«With children and two dogs, it's easy to get into trouble»

Contrary to expectations, the patchwork family was awarded a large, affordable flat in a lively neighbourhood.

For the Portenier-Cartillone family, the search for a home was also a search for a school community for their son Eren, 7. His parents had separated, his father stayed in the flat in Schlieren, while his mother Chantal and her new partner Fausto Cartillone looked for a flat no more than 20 minutes by car from his father's home. The parents share custody. Eren lives half with his mother and half with his father. When a house was advertised in Uitikon, Fausto didn't even want to go to the viewing appointment - they had put too much work and heart and soul into designing their first home together. «It was as cramped as a caravan,» smiles Fausto. But lovingly furnished. The couple renovated it themselves, embellished the floors and put up wallpaper. But their first child together, baby Mattia, was on the way and a second dog had joined the family. The family needed more space.

Affordable and lively neighbourhood

The flat in a semi-detached house immediately appealed to Chantal and Fausto. It has several floors and a special, slightly nested floor plan. There is a sunny seating area behind the house, the forest is nearby and the house is located in a residential area with a lively neighbourhood. Another plus point: the rent. «The house belongs to the municipality and the rent is affordable, which is not a given in Uitikon,» says Chantal. Painted pallets, a mini freight container and two sailing ship models are lovingly arranged in the living room. «This has to do with my work as a logistics consultant in container shipping, but also with my hobby, sailing,» explains Fausto. The walls are not simply white, but have areas of colour. The neighbourhood also had to fit in. «With children and two dogs, it's easy to get into trouble. That's why we wanted to live in a tolerant neighbourhood where others are sometimes loud,» explains Chantal.

A nest for the family

«It's not very private here. When we eat in the garden, we can see our neighbours to the left and right.» They really appreciate the contacts they make in this way. Not everything is perfect yet. Eren usually has to be taken to school by car. It's at the top of the hill. It takes him almost 20 minutes on foot. That hardly leaves any time for lunch. He often makes his way home by micro-scooter. But not for much longer: «I want to take the bus to school, I know which one to take and when to press the stop button,» the first-grader proudly announces. On the days when Eren lives with his father, Chantal works in a bank. Her grandmother then looks after nine-month-old baby Mattia, travelling all the way from Basel to do so. «My mum likes doing this, she almost didn't believe I would become a father,» explains Fausto. They both feel very lucky to have a home. «We were looking for a nest for our family, and we've found it here.»

To the author

Stephan Michel, 43, zog mit seiner Partnerin vom Zürcher Kreis 3 in ein Mehrfamilienhaus am Rand des Blüemliquartiers, einer alten Einfamilienhaussiedlung unweit des Uetlibergs. Hier leben sie mit ihren zwei Kindern, 5 Jahre und 9 Monate, wie im Dorf, es gilt Höchstgeschwindigkeit 20, man spielt auf den Quartierstrassen und hält einen Schwatz am Gartenzaun. Urban fühlt es sich nur an, wenn der FCZ im nahen Letzigrund aufläuft. 
Stephan Michel, 43, moved with his partner from Zurich's District 3 to an apartment block on the edge of the Blüemli neighbourhood, an old estate of detached houses not far from the Uetliberg. Here they live with their two children, aged 5 years and 9 months, as if they were in the village, the speed limit is 20, they play on the neighbourhood streets and chat at the garden fence. The only time it feels urban is when FCZ plays at the nearby Letzigrund.

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