END TO CONCRETE CALAMITY
Regional government wants ‘rational’ development based on residents’ needs
LAND law reform will put an end to speculative building practices which have seen large swathes of coastal towns covered in concrete, according to the Valencia regional government.
President Ximo Puig said that around 100 articles of the LOTUP land law will be changed.
This will ‘close the open wound’ caused by illegal and random building, he noted.
“The new model for development in the Valencia region has to change from one based on speculation to one based on the general interest,” he said.
He slammed the ‘ chaotic inheritance’ left by the former Partido Popular regional government.
“There are a large number of regulations which do not help to protect the individual,” he said.
“And at the same time they do nothing to promote the future of towns and cities.”
The changes to the LOTUP are set to be approved in a vote in the regional parliament today (Friday).
Sr Puig claimed that the reform would tackle the problems of the current development model in a ‘rigorous, transparent and pragmatic’ way.
Emphasis will be placed on regeneration of historic neighbourhoods of towns and cities.
Councillor for housing María José Salvador said the reform was designed to ‘rescue people and cities’ and ‘improve people’s quality of life’.
This would be based on public sector management rather than ‘speculative’ projects from the private sector.
“We want the design of our cities and towns to be decided on by local and regional authorities,” she said.
“This will be done in a more rational way, with a detailed study of the needs of residents and the environment.”
She echoed the words of President Puig, saying they will place an emphasis on reforming run-down areas.
At the same time, they will insist on transparency in all aspects of town planning.
“We want it to be more participative, safer, viable and rigorous,” said Sra Salvador. “This will give our town planning a new identity.” She also promised a solution to the problem of ‘ghost plans’ which left homeowners in rural areas in a state of limbo when their properties were hit by speculative development plans which often involved land-grab practices. This would give ‘judicial security’ to homeowners. Sr Puig said the revised LOTUP would establish a new mechanism – called strategic, sustainable development projects (PIES) – which are large-scale plans covering a number of municipalities, setting out rules for ‘management, development and arrangement’.
Charles Svoboda, vice-president of pressure group Abusos Urbanísticos No (AUN), explained that they had ‘two quite successful meetings’ with Maria José Salvador and her team, most recently about two months ago in Valencia.
“AUN president Enrique Climent passed over about 60 pages of relevant material, notably concrete sugges- tions as to how the LOTUP now in effect could be modified to the mutual advantage of existing small property owners, town halls and the environment,” he said. These proposals were ‘well received’, he added. However, AUN president Enrique Climent said he was concerned that he had not seen a draft of the law before it went before the parliament today. For that reason he could not give an opinion on it. “If we have to manifest our disagreement on some point in a draft, it can be modified easily if they consider it useful, but the same disagreement with the approved law makes things too complicated and I don’t know if could be changed, even if it is of benefit,” he said.
“However, it is possible that my concern comes after 16 years of fighting against the deafness of the regional government and because of this I see ghosts in any situation.”
Sr Climent added that councillor Salvador had made a good impression on them during their meetings and had shown interest ‘with our work and the changes we proposed to the new law’.