Wil

Wil
Wil old city
Country Switzerland Canton St. Gallen District Wahlkreis Wil 47°28′N 9°03′E / 47.467°N 9.050°E / 47.467; 9.050Coordinates: 47°28′N 9°03′E / 47.467°N 9.050°E / 47.467; 9.050
Population	22,974 (Dec 2012)[1]
- Density	3,015 /km2 (7,809 /sq mi)
Area	7.62 km2 (2.94 sq mi)[2]
Elevation	571 m (1,873 ft)
Postal code	9500
SFOS number	3425
Mayor	Susanne Hartmann[3] (as of 2013) CVP/PDC
Surrounded by	Bronschhofen, Jonschwil, Münchwilen (TG), Rickenbach (TG), Sirnach (TG), Uzwil (SG), Wilen (TG), Zuzwil
Twin towns	Dobrzen Wielki (Poland)
Website	www.stadtwil.ch SFSO statistics
Wil
Location of Wil

Wil is the capital of the Wahlkreis (constituency) of Wil in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland.

Wil is the third largest city in the Canton of St. Gallen, after the city of St. Gallen and Rapperswil-Jona, a twin city that merged in 2006. The municipality of Bronschhofen merged into Wil on 1 January 2013.^[4]

In 1984, Wil was awarded the Wakker Prize for the development and preservation of its architectural heritage.^[5]

Geography

Lake in Wil

Wil has an area, as of 2006, of 7.6 km² (2.9 sq mi). Of this area, 32.1% is used for agricultural purposes, while 13.9% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 53.4% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (0.7%) is non-productive (rivers or lakes).^[6]

The former municipality of Bronschhofen had an area, as of 2006, of 13.2 km² (5.1 sq mi). Of this area, 65.3% is used for agricultural purposes, while 22.1% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 12% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (0.5%) is non-productive (rivers or lakes).^[6] It consisted of the villages of Bronschhofen and Rossrüti as well as the hamlets of Maugwil, Trungen and the pilgrimage site of Dreibrunnen.

Coat of arms

The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Argent a Bear rampant Sable langued and in his virlity Gules and in sinister chief a letter W.^[7]

Demographics

Wil has a population (as of 31 December 2012) of 22,974.^[1] As of 2011, Bronschhofen had a population of 4,654.^[1] As of 2007, about 25.8% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Of the foreign population, (as of 2000), 272 are from Germany, 776 are from Italy, 1,876 are from ex-Yugoslavia, 135 are from Austria, 309 are from Turkey, and 578 are from another country.^[8] Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 8.4%. Most of the population (as of 2000) speaks German (85.1%), with Albanian being second most common ( 4.5%) and Italian being third ( 3.0%).^[6] Of the Swiss national languages (as of 2000), 13,943 speak German, 60 people speak French, 488 people speak Italian, and 26 people speak Romansh.^[9]

The age distribution, as of 2000, in Wil is; 1,639 children or 10.0% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 1,836 teenagers or 11.2% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 2,286 people or 13.9% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 2,629 people or 16.0% are between 30 and 39, 2,314 people or 14.1% are between 40 and 49, and 2,022 people or 12.3% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 1,621 people or 9.9% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 1,268 people or 7.7% are between 70 and 79, there are 678 people or 4.1% who are between 80 and 89, and there are 98 people or 0.6% who are between 90 and 99, and 1 person who is 100 or more.^[9]

In 2000 there were 2,829 persons (or 17.3% of the population) who were living alone in a private dwelling. There were 4,034 (or 24.6%) persons who were part of a couple (married or otherwise committed) without children, and 7,421 (or 45.3%) who were part of a couple with children. There were 954 (or 5.8%) people who lived in single parent home, while there are 79 persons who were adult children living with one or both parents, 90 persons who lived in a household made up of relatives, 174 who lived in a household made up of unrelated persons, and 811 who are either institutionalized or live in another type of collective housing.^[9]

In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the SVP which received 31.7% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the CVP (21.9%), the SP (14.9%) and the FDP (12.5%).^[6]

In Wil about 69.2% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule).^[6] Out of the total population in Wil, as of 2000, the highest education level completed by 3,538 people (21.6% of the population) was Primary, while 6,179 (37.7%) have completed their secondary education, 2,158 (13.2%) have attended a Tertiary school, and 818 (5.0%) are not in school. The remainder did not answer this question.^[9]

Heritage sites of national significance

The Hof, former seat of the Prince-abbot

The Baronenhaus at Marktgasse 73, the Dominican Abbey of St. Katharina, the Hof (the former seat of the Prince-abbot) and the pilgrimage church Maria-Hilf at Dreibrunnen are listed as Swiss heritage sites of national significance.^[10]

The old city of Wil is designated as part of the Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites.^[11]

Transportation

It is a railway node, being located on the train line from Zürich-Winterthur to St. Gallen and connected with lines to Frauenfeld, Weinfelden-Konstanz and Wattwil - Nesslau (Toggenburg) or Rapperswil.

The city is close to the border with the Canton of Thurgau.

Sport

The football club FC Wil play in the Swiss Challenge League.

Economy

As of 2007, Wil had an unemployment rate of 2.87%. As of 2005, there were 82 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 19 businesses involved in this sector. 2,454 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 177 businesses in this sector. 8,025 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 934 businesses in this sector.^[6]

As of October 2009 the average unemployment rate was 4.7%.^[12] There were 1099 businesses in the municipality of which 154 were involved in the secondary sector of the economy while 934 were involved in the third.^[13]

As of 2000 there were 3,873 residents who worked in the municipality, while 4,695 residents worked outside Wil and 6,368 people commuted into the municipality for work.^[14]

Religion

Church interior in Wil

From the 2000 census, 8,817 or 53.8% are Roman Catholic, while 3,561 or 21.7% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church. Of the rest of the population, there are 6 individuals (or about 0.04% of the population) who belong to the Christian Catholic faith, there are 473 individuals (or about 2.89% of the population) who belong to the Orthodox Church, and there are 265 individuals (or about 1.62% of the population) who belong to another Christian church. There are 10 individuals (or about 0.06% of the population) who are Jewish, and 1,433 (or about 8.74% of the population) who are Islamic. There are 116 individuals (or about 0.71% of the population) who belong to another church (not listed on the census), 1,138 (or about 6.94% of the population) belong to no church, are agnostic or atheist, and 573 individuals (or about 3.50% of the population) did not answer the question.^[9]

Mayor

Per 01.01.2013 Susanne Hartmann became the first female mayor not only of Wil-Bronschhofen but she also became the first female mayor in the canton of St. Gallen. Hartmann announced her candidacy in April 2012. Despite all forecasts the result of the elections was a landslide victory for Susanne Hartmann.^[15][16]

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Wil.

• http://www.stadtwil.ch (German)
• Wilnet - Stadtlexikon der Stadt Wil (German) city encyclopedia

v t e Municipalities in the district of Wil, Switzerland Degersheim Flawil Jonschwil Niederbüren Niederhelfenschwil Oberbüren Oberuzwil Uzwil Wil Zuzwil St. Gallen Districts of Canton St. Gallen Municipalities of the canton of St. Gallen