Basel: Canton rents 17,000 square meters of office space
In fall 2028, the city's Department of Finance will move into the «Via» office building near the train station.
The Basel-Stadt Department of Finance is renting around 17,000 square meters of office space in the «Via» property at Viaduktstrasse 33 in Basel. The 18,000 sqm office space near the SBB train station has been vacant since 2023. According to real estate service provider Livit, re-letting the property proved to be a «remarkable challenge», pointing to the market environment with an office vacancy rate that more than doubled between 2020 and 2024. Livit is supporting the owners and tenants until the planned occupation in fall 2028, it says.
The owner of «Via» is the Rimmobas Investment Foundation. SFP Funds AG acts as the owner's representative and asset manager. According to the company, it strategically managed the project together with the owners and provided support throughout the entire process. The building was completed in 1994 and designed by Basel-based architects Diener & Diener
The main location of the Department of Finance is currently at Fischmarkt 10. According to a statement from the canton, it urgently needs to be renovated. After the renovation, the property at Fischmarkt will be used for other purposes within the cantonal administration. Other locations of the Department of Finance, which will be brought together in the «Via», will also be freed up for new uses or given up. According to the canton, the Spiegelgasse 2/4 site will be used for other purposes within the cantonal administration in future. The remaining seven externally rented locations of the Department of Finance can «probably be largely» terminated, according to the statement. (aw)
