Porza
Encyclopedia
Porza is a municipality
in the district of Lugano
in the canton
of Ticino
in Switzerland
.
1907-08 several cremation graves along with grave goods from the Iron Age
were discovered. During the Middle Ages
the Benedictine
abbey of San Pietro in Ciel d'Oro
owned land in Porza. On a hill northeast of Porza was Trevano castle, which was probably built in the 12th Century by the Bishop of Como
. It was owned by the Brocchi family, from Como and later by the Trevano and Quadri families. On the castle's foundations a villa was built in 1871. During the Belle Époque
the glamorous and wealthy met here, and musicians from across Europe presented themselves to give concerts. In 1934, the district purchased the villa. It was demolished in 1961 and replaced with a school, which is now part of the Scuola universitaria professionale della Svizzera italiana (university of Italian Switzerland).
Porza's church was under the parish church
S. Lorenzo in Lugano until 1468, followed by the parish
of Comano. It became an independent parish in 1647. The Church of SS. Bernardino e Martino dates from the 16th Century and was restored 1974.
Historically, the local economy relied on farming as well as craftsmen (Maestranze) emigrating to other countries. At the beginning of the 21st Century, it has become a residential community
for the agglomeration
of Lugano. Since the 1960s, a substantial proportion of the population comes from abroad or the rest of Switzerland. In the valley along the Cassarate river, an industrial and trade development zone has grown up. In 1992-95, a skating rink was built in Resega near the river. In 2000, about three-quarters of the workforce commutes.
Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 2.5% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 29.1% and transportation infrastructure made up 8.2%. Power and water infrastructure as well as other special developed areas made up 2.5% of the area Out of the forested land, 38.6% of the total land area is heavily forested and 3.2% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 10.8% is used for growing crops, while 3.2% is used for orchards or vine crops and 29.1% is used for alpine pastures.
The municipality is located in the Lugano district, north-west of Lugano. It consists of the village of Porza and the hamlets
of Vira, Trevano and Belvedere in along the hills, as well as Cornaredo and Resega in the valley.
of the municipal coat of arms
is Azure a sun in splenor and a base serrated both or.
Most of the population speaks Italian
(83.2%), with German
being second most common (10.1%) and French
being third (2.2%). Of the Swiss national languages , 136 speak German, 30 people speak French, 1,122 people speak Italian, and 2 people speak Romansh. The remainder (58 people) speak another language.
, the gender distribution of the population was 49.2% male and 50.8% female. The population was made up of 586 Swiss men (38.7% of the population), and 159 (10.5%) non-Swiss men. There were 631 Swiss women (41.7%), and 139 (9.2%) non-Swiss women.
In there were 18 live births to Swiss citizens and 2 births to non-Swiss citizens, and in same time span there were 4 deaths of Swiss citizens and 1 non-Swiss citizen death. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens increased by 14 while the foreign population increased by 1. There were 2 Swiss men who emigrated from Switzerland. At the same time, there were 8 non-Swiss men and 3 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 31 and the non-Swiss population change was a decrease of 5 people. This represents a population growth rate of 1.8%.
The age distribution, , in Porza is; 157 children or 10.4% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 164 teenagers or 10.8% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 141 people or 9.3% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 225 people or 14.9% are between 30 and 39, 277 people or 18.3% are between 40 and 49, and 211 people or 13.9% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 172 people or 11.4% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 109 people or 7.2% are between 70 and 79, there are 59 people or 3.9% who are over 80.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.57 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 42.1% 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 586 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.3 persons per household. there were 233 single family homes (or 64.7% of the total) out of a total of 360 inhabited buildings. There were 62 two family buildings (17.2%) and 49 multi-family buildings (13.6%). There were also 16 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 692 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was the 5 room apartment of which there were 216. There were 19 single room apartments and 216 apartments with five or more rooms. Of these apartments, a total of 584 apartments (84.4% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 98 apartments (14.2%) were seasonally occupied and 10 apartments (1.4%) were empty. , the construction rate of new housing units was 3.4 new units per 1000 residents.
The historical population is given in the following chart:
the most popular party was the FDP
which received 29.15% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the CVP
(26.22%), the SP
(14.66%) and the SVP
(12.17%). In the federal election, a total of 505 votes were cast, and the voter turnout
was 53.7%.
In the Gran Consiglio election, there were a total of 954 registered voters in Porza, of which 682 or 71.5% voted. 3 blank ballots and 4 null ballots were cast, leaving 675 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PLRT
which received 188 or 27.9% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the PPD
+GenGiova (with 162 or 24.0%), the SSI (with 118 or 17.5%) and the LEGA
(with 72 or 10.7%).
