A draft for amended of Ordinance No. 7 dated 22.12.2003 on the rules and regulations for the development of different types of territories has been published on the public consultation portal of the Council of Ministers (the “Ordinance”).
Numerous changes to the Ordinance are planned. Of primary importance to citizens is the elimination of the requirement for one-bedroom apartments to have a south, southeast, southwest, east or west view. This will be achieved by amendment of Article 78 of the Ordinance.
What is intended by dropping this requirement for one-room apartments?
The change is intended to end the malpractice whereby housings in residential buildings, which cannot be provided with a legally required view and look north are usually designated as “studios”, while in fact they are actually used for residential purposes. This is associated with numerous problems for the owners of these so called “studios”.
Some of the peculiarities in the status of the studios that lead to a disadvantage for their owners compared to the owners of apartments in the building:
- Higher municipal waste fee;
- Higher electricity bills;
- Inapplicability of the property tax relief for main housing.
It is also envisaged to add a new paragraph to Article 97 of the Ordinance. The new paragraph stipulates that “for the purposes of determining the use of buildings, studios shall be considered as housing.” This new paragraph is in line with the legal definition of a residential building in the Spatial Development Act (SDA).
An addition to the Ordinance is also proposed to clarify that the specific use of non-residential facilities is determined by the investment project. According to the motives of the proposal to amend the Ordinance, it is inappropriate to determine the specific use of non-residential objects in underground floors at the spatial planning stage, as it should be done at the investment design stage, in accordance with the investment intentions.
The Ordinance also regulates its effect on the proceedings for coordination and approval of the investment project and issuance of a building permit, and it states that it will not apply to these proceedings. The date of submission of a written application for coordination and approval of the investment project by the competent authority, as well as the existence of a conceptual investment project coordinated by the competent authority, shall be deemed to be the date on which proceedings for coordination and approval of the investment project and the issue of a building permit have been initiated.
