Although we were promised dancing, apparently, the municipalities are not dancing at all. The new legislation makes it more difficult to adopt municipal spatial plans, which plan spatial developments of local importance and determine the intended use of space and the spatial implementation conditions for the placement of planned interventions in space.
The sense of dissatisfaction in spatial planning is due to the changes introduced by the Spatial Planning Act (ZUreP-3) and the Construction Act (GZ-1) from 2023, which have made the procedures themselves more complex, more stringent and, as a consequence, more time-consuming. As the Municipal Spatial Plan sets the conditions for construction, there are completely unnecessary delays in construction projects now happening. The lengthy procedures, which require the adaptation of various studies by the municipalities, lead to higher costs. The lengthy adoption of Municipal Spatial Plans naturally leads to dissatisfaction among investors and citizens.
Both the Construction Act and the Spatial Planning Act also require a greater degree of coordination between civil society, municipalities and state institutions. Ministries, agencies and institutions that act as opinion leaders have greater powers. They can influence the rejection of the Municipal Spatial Plan itself, which means that they can ask for corrections, which only prolongs the whole process. We need to be aware of the fact that the adoptions of Municipal Spatial Plans already take place in several stages, and there must be an opportunity for public debate. In light of the complexity of the situation, it is not surprising that people are increasingly dissatisfied.
Municipalities are forced to adapt their information systems in light of the mandatory digitisation of spatial plans. “Alignment with the unified property register system and more detailed cartographic documentation is required. Spatial plans must be aligned with the Spatial Development Strategy of Slovenia and other long-term national strategies,” the Information Portal of Central Slovenia pointed out in relation to the requirements. They also pointed out that a rejection or a request for correction can also occur if the municipality’s proposal is not in line with national policy.
The issuance of building permits is made more difficult in light of following the “green trend”. New legislation requires more detailed environmental impact assessments. For this reason, more enhanced cooperation with environmental agencies and additional analyses are needed. As even the smallest changes may require a revision or even an additional study, the spatial planning process itself is further slowed down. According to the Information Portal of Central Slovenia, many investors and municipalities have criticised the state requirements as being too rigid and tending to stifle development. In light of less flexible spatial planning, municipalities are hoping that the procedures will be simplified or that the state will come to the rescue in terms of coordination.
Planning authorities fail to meet deadlines for issuing opinions
At the March regular plenary session of the National Assembly, MP Žan Mahnič of the Slovenian Democratic Party (Slovenska demokratska stranka – SDS) pointed to the problems arising in light of the adoption of Municipal Spatial Plans. He said that municipalities and settlements are being blocked because of the slow response of ministries when a municipality wants to adopt a Spatial Plan. Although the legislation sets a 30-day deadline, none of the key ministries are meeting it.
“Responses take up to six months or longer. The biggest problem is the Water Directorate of the Republic of Slovenia, which is the absolute record holder, as it does not reply for eight months or more, and then always gives a negative opinion and demands studies and amendments to flood maps from municipalities, which, in fact, it should have done itself – as required by law,” Mahnič explained. He also criticised the fact that the Ministry’s opinions, without clear criteria, are left to the subjective, experiential judgement of clerks and do not take into account the judgement of the municipalities, which know their area best, and that the Ministry’s opinions are not based on clear criteria.
According to Mahnič, municipalities are just “postmen who meet the requirements of one ministry and another, while at the same time, it is municipalities who are carrying the brunt of the anger of our citizens who want to build on their land, on their property, as soon as possible”. The SDS MP had already pointed out this problem last year, but, according to him, the situation has not improved to date. If anything, it has got worse.
In response to a parliamentary question on when the legal deadlines would start to be respected and the Municipal Spatial Plans could be amended every two to three years as foreseen, the Minister of Natural Resources and Spatial Planning, Jože Novak, agreed that there were problems with the deadlines. He also announced that he had put out for public debate an amendment to the Spatial Planning Act, which would establish an inter-ministerial group to be led by himself as the Minister. He is trying to get the power to further harmonise some things through inter-ministerial work. “I write in the law that within 30 days, or within the time limit that the law provides for, an opinion must be given. If it is not given, it is deemed to have been given,” he pointed out, adding that he was aware that he would face a lot of legal questions about whether this was even possible, but he hoped that some compromise would be reached in the end. Time will undoubtedly tell whether everything will remain wishful thinking, but until then, municipalities will have to deal with all the problems resulting from the additional bureaucratisation that is severely crippling Slovenian society in their own way.
Ž. N.