In the Consiglio di Stato election, 6 blank ballots were cast, leaving 676 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PLRT which received 170 or 25.1% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the PPD (with 149 or 22.0%), the LEGA (with 144 or 21.3%) and the SSI (with 106 or 15.7%).
, there were 352 workers who commuted into the municipality and 570 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net exporter of workers, with about 1.6 workers leaving the municipality for every one entering. About 25.9% of the workforce coming into Porza are coming from outside Switzerland, while 0.5% of the locals commute out of Switzerland for work. Of the working population, 8.2% used public transportation to get to work, and 69.9% used a private car.
. There are 136 individuals (or about 10.09% of the population) who belong to another church (not listed on the census), and 31 individuals (or about 2.30% of the population) did not answer the question.
).
In Porza there were a total of 262 students . The Ticino education system
provides up to three years of non-mandatory kindergarten
and in Porza there were 31 children in kindergarten. The primary school program lasts for five years. In the municipality, 87 students attended the standard primary schools. 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 71 students in the two year middle school, while 45 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 12 vocational students who were attending school full-time and 13 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 3 students in the professional program.
, there were 12 students in Porza who came from another municipality, while 180 residents 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
Porza is first mentioned around 1297-99 as Porza.1907-08 several cremation graves along with grave goods from the Iron Age
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
were discovered. During 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...
the Benedictine
Benedictine
Benedictine refers to the spirituality and consecrated life in accordance with the Rule of St Benedict, written by Benedict of Nursia in the sixth century for the cenobitic communities he founded in central Italy. The most notable of these is Monte Cassino, the first monastery founded by Benedict...
abbey of San Pietro in Ciel d'Oro
San Pietro in Ciel d'Oro
San Pietro in Ciel d'Oro is a Roman Catholic basilica of the Augustinians in Pavia, Italy, in the Lombardy region. Its name refers to the mosaics of gold leaf behind glass tesserae that formerly decorated the ceiling of the apse. The plain exterior is of brick, with sandstone quoins and window...
owned land in Porza. On a hill northeast of Porza was Trevano castle, which was probably built in the 12th Century by the Bishop of Como
Roman Catholic Diocese of Como
The Catholic diocese of Como, in northern Italy, has existed since the fourth century. It is a suffragan of the archdiocese of Milan. The bishops' seat is in Como Cathedral....
. It was owned by the Brocchi family, from Como and later by the Trevano and Quadri families. On the castle's foundations a villa was built in 1871. During the Belle Époque
Belle Époque
The Belle Époque or La Belle Époque was a period in European social history that began during the late 19th century and lasted until World War I. Occurring during the era of the French Third Republic and the German Empire, it was a period characterised by optimism and new technological and medical...
the glamorous and wealthy met here, and musicians from across Europe presented themselves to give concerts. In 1934, the district purchased the villa. It was demolished in 1961 and replaced with a school, which is now part of the Scuola universitaria professionale della Svizzera italiana (university of Italian Switzerland).
Porza's church was under the parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
S. Lorenzo in Lugano until 1468, followed by 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 Comano. It became an independent parish in 1647. The Church of SS. Bernardino e Martino dates from the 16th Century and was restored 1974.
Historically, the local economy relied on farming as well as craftsmen (Maestranze) emigrating to other countries. At the beginning of the 21st Century, it has become a residential community
Commuter town
A commuter town is an urban community that is primarily residential, from which most of the workforce commutes out to earn their livelihood. Many commuter towns act as suburbs of a nearby metropolis that workers travel to daily, and many suburbs are commuter towns...
for the agglomeration
Agglomeration
In the study of human settlements, an urban agglomeration is an extended city or town area comprising the built-up area of a central place and any suburbs linked by continuous urban area. In France, INSEE the French Statistical Institute, translate it as "Unité urbaine" which means continuous...
of Lugano. Since the 1960s, a substantial proportion of the population comes from abroad or the rest of Switzerland. In the valley along the Cassarate river, an industrial and trade development zone has grown up. In 1992-95, a skating rink was built in Resega near the river. In 2000, about three-quarters of the workforce commutes.
Geography
Porza has an area, , of 1.58 square kilometre (0.610041410576205 sq mi). Of this area, 0.68 km² (0.262549467842924 sq mi) or 43.0% is used for agricultural purposes, while 0.66 km² (0.254827424671073 sq mi) or 41.8% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 0.68 km² (0.262549467842924 sq mi) or 43.0% is settled (buildings or roads) and 0.03 km² (7.4 acre) or 1.9% is unproductive land.Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 2.5% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 29.1% and transportation infrastructure made up 8.2%. Power and water infrastructure as well as other special developed areas made up 2.5% of the area Out of the forested land, 38.6% of the total land area is heavily forested and 3.2% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 10.8% is used for growing crops, while 3.2% is used for orchards or vine crops and 29.1% is used for alpine pastures.
