Dozens of applications filed in first call for changes to land-use plan in order to increase availability of housing

The City of Bratislava received 128 applications from developers and landowners responding to the call for changes to the land-use plan in order to increase availability of housing, of which 92 met the requirements defined in the call. The majority of them concern property in the city districts of Ružinov, Petržalka and Rača. The call and the cooperation of the private sector and the local government represent a major tool for increasing availability of housing, including rental housing. We will use the applications to assess the options for housing increase in those locations where they do not diverge from the public interest.

In December 2021, the city issued a call for developers and landowners on changes to the land-use plan with the purpose of boosting the development of rental housing ↗︎. The goal was to increase the availability of housing by constructing new apartment buildings with a portion of municipal rental housing. This concerns locations where the land-use plan permits it to some degree but, following the change to the functional use of the land, these buildings could be erected more easily. Urban studies will then assess whether the locations meet the requirements for changes to the land-use plan and will benefit the public interest. They will assess, in particular, the community facilities and the transportation and technical infrastructure of the location. Subsequently, amendments and changes to the land-use plan will be prepared and then put up for vote by the representatives of the local government.

The call was open from mid-December 2021 to late April 2022. Over this period, the city received 128 applications – mostly from developers, but also from some individual landowners. 92 of them met the call requirements. As far as the city districts go, most of the applications to change or amend the land-use plan concerned property in Ružinov (31 applications qualified), Petržalka (14 applications), Rača (11 applications), and Devínska Nová Ves (7 applications).

“The high number of applications received proves that this is a viable way to change the land-use plan for developers and private landowners. We have clear rules for the due cooperation of the city and developers – the Methodology of Changes to Land-Use Plan in Order to Increase Housing Availability, drawn up in association with all stakeholders,” said Lenka Antalová Plavuchová, Deputy to the Mayor of Bratislava.

The city has already discussed the applications with the city districts. In December, we submitted guidelines to the developers and landowners and recommendations on how to draw up urban studies. The applicants will prepare these studies individually.

Due to the high number of applications regarding Ružinov – the Mlynské Nivy zone (16 applications from various landowners), the Metropolitan Institute of Bratislava decided to draw up a single urban study for this location. This will be the first municipal urban study coordinating the interests of landowners and the public interest. Once the urban studies are completed, they will be subject to public discussion and with the attendance of representatives of the city districts.