Grancia
Encyclopedia
Grancia is a municipality
in the district of Lugano
in the canton
of Ticino
in Switzerland
.
At the end of the 13th Century there was a religious institution in Grancia that was under the authority of the monastery of S. Maria in Torello (now part of Carona
). According to tradition, in the Middle Ages
, Grancia had the largest granary
in the region. Most of the grain came from Brusimpiano
and was ground in the mills along the Pian Scairolo river.
The church of S. Carpoforo was probably built on the foundations of an older church in the 16th Century. This church, along with S. Siro in Carabbia
, belonged to the parish
of S. Pietro in Pambio
. In 1608, the two parishes broke away from Pambio, and in 1670 Grancia split from S. Siro.
The village economy relied mostly on farming. In the 19th Century, a brick factory opened. In the last decades of the 20th Century, industrial areas grew around Grancia. The industrial area and resulting development led to the construction of large shopping malls. New housing developments, access to the A2 motorway and huge storage tanks affect the environment and landscape of the village.
Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 6.3% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 15.9% and transportation infrastructure made up 17.5%. Power and water infrastructure as well as other special developed areas made up 9.5% of the area Out of the forested land, 33.3% of the total land area is heavily forested and 4.8% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 4.8% is used for growing crops, while 3.2% is used for orchards or vine crops and 15.9% is used for alpine pastures. All the water in the municipality is flowing water.
The municipality is located in the Lugano district. It consists of the village of Grancia made up of four sections, including Campestro.
of the municipal coat of arms
is Azure a pilgrim stick gules on a pale argent between two millet ears or.
Most of the population speaks Italian
(88.0%), with German
being second most common (6.3%) and Serbo-Croatian
being third (1.9%). Of the Swiss national languages , 23 speak German
, 6 people speak French
, 322 people speak Italian
. The remainder (15 people) speak another language.
, the gender distribution of the population was 49.7% male and 50.3% female. The population was made up of 139 Swiss men (28.0% of the population), and 108 (21.7%) non-Swiss men. There were 186 Swiss women (37.4%), and 64 (12.9%) non-Swiss women.
In there were 2 live births to Swiss citizens and were 2 deaths of Swiss citizens. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens remained the same while the foreign population remained the same. There was 1 Swiss man who immigrated back to Switzerland. At the same time, there were 7 non-Swiss men and 2 non-Swiss women who immigrated from another country to Switzerland. The total Swiss population change in 2008 (from all sources, including moves across municipal borders) was an increase of 21 and the non-Swiss population change was an increase of 13 people. This represents a population growth rate of 7.6%.
The age distribution, , in Grancia is; 48 children or 9.7% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 63 teenagers or 12.7% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 50 people or 10.1% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 85 people or 17.1% are between 30 and 39, 108 people or 21.7% are between 40 and 49, and 54 people or 10.9% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 56 people or 11.3% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 21 people or 4.2% are between 70 and 79, there are 12 people or 2.4% who are over 80.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.65 which is about equal to the cantonal average of 0.6 per room. In this case, a room is defined as space of a housing unit of at least 4 m² (43.1 sq ft) as normal bedrooms, dining rooms, living rooms, kitchens and habitable cellars and attics. About 34.5% of the total households were owner occupied, or in other words did not pay rent (though they may have a mortgage
or a rent-to-own agreement).
, there were 145 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.5 persons per household. there were 52 single family homes (or 63.4% of the total) out of a total of 82 inhabited buildings. There were 8 two family buildings (9.8%) and 17 multi-family buildings (20.7%). There were also 5 buildings in the municipality that were multipurpose buildings (used for both housing and commercial or another purpose).
The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 0%. there were 171 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was the 3 room apartment of which there were 52. There were 6 single room apartments and 36 apartments with five or more rooms. Of these apartments, a total of 145 apartments (84.8% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 20 apartments (11.7%) were seasonally occupied and 6 apartments (3.5%) were empty. , the construction rate of new housing units was 0 new units per 1000 residents.
The historical population is given in the following chart:
the most popular party was the CVP
which received 44.07% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the FDP
(23.83%), the Ticino League
(13.58%) and the SP
(9.14%). In the federal election, a total of 108 votes were cast, and the voter turnout
was 46.2%.
In the Gran Consiglio election, there were a total of 222 registered voters in Grancia, of which 151 or 68.0% voted. 1 blank ballot and 1 null ballot was cast, leaving 149 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PPD
+GenGiova which received 72 or 48.3% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the PLRT
(with 25 or 16.8%), the SSI (with 17 or 11.4%) and the LEGA
(with 15 or 10.1%).
