Klitschko at ‘Kyiv: Facing the Future’ Forum: Chaotic housing sprawl must stop,
16.12.2019
“The General Plan was developed through the analysis of land use and development planning. Chaotic housing sprawl must stop! Building permits must ensure that a new development keeps pace with the expansion of public facilities and a local, on-site infrastructure provided by developers who must define ways of meeting the needs of future residents while limiting the burden on existing residents. Planning efforts and infrastructure development must interrelate and developers will have to provide a survey with planning calculations and design. This is something we have never seen done before. There must be a legislative initiative empowering local governments to control the land development in this context,” explained Vitali Klitschko.
According to Mayor Klitschko, the city recognizes the key importance of keeping tight control over housing development to ensure its comprehensiveness. This demand results from a crucial need for new schools and kindergartens. “A lot of new housing estates are being built with too few or no schools and kindergartens. The latter are being constructed mostly by the city and at the city’s cost. Strict rules should be imposed in this context. Construction of an apartment building or a residential complex must go hand in hand with related public infrastructure – schools and day-care centres, playgrounds, sports facilities and squares,” emphasized Klitschko.
Another hot-button issue is a need for regulations that restrict building height in the historic centre. “We are very conscious of the need to preserve the city’s historic face, heritage and architectural landmarks. In this respect, we will rely on a new history/architecture survey. And we hope the Ministry of Culture will advocate its soonest completion and implementation,” said the mayor.
‘Kyiv: Facing the Future’ International Forum kicks off the public hearings on the draft General Plan – a foundation on which all innovative decisions are based and which sets forth policies to successfully implement the city’s development strategy. Co-organized by the Kyiv Institute of General Plan and the Department of Urban Construction and Architecture under the City Administration, the Forum brought together international and local stakeholders, in particular, Guinka Tchavdarova, an expert of the Council of Europe, Stefan Heinig, of the Leipzig city planning department and Thomas Schinko, a lead architect (France).
The Forum’s schedule is packed with panel discussions on such topics as Kyiv agglomeration, urban density, transportation and road network, environment and heritage preservation. International and local experts will share their tactics and vision for urban planning and development as well as the draft General Plan.