"Methuselah (French: Agecanonix) is the village elder. He is 93 years old and is a member of the village council. His age does not, however, prevent him from taking part in the fights that are commonplace in the village; he even gets offended if someone tries to spare him because of his age. He skillfully uses his walking stick as a weapon, while the resulting blows often hit other villagers because he is considered too old to be beaten."
Dear reader, Asterix and Obelix have accompanied many of us through our youth. But the fact that Methusalix is settling in Basel is surprising and makes us smile. In fact, there is a project called www.methusalix.chIt is a housing project in Lysbüchel. Curious, I knocked on the door of our neighbor, Dieter Häner. He is the initiator of this project and will also be moving in there. But read for yourself:
Dear Dieter, you are mentioned on the Methusalix homepage. How did that happen?
The Methusalix project was my initiative; initially it was called "Living in old age". This name encompasses the basic idea, but old age should be mentioned with a wink, so I came up with Methusalix. The board of the Methusalix housing cooperative is presented on the website and I appear as the treasurer.
You are a group of people who are planning and carrying out this housing project. How did you get involved?
We are 9 parties with a total of 13 people who came together over the course of the project. In the first phase we were a core group of four people, with interested friends and acquaintances joining us from time to time (and some leaving again) until the current residents were finally decided.
How many years in advance do you plan such a project?
I have heard from various sources that it is difficult, if not impossible, to plan such a project without being able to show a concrete property. That was also the case with methusalix. I had had the idea of an age-appropriate form of housing for a long time, but it was only when the tender for the development of the Lysbüchel area was published that planning could begin in earnest. In our case, that was just over three years ago. The first parties will move in at the end of April 2021.
Was it difficult to find a suitable new building project? Or did you also look at existing old buildings?
If a housing project is not only to meet all the requirements for age-appropriate housing, but also to meet the demands for sustainability, energy efficiency and affordable housing, this can only be achieved with a new building. Renovating an old building in this way would go far beyond the budget. It should be emphasized that a new building in an urban area with affordable rents can only be realized if the building land is leased. In Basel, it is the Habitat Foundation that makes many of its plots available in an exemplary manner.
When the “Lysbüchel Süd” development was put out to tender in spring 2018, we applied for it with a preliminary project.
How is such a project financed?
In order to finance such a project, you have to know exactly which housing subsidy options are available. We were lucky enough to find an architect in our circle of friends who had already completed a similar housing project with his office. After the Habitat Foundation awarded us the contract, we set about founding a housing cooperative. Only with a suitable organizational form (it could also be an association or a company) can the building lease agreement and the applications for low-interest loans be concluded or submitted.
I assume that all of you in the core group are already retired. What kind of specialized professions were required to set up Methusalix?
No, not everyone is retired yet. Jobs that have to do with building and furnishing are particularly in demand, as is someone who knows a little about finance. But a good architectural firm can take many problems and tasks off your hands.
Have you discussed the pros and cons of living together?
The situation is as follows: we have 5 2-room and 4 3-room apartments, all with kitchen, bathroom and balcony. Each party can therefore live for themselves without having to worry about the others. The idea, however, is that there is lively contact between the residents. On the one hand, this is achieved by a spacious staircase with benches on each floor and plants. We want to encourage people to take the stairs (as long as they can) and perhaps stop for a chat on the way. On the other hand, we have set up a club room on the ground floor that can also be used by the residents. Film evenings, concerts, readings or festivities are planned. This actually only has advantages; the disadvantages are – so far – none apparent.
Do you know Seniors@Work?
I only know Seniors@Work from PR appearances in public.
If your group lacks some of the know-how, could the knowledge of the seniors from Seniors@Work be of use to you?
What a similar group might lack are accounting skills, organizational talents, people with a flair for property maintenance.
Dear Dieter, I wish you much success with your highly exciting and innovative project!
You gave me the following tip: “In the original version of «Asterix and Obelix», Methusalix appears as Agecanonix. Methusalix (French: Agecanonix, "canonical age", i.e. "ancient") is a veteran of the battles of Gergovia and Alesia and has long been the village elder.
If you become the village elder of the community in Basel, I really hope that everyone bows respectfully before you! 😉
And thank you very much for the interview.
Beatrice Isler