In the Consiglio di Stato election, 1 blank ballot and 1 null ballot was cast, leaving 149 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PPD which received 75 or 50.3% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the LEGA (with 22 or 14.8%), the PLRT (with 20 or 13.4%) and the PS (with 12 or 8.1%).
, there were 1,171 workers who commuted into the municipality and 145 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 8.1 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving. About 20.0% of the workforce coming into Grancia are coming from outside Switzerland, while 0.7% of the locals commute out of Switzerland for work. Of the working population, 9.8% used public transportation to get to work, and 65.8% used a private car.
, there was one hotel in Grancia.
. There are 55 individuals (or about 15.03% of the population) who belong to another church (not listed on the census), and 8 individuals (or about 2.19% of the population) did not answer the question.
).
In Grancia there were a total of 95 students . The Ticino education system
provides up to three years of non-mandatory kindergarten
and in Grancia there were 16 children in kindergarten. The primary school program lasts for five years and includes both a standard school and a special school. In the municipality, 19 students attended the standard primary schools and 2 students attended the special school. In the lower secondary school system, students either attend a two year middle school followed by a two year pre-apprenticeship or they attend a four year program to prepare for higher education. There were 23 students in the two year middle school and 1 in their pre-apprenticeship, while 13 students were in the four year advanced program.
The upper secondary school includes several options, but at the end of the upper secondary program, a student will be prepared to enter a trade or to continue on to a university or college. In Ticino, vocational students may either attend school while working on their internship or apprenticeship (which takes three or four years) or may attend school followed by an internship or apprenticeship (which takes one year as a full-time student or one and a half to two years as a part-time student). There were 5 vocational students who were attending school full-time and 14 who attend part-time.
The professional program lasts three years and prepares a student for a job in engineering, nursing, computer science, business, tourism and similar fields. There were 2 students in the professional program.
, there were 57 students from Grancia who attended schools outside the municipality.
Municipalities of Switzerland
Communes , also known as municipalities, are the smallest government division in Switzerland, numbering 2,596 . While many have a population of a few hundred citizens, the largest cities such as Zürich or Geneva also have the legal status of municipalities...
in the district of Lugano
Lugano (district)
The district of Lugano is a district of Canton Ticino, Switzerland. It has a population of .-Geography:The Lugano District has an area, , of . Of this area, or 15.7% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 66.5% is forested...
in the canton
Cantons of Switzerland
The 26 cantons of Switzerland are the member states of the federal state of Switzerland. Each canton was a fully sovereign state with its own borders, army and currency from the Treaty of Westphalia until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848...
of Ticino
Ticino
Canton Ticino or Ticino is the southernmost canton of Switzerland. Named after the Ticino river, it is the only canton in which Italian is the sole official language...
in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
.
History
Grancia is first mentioned in 1309 as in loco Grancie. Until 1825 it was part of the municipality of Carabbia.At the end of the 13th Century there was a religious institution in Grancia that was under the authority of the monastery of S. Maria in Torello (now part of Carona
Carona, Switzerland
Carona is a municipality in the district of Lugano in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland.-History:Carona is first mentioned in 926 as Calauna....
). According to tradition, in the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
, Grancia had the largest granary
Granary
A granary is a storehouse for threshed grain or animal feed. In ancient or primitive granaries, pottery is the most common use of storage in these buildings. Granaries are often built above the ground to keep the stored food away from mice and other animals.-Early origins:From ancient times grain...
in the region. Most of the grain came from Brusimpiano
Brusimpiano
Brusimpiano is a comune on Lake Lugano in the Province of Varese in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 60 km northwest of Milan and about 15 km north of Varese, on the border with Switzerland...
and was ground in the mills along the Pian Scairolo river.
The church of S. Carpoforo was probably built on the foundations of an older church in the 16th Century. This church, along with S. Siro in Carabbia
Carabbia
Carabbia is a district of the city of Lugano, Switzerland. Carabbia was formerly a municipality of its own, having been incorporated into Lugano in 2008.-External links:*...
, belonged to the parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
of S. Pietro in Pambio
Pambio
Pambio is a village and former municipality in the district of Lugano in the canton of Ticino, Switzerland.The village, formerly a municipality of its own, was merged with neighboring Noranco in 1904 to constitute a new municipality Pambio-Noranco...
. In 1608, the two parishes broke away from Pambio, and in 1670 Grancia split from S. Siro.
The village economy relied mostly on farming. In the 19th Century, a brick factory opened. In the last decades of the 20th Century, industrial areas grew around Grancia. The industrial area and resulting development led to the construction of large shopping malls. New housing developments, access to the A2 motorway and huge storage tanks affect the environment and landscape of the village.
