remunerated mandate.
In addition, the President of the Commune of Ormont-Dessus, Mr Christian Reber, is now a member of the Foundation Board, ensuring good coordination with the authorities.
These recent developments enable us to prepare the next steps ahead, by centralising governance and communication flows.
We will come back to you, dear Friends of Isenau, as soon as the decision of the Federal Court is communicated in the coming weeks.
Wishing you a nice summer until then, and hoping to meet you in Les Diablerets and in particular during the Diablerets Alpine Film Festival.
Long life to Isenau!
#InIsenau360wetrust
Take care, see you soon.
Isenau Foundation Board & Isenau360 working group
