Rental agreement with Zurich Cantaleum School approved
The Zurich City Council has approved the rental agreement with Cantaleum Zürich AG and approved a loan of CHF 720,000 for construction measures. This will enable a private school with a focus on music to open in a former orphanage from summer 2017.
From summer 2017, the Villa Sonnenberg on the upper Heuelsteig in Zurich's Hottingen district is set to come alive with young talent: The Cantaleum private school will support children of kindergarten and primary school age both academically and musically. The school will be bilingual (German and English) and run as an all-day school.
It is planned that music and singing lessons will be integrated into the timetable as well as supplementing lessons. In addition, the children will take part in the boys' or girls' choir or be encouraged to play instruments. The school's most important partner is the Zurich Boys' Choir Association (ZSK).
Last year, the Cantaleum Foundation collected over one million francs in mainly private donations to set up the school and secure funding for the start-up phase. Personalities from Zurich's cultural and educational sector have joined a patronage committee for the project.
Built in 1911, the villa was used as an orphanage for many years and later as accommodation and a school. In 2000, the city transferred the building to the Zurich Children's and Youth Homes Foundation; in 2013, it returned to the city's ownership. It is currently being used temporarily by the Zurich Asylum Organization and the Zurich Student Housing Cooperative.