Geography
Grancia has an area, , of 0.63 square kilometre (0.243244359913297 sq mi). Of this area, 0.15 km² (0.0579153237888803 sq mi) or 23.8% is used for agricultural purposes, while 0.24 km² (0.0926645180622084 sq mi) or 38.1% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 0.31 km² (0.119691669163686 sq mi) or 49.2% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.03 km² (7.4 acre) or 4.8% is either rivers or lakes.Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 6.3% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 15.9% and transportation infrastructure made up 17.5%. Power and water infrastructure as well as other special developed areas made up 9.5% of the area Out of the forested land, 33.3% of the total land area is heavily forested and 4.8% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 4.8% is used for growing crops, while 3.2% is used for orchards or vine crops and 15.9% is used for alpine pastures. All the water in the municipality is flowing water.
The municipality is located in the Lugano district. It consists of the village of Grancia made up of four sections, including Campestro.
Coat of arms
The blazonBlazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image...
of the municipal coat of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
is Azure a pilgrim stick gules on a pale argent between two millet ears or.
Demographics
Grancia has a population of . , 35.3% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (1997–2007) the population has changed at a rate of 29.7%.Most of the population speaks Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
(88.0%), with German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
being second most common (6.3%) and Serbo-Croatian
Serbo-Croatian language
Serbo-Croatian or Serbo-Croat, less commonly Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian , is a South Slavic language with multiple standards and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro...
being third (1.9%). Of the Swiss national languages , 23 speak German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, 6 people speak French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, 322 people speak Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
. The remainder (15 people) speak another language.
, the gender distribution of the population was 49.7% male and 50.3% female. The population was made up of 139 Swiss men (28.0% of the population), and 108 (21.7%) non-Swiss men. There were 186 Swiss women (37.4%), and 64 (12.9%) non-Swiss women.
In there were 2 live births to Swiss citizens and were 2 deaths of Swiss citizens. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens remained the same while the foreign population remained the same. There was 1 Swiss man who immigrated back to Switzerland. At the same time, there were 7 non-Swiss men and 2 non-Swiss women who immigrated from another country to Switzerland. The total Swiss population change in 2008 (from all sources, including moves across municipal borders) was an increase of 21 and the non-Swiss population change was an increase of 13 people. This represents a population growth rate of 7.6%.
The age distribution, , in Grancia is; 48 children or 9.7% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 63 teenagers or 12.7% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 50 people or 10.1% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 85 people or 17.1% are between 30 and 39, 108 people or 21.7% are between 40 and 49, and 54 people or 10.9% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 56 people or 11.3% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 21 people or 4.2% are between 70 and 79, there are 12 people or 2.4% who are over 80.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.65 which is about equal to the cantonal average of 0.6 per room. In this case, a room is defined as space of a housing unit of at least 4 m² (43.1 sq ft) as normal bedrooms, dining rooms, living rooms, kitchens and habitable cellars and attics. About 34.5% of the total households were owner occupied, or in other words did not pay rent (though they may have a mortgage
Mortgage loan
A mortgage loan is a loan secured by real property through the use of a mortgage note which evidences the existence of the loan and the encumbrance of that realty through the granting of a mortgage which secures the loan...
or a rent-to-own agreement).
, there were 145 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.5 persons per household. there were 52 single family homes (or 63.4% of the total) out of a total of 82 inhabited buildings. There were 8 two family buildings (9.8%) and 17 multi-family buildings (20.7%). There were also 5 buildings in the municipality that were multipurpose buildings (used for both housing and commercial or another purpose).
The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 0%. there were 171 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was the 3 room apartment of which there were 52. There were 6 single room apartments and 36 apartments with five or more rooms. Of these apartments, a total of 145 apartments (84.8% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 20 apartments (11.7%) were seasonally occupied and 6 apartments (3.5%) were empty. , the construction rate of new housing units was 0 new units per 1000 residents.
The historical population is given in the following chart:
Politics
In the 2007 federal electionSwiss federal election, 2007
Elections to the Swiss Federal Assembly, the federal parliament of Switzerland, were held on Sunday, 21 October 2007. In a few cantons, a second round of the elections to the Council of States was held on 11 November, 18 November, and 25 November 2007...
the most popular party was the CVP
Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland
The Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland is a Christian democratic political party in Switzerland. It is the fourth-largest party in the National Council, with 31 seats, and the largest in the Council of States, with 15 seats. It has one seat, that of Doris Leuthard, on the Swiss...
which received 44.07% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the FDP
FDP.The Liberals
FDP.The Liberals is a classical liberal political party in Switzerland. It is the joint-largest party in the Federal Council, third-largest party in the National Council, and second-largest in the Council of States....
