Does the law still have the power to curb the zeal of path developers? The amendment to the Law on Technical Conditions was supposed to help, thanks to which issues such as the minimum area of commercial units, lighting of apartments, the distance of development from the border of the plot or the need for a playground were regulated. The legal changes did not have the desired effect - on the contrary, one is tempted to say that the amendment was one of the driving forces for the development of unfair practices in the PRS market. Now it is the Cracow magistrate's office that is taking on the pat-developer.
Faced with inadequate regulations of the construction law, local government officials are trying their hand at fighting the path-developer, and one of the latest examples of such action is the document developed by the Cracow magistrate, the Standards for Responsible Construction.
The document, developed by the City of Krakow's Department of Architecture and Urban Planning, the City of Krakow's Department of Spatial Planning, the City of Krakow's Department of Environmental and Climate Management, the Board of Water Infrastructure and the District Building Control Inspectorate in Krakow, consists of five points that list the biggest sins of path-developers and ways to counter them.
first - go green!
The amount of greenery on investment plots is determined by local spatial development plans and by the construction law, which sets the requirement for biologically active area at 25% for multifamily developments. However, it turns out that less honest developers are finding ways around these indicators:
A reprehensible phenomenon is the multiple counting of biologically active area for different developments. This includes situations where there is a subdivision of plots of land on which an investment is being implemented on the basis of a construction permit decision obtained. Applications are submitted for building permits for new investments to be carried out on separated plots of land, in a way that includes green areas already balanced.
Krakow magistrate says stop counting the same green area in several different investments.
Can a green wall compensate for a lawn?
Photo: Elifin Realty © Usnplash free
Is a green wall biologically active area?
The indicator of biologically active area has also become the subject of the second of the recommendations issued under the Standards for Responsible Construction. This time it is about counting as biologically active area elements whose compliance with the definition is debatable. The wicket is created here by the definition in the 2002 law:
an area with a surface arranged in such a way as to ensure natural vegetation of plants and retention of rainwater, as well as 50% of the area of terraces and flat roofs with such a surface, and other areas providing natural vegetation of plants, with an area of not less than 10 sq. m.
Thus, in theory, it is possible to meet the provisions on biologically active area with the use of green walls, fences and even climbing plants overgrowing the walls of a fire separation. The creators of the new document state that the biologically active area on such elements should be balanced only after the required ratio has been achieved using traditional areas embedded in native soil or green roofs of sufficient area.
A disturbing phenomenon is the hardening of biologically active areas after the project is actually completed and the building is put into use. Biologically active areas are often hardened for parking, garden terraces. This happens without observing the minimum indicator of biologically active area.
The authors and authors of the "Standards" also warn against the destruction of greenery during construction.
Photo: Ivan Bandura © Unsplash free
Landslide amnesia
Building a block of flats on a landslide - sounds absurd, right? It turns out that it's not for everyone, as there are investors who don't seem to care about such problems.
There is a very strong pressure to convert natural and agricultural land into building sites. We are developing former flood polders, meadows next to floodwalls and other low-lying areas that were natural retention stores. If we do this sensibly (elevate usable levels above the natural floodplain) or design, for example, underground garages with additional protective cover against flooding (e.g., mobile cover) then we significantly reduce future flood damage. However, if we only set our sights on profit or are unreasonable, we will lead to situations of flooding of underground parts, destruction of property and danger to people's lives.
Such situations are not just hypothetical - in Krakow itself, the Banacha II housing estate was built in a landslide area, near Wieliczka houses on the Kaim hill were slipping, a similar situation occurred in the single-family housing estate in Kielnarowa near Rzeszow. The investor who planned to build dozens of blocks of flats on the site of the Iłów mine in Zasławice did not see the problem either - although he was eventually stopped by the Spatial Conditions Study, the unyielding developer even engaged the local parish priest to promote his investment.
micro-home development
There are cases of redevelopment not preceded by obtaining the approval of an administrative body and the execution of an appropriate construction project, which leads to the violation of many regulations. Such illegal conversion and transformation of single-family buildings into buildings with multiple apartments (often 10 or more), causes problems and dangers for both the new co-owners and users of the converted building and the owners of neighboring single-family buildings.
Here, once again, a high-profile example from Krakow - a semi-detached house was being built on Rokitniańska Street, which, even before completion, was converted to accommodate...16 micro-apartments. A similar practice took place at 9a Youth Street.
As the authors of "Standards for Responsible Construction" list, such development generates a number of problems, which include violations of fire regulations, too few parking spaces, use of garage buildings for residential functions, and reduction of biologically active area.
Photo: Ivan Bandura © Unsplash free
premises for residential use
The last of the sub-points relates to a problem known not only in Krakow, but all over Poland. According to a 2018 amendment to the Construction Law, an apartment in a newly built building must be at least 25 square meters. However, the regulation has not stopped some investors from offering apartments, or rather condominiums, with a much lower square meterage. The wicket turns out to be the provisions of local zoning plans themselves, as well as a rather free interpretation of the law, under which apartments are located on plots of land intended for hotel buildings and other collective housing facilities.
We wrote more about the problem of long-term rental in commercial premises in cooperation with Piotr Chuchacz, a representative of the ArchiPravo association.
official marketing
The observations made by the "Standards for Responsible Construction" are as pertinent as possible, and some of them have not been addressed before in the discussion of space quality. But will the document have a real impact on the quality of residential development in Krakow? Miracles are not to be expected, as it has no legal force whatsoever - rather, it is a guide aimed at officials evaluating applications for building permits and informing potential investors about fields where unfair practices are being carried out. Unfortunately, "recommending" or "complying" will do little if investors continue to exploit loopholes and officials allow them to do so.
Local governments currently do not have the legal tools with which to effectively regulate unfair practices. Skilful development of spatial policy, including careful drafting of successive local plans, is the best way to achieve spatial order, but the creativity of some investors allows them to continue to build where they should not.
From a big cloud a little rain?
Is the media hype that has built up around the release of the "Standards for Responsible Construction" adequate to the actual impact the document will have on the state of Krakow's architecture? Considering the number of authorities involved in issuing building permits and the level of complexity of this process, the rallying cry of "the end of pat-development" may seem like an exaggerated claim.
Until now, there have been situations where officials have failed to find adequate legal grounds to deny a permit for a questionable development. Now, where the law is vague, we will always adhere to our standards, even at the risk that we may sometimes lose in court.
At the moment we are dealing only with empty declarations. On the other hand, residents are eager to speak about how Krakow looks thanks to the developments of recent years, in the comments. And these are not words of appreciation. So did the development of the "Standards for Responsible Development" make any sense?
Krakow authorities consulted the document with local governments of other large cities, including Warsaw, Poznan and Katowice. They hope that the "Standards for Responsible Construction" will become the foundation for a nationwide discussion - only then will it be possible to create legal regulations that will have a direct impact on the unfair practices of some developers.
