Christoph Merian Foundation
The Christoph Merian Foundation (until 1972 Chr. Merian'sche Foundation , abbreviation CMS ) is a non-profit foundation based in Basel . It encompasses a wide range of activities, its task is to “[promote] the well-being of the people in the city of Basel by harmonizing social, cultural, ecological and economic goals”.
Establishment and foundation goal
The foundation was established by Christoph Merian (1800–1858) in his will on March 26, 1857 as a donation to the city of Basel and came into force on May 3, 1886 after the death of his widow Margaretha (1806–1886). Christoph Merian's will stipulates in paragraphs 26 and 27 that if the capital is preserved, the foundation's proceeds will be used to “alleviate hardship and misfortune”, “promote the well-being of the people” and “carry out what is incumbent on our urban community or is generally useful and appropriate facilities »should be used.
activity
According to the will, the activity is limited to the city of Basel. The foundation initially limited itself to providing purely financial support for public construction projects and the social institutions of the Basel community , but began in 1952 to use its funds to also build retirement homes and large-scale developments. It has greatly expanded its spectrum of activity since the 1980s. It is (as of 2019) mainly with its own projects in the areas
and supports external activities with funding. The foundation pays out around eleven million francs annually, 45 percent of which is due to the civic community and the resident community of the city of Basel, ten percent goes to a land acquisition and building fund. The money is generated through rental properties, building rights and financial investments. The balance sheet total is around 1.5 billion francs (as of 2019, in accordance with Swiss accounting recommendations ) and consists of around 900 hectares of land (e.g. Brüglingen , Löwenburg or Dreispitz ), 1,500 rental properties and a securities portfolio.
Administratively, the foundation also manages several independent and dependent foundations (e.g. the Cartoon Museum Basel ) and cooperates with partners at home and abroad (e.g. in the artist exchange Atelier Mondial ).
Legal basis and administrative structure
The public law foundation acts independently, but is subject to the supervision of the Basel community . The funding priorities, including the foundation's budget, must be approved in the form of two separate four-year programs by the two responsible political bodies (the Citizens' Council of the City of Basel and the Government Council of the Canton of Basel-Stadt ). For the strategic direction of the Foundation is the Foundation Commission responsible (elected by the community of citizens), presided over the operational management ( management ) has (until 1975 the director manager called).
With the continuous expansion of the foundation's activities, it became necessary to increase the workforce of three people in 1886 and to subdivide the areas of activity. In 1958 a separate agricultural management was set up, in 1966 a property management, 1974 a building management and 1985 the department of urban tasks . The current structure (as of 2019) with the departments management , finance and real estate as well as the funding departments nature , social affairs and culture goes back to 2007. The Nature Department includes the Merian Gardens AG in Brüglingen , which was taken over in 2018 , and the Culture Department includes the operations of the foundation's Christoph Merian Verlag , the Cartoon Museum Basel and the Atelier Mondial artist program . The foundation employs over a hundred people (as of 2019) and has several positions for professional training.
literature
- Gustaf Adolf Wanner : Christoph Merian 1800–1858. Schwabe, Basel et al. 1958.
- Rudolf Suter : The Christoph Merian Foundation 1886–1986. Christoph-Merian-Verlag, Basel 1985 ( ISBN 3-85616-025-6 ).
- Robert Labhardt : Capital and Morality. Christoph Merian - A biography. Christoph Merian Verlag, Basel 2011 ( ISBN 978-3-85616-525-3 ).
- 125 years of the Christoph Merian Foundation, 2011.