On July 11, 2023, the Act of July 7, 2023, amending the Act on Spatial Planning and Development and certain other acts (the " Amendment "), introducing fundamental changes to the Act of March 27, 2003, on Spatial Planning and Development (the " Act "), was submitted to the President for signature. As of this writing, it has not yet been signed. Therefore, today's article discusses the simplified procedure for adopting or amending a local spatial development plan , which will be regulated in Article 27b of the Act.
There's no doubt that the simplified procedure is a new procedure that can be used not only for the adoption of local development plans, but also for amendments. Today, we'll describe the cases in which the legislature allows for the simplified procedure for local development plans, and next week, we'll discuss the procedure for their adoption and how it differs from the standard procedure.
The use of the simplified procedure will only be possible in cases strictly defined in the Amendment , i.e. if:
- the local plan or its amendment will only concern the location of renewable energy source installations other than wind farms;
- the change in the MPZP will apply exclusively to:
- introducing arrangements resulting from hydrological, geological, geomorphological or natural conditions regarding the occurrence of floods and related restrictions, specified on the basis of separate provisions,
- introducing arrangements resulting from decisions regarding the location or implementation of public purpose investments issued by the State Water Management Authority Polish Waters or public administration bodies other than municipal authorities,
- introducing arrangements resulting from prohibitions or restrictions on development and land development , specified in the provisions of laws or acts, including local law acts, issued on their basis,
- a change in the intended use of the land that does not result in a change to the applicable development ban or restrictions on development and land development specified on the basis of separate provisions and that enables the implementation of an investment that does not cause: (i) an increase in the environmental impact, (ii) an increase in the nuisance for neighbouring areas and (iii) – the introduction of restrictions on development and land development in neighbouring areas,
- changes in the arrangements for shaping the development and land development by a value not exceeding 10% of the value of the applicable parameters and indicators referred to in Article 15, paragraph 2, point 6 or paragraph 3, point 10 of the Act,
- changes to the arrangements regarding the method and timing of temporary development, arrangement and use of land,
- changes in arrangements regarding the colors of buildings or roof coverings,
- changes in the course of the lines delimiting areas with different purposes or different development principles or building lines by no more than 1 m,
- changes in arrangements in connection with the entry of an object or area into the register of monuments, the deletion of an object or area from the register of monuments or the inclusion of a monument in the provincial or municipal register of monuments,
- changes to the course of the land utilities network within the meaning of Article 2, point 11 of the Geodetic and Cartographic Law, which does not increase the related restrictions on development and land management,
- lifting the ban on locating renewable energy installations installed on buildings that use only solar radiation energy to generate energy or micro-installations within the meaning of Article 2, point 19 on renewable energy sources,
- repealing the provisions preventing the location of public purpose investments in the field of public communications, referred to in Article 46, paragraph 1 of the Act on supporting the development of telecommunications services and networks.
Furthermore, even in the situations indicated above, the simplified procedure cannot be applied in the following cases :
- location of plants with an increased or high risk of a serious industrial accident;
- designation of agricultural and forest land for non-agricultural and non-forest purposes requiring the consent referred to in Article 7, paragraph 2 of the Act on the Protection of Agricultural and Forest Land;
- areas requiring real estate consolidation and division;
- areas at particular risk of flooding;
- areas at risk of mass earth movements and areas where these movements occur;
- investments located in national parks and their buffer zones, nature reserves and their buffer zones;
- objects and areas recognized as historical monuments;
- reclaimed land;
- if the changes specified in point 2) letters d) – l) above concern the location of projects that may have a significant impact on the environment.
It is also worth adding that the simplified procedure will also apply to the preparation and adoption of a local plan for the relocation project (new Article 120 of the Act on the Central Communication Port).
In summary, when considering the procedure to be followed, authorities must remember that, in the above cases alone, the legislature's intention was to expedite and make the process of adopting or amending a local plan more flexible. The simplified procedure will therefore be an exception to the rule, but it is worthwhile to use it if the conditions are met.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
Legal status as of July 17, 2023
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