The municipality is located in the Lugano district, north-west of Lugano. It consists of the village of Porza and the hamlets
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
of Vira, Trevano and Belvedere in along the hills, as well as Cornaredo and Resega in the valley.
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 sun in splenor and a base serrated both or.
Demographics
Porza has a population of . , 19.4% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (1997–2007) the population has changed at a rate of 10.8%.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...
(83.2%), 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 (10.1%) and 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...
being third (2.2%). Of the Swiss national languages , 136 speak German, 30 people speak French, 1,122 people speak Italian, and 2 people speak Romansh. The remainder (58 people) speak another language.
, the gender distribution of the population was 49.2% male and 50.8% female. The population was made up of 586 Swiss men (38.7% of the population), and 159 (10.5%) non-Swiss men. There were 631 Swiss women (41.7%), and 139 (9.2%) non-Swiss women.
In there were 18 live births to Swiss citizens and 2 births to non-Swiss citizens, and in same time span there were 4 deaths of Swiss citizens and 1 non-Swiss citizen death. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens increased by 14 while the foreign population increased by 1. There were 2 Swiss men who emigrated from Switzerland. At the same time, there were 8 non-Swiss men and 3 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 31 and the non-Swiss population change was a decrease of 5 people. This represents a population growth rate of 1.8%.
The age distribution, , in Porza is; 157 children or 10.4% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 164 teenagers or 10.8% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 141 people or 9.3% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 225 people or 14.9% are between 30 and 39, 277 people or 18.3% are between 40 and 49, and 211 people or 13.9% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 172 people or 11.4% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 109 people or 7.2% are between 70 and 79, there are 59 people or 3.9% who are over 80.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.57 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 42.1% 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 586 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.3 persons per household. there were 233 single family homes (or 64.7% of the total) out of a total of 360 inhabited buildings. There were 62 two family buildings (17.2%) and 49 multi-family buildings (13.6%). There were also 16 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 692 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was the 5 room apartment of which there were 216. There were 19 single room apartments and 216 apartments with five or more rooms. Of these apartments, a total of 584 apartments (84.4% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 98 apartments (14.2%) were seasonally occupied and 10 apartments (1.4%) were empty. , the construction rate of new housing units was 3.4 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 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....
which received 29.15% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were 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...
(26.22%), the SP
Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
(14.66%) and the SVP
Swiss People's Party
The Swiss People's Party , also known as the Democratic Union of the Centre , is a conservative political party in Switzerland. Chaired by Toni Brunner, but spearheaded by Christoph Blocher, the party is the largest party in the Federal Assembly, with 58 members of the National Council and 6 of...
(12.17%). In the federal election, a total of 505 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 53.7%.
In the Gran Consiglio election, there were a total of 954 registered voters in Porza, of which 682 or 71.5% voted. 3 blank ballots and 4 null ballots were cast, leaving 675 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was 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....
which received 188 or 27.9% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; 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 (with 162 or 24.0%), the SSI (with 118 or 17.5%) 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 72 or 10.7%).
In the Consiglio di Stato election, 6 blank ballots were cast, leaving 676 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PLRT which received 170 or 25.1% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the PPD (with 149 or 22.0%), the LEGA (with 144 or 21.3%) and the SSI (with 106 or 15.7%).
Economy
, Porza had an unemployment rate of 2.63%. , there were 7 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 2 businesses involved in this sector. 154 people were employed in the secondary sector and there were 15 businesses in this sector. 585 people were employed in the tertiary sector, with 56 businesses in this sector. There were 670 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 41.0% of the workforce., there were 352 workers who commuted into the municipality and 570 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net exporter of workers, with about 1.6 workers leaving the municipality for every one entering. About 25.9% of the workforce coming into Porza are coming from outside Switzerland, while 0.5% of the locals commute out of Switzerland for work. Of the working population, 8.2% used public transportation to get to work, and 69.9% used a private car.
Religion
From the , 1,066 or 79.1% were Roman Catholic, while 115 or 8.5% 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 136 individuals (or about 10.09% of the population) who belong to another church (not listed on the census), and 31 individuals (or about 2.30% of the population) did not answer the question.
Education
In Porza about 80.1% 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 Porza there were a total of 262 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 Porza there were 31 children in kindergarten. The primary school program lasts for five years. In the municipality, 87 students attended the standard primary schools. 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 71 students in the two year middle school, while 45 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 12 vocational students who were attending school full-time and 13 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 3 students in the professional program.
, there were 12 students in Porza who came from another municipality, while 180 residents attended schools outside the municipality.