Cantonal parliament rejects full takeover of Alloggi Ticino SA

Ticino's Gran Consiglio rejected on Monday the government's proposal to acquire all the shares of Alloggi Ticino SA. The company, under joint public-private management, administers nearly 1,400 moderate-rent apartments across Ticino.

The proposal was voted down by a united centre-right alliance made up of the PLR, the Lega and the UDC, joined by Avanti con Ticino e Lavoro and the two independent members formerly affiliated with HelvEthica. A total of 46 votes were cast against the measure.

The situation therefore remains unchanged: management of the company continues to be split almost equally between the Canton, the Confederation and the Zurich-based Logis Suisse SA.

The cantonal government had wanted to take over the entire capital in order to have a more direct tool for housing policy and to strengthen the supply of moderate-rent housing. In the Executive's view, the housing law, which as a rule limits cantonal participation to no more than 50%, would still have allowed for a justified exception.

A company founded in 1987

Alloggi Ticino SA was founded in 1987 and today manages 41 properties in more than 20 municipalities across the canton. The company's roughly 1,400 apartments rent for, on average, 10% less than market prices.

The vote avoids expanding the public capital commitment in a sector where the Canton, the Confederation and an outside partner already share costs and management responsibility.

What remains open is the question of which tool the government intends to use in the future to support the supply of moderate-rent housing, without full control over the company that has managed it so far. The rejection of the proposal also raises the question of how housing-policy goals can be reconciled with the Canton's financial sustainability, given that a full takeover would have required a greater capital and management commitment than the current arrangement, shared with the Confederation and an outside partner.