(23.83%), the Ticino League
Ticino League
The Ticino League is an isolationist, national conservative political party in Switzerland active in the canton of Ticino.In 1991, after some public campaigning in the Sunday journal Mattino della Domenica against political power and use of public money, the editor Giuliano Bignasca and the...
(13.58%) and the SP
Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
(9.14%). In the federal election, a total of 108 votes were cast, and the voter turnout
Voter turnout
Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election . After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s...
was 46.2%.
In the Gran Consiglio election, there were a total of 222 registered voters in Grancia, of which 151 or 68.0% voted. 1 blank ballot and 1 null ballot was cast, leaving 149 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PPD
Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland
The Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland is a Christian democratic political party in Switzerland. It is the fourth-largest party in the National Council, with 31 seats, and the largest in the Council of States, with 15 seats. It has one seat, that of Doris Leuthard, on the Swiss...
+GenGiova which received 72 or 48.3% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the PLRT
FDP.The Liberals
FDP.The Liberals is a classical liberal political party in Switzerland. It is the joint-largest party in the Federal Council, third-largest party in the National Council, and second-largest in the Council of States....
(with 25 or 16.8%), the SSI (with 17 or 11.4%) and the LEGA
Ticino League
The Ticino League is an isolationist, national conservative political party in Switzerland active in the canton of Ticino.In 1991, after some public campaigning in the Sunday journal Mattino della Domenica against political power and use of public money, the editor Giuliano Bignasca and the...
(with 15 or 10.1%).
In the Consiglio di Stato election, 1 blank ballot and 1 null ballot was cast, leaving 149 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PPD which received 75 or 50.3% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the LEGA (with 22 or 14.8%), the PLRT (with 20 or 13.4%) and the PS (with 12 or 8.1%).
Economy
, Grancia had an unemployment rate of 4.45%. , there were 4 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 2 businesses involved in this sector. 133 people were employed in the secondary sector and there were 9 businesses in this sector. 767 people were employed in the tertiary sector, with 74 businesses in this sector. There were 193 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 45.6% of the workforce., there were 1,171 workers who commuted into the municipality and 145 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 8.1 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving. About 20.0% of the workforce coming into Grancia are coming from outside Switzerland, while 0.7% of the locals commute out of Switzerland for work. Of the working population, 9.8% used public transportation to get to work, and 65.8% used a private car.
, there was one hotel in Grancia.
Religion
From the , 287 or 78.4% were Roman Catholic, while 16 or 4.4% belonged to the Swiss Reformed ChurchSwiss Reformed Church
The Reformed branch of Protestantism in Switzerland was started in Zürich by Huldrych Zwingli and spread within a few years to Basel , Bern , St...
. There are 55 individuals (or about 15.03% of the population) who belong to another church (not listed on the census), and 8 individuals (or about 2.19% of the population) did not answer the question.
Education
The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Grancia about 61.4% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a FachhochschuleFachhochschule
A Fachhochschule or University of Applied Sciences is a German type of tertiary education institution, sometimes specialized in certain topical areas . Fachhochschulen were founded in Germany and later adopted by Austria, Liechtenstein, Switzerland and Greece...
).
In Grancia there were a total of 95 students . The Ticino education system
Education in Switzerland
The education system in Switzerland is very diverse, because the constitution of Switzerland delegates the authority for the school system mainly to the cantons...
provides up to three years of non-mandatory kindergarten
Kindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
and in Grancia there were 16 children in kindergarten. The primary school program lasts for five years and includes both a standard school and a special school. In the municipality, 19 students attended the standard primary schools and 2 students attended the special school. In the lower secondary school system, students either attend a two year middle school followed by a two year pre-apprenticeship or they attend a four year program to prepare for higher education. There were 23 students in the two year middle school and 1 in their pre-apprenticeship, while 13 students were in the four year advanced program.
The upper secondary school includes several options, but at the end of the upper secondary program, a student will be prepared to enter a trade or to continue on to a university or college. In Ticino, vocational students may either attend school while working on their internship or apprenticeship (which takes three or four years) or may attend school followed by an internship or apprenticeship (which takes one year as a full-time student or one and a half to two years as a part-time student). There were 5 vocational students who were attending school full-time and 14 who attend part-time.
The professional program lasts three years and prepares a student for a job in engineering, nursing, computer science, business, tourism and similar fields. There were 2 students in the professional program.
, there were 57 students from Grancia who attended schools outside the municipality.