The government approved the amendment to the building code

Prague - The government today approved an amendment to the building law. This was announced to journalists by the government spokesman Jana Bartošová. In the future, people will be able to build houses even in undeveloped parts of municipalities that do not have an approved zoning plan. It will also be easier to build fences, for example. The amendment was presented to the government by Minister for Regional Development Jiří Čunek.
    According to Čunek, the amendment means the end of special building permits for each individual construction. "(The builder) will only have to obtain one building permit for the main construction, while ancillary constructions will be handled simultaneously,” he told Czech Television.
    The building law was last amended in January after 40 years, but experiences with it, according to the Ministry of Regional Development, indicate a number of deficiencies. The Ministry of Regional Development intends to draft another amendment even after one year of the new law's validity.
    According to non-governmental organizations, which have provided their statements to ČTK, the new amendment to the building law threatens the landscape. Municipalities will once again be able to permit constructions in open countryside. Small municipalities that do not have an approved zoning plan will no longer need a zoning plan for construction in undeveloped areas; the issuance of a general measure will suffice for defining areas for construction.
    "Increased protection of undeveloped land is one of the main goals of the building law; however, the mentioned adjustment appears to be disproportionately harsh on municipalities that do not have approved spatial planning documentation,” stated the Ministry of Regional Development. The ministry decided to abolish this condition also because it would threaten the construction of some EU-funded projects, as entities would have difficulty obtaining building permits.
    According to Arnika, the Environmental Law Service, and the Green Circle, the amendment reduces the protection of open countryside from new construction. The proposal for the amendment also, according to non-governmental organizations, limits public participation in the discussion of zoning plans.
    "Surrounding towns are marred by supermarkets, warehouses, and zones of entrepreneurial baroque. New constructions should preferably be located in so-called brownfields, that is, in old but unused industrial sites,” stated Martin Skalský from Arnika.
    The amendment also addresses the joint approval of groups of buildings, which the current law does not address. This is a problem for building authorities, which cannot utilize simplifying procedures. The amendment further proposes to revise the cancellation of zoning decisions and municipal regulations regarding building bans.
    The amendment also seeks to extend the validity of spatial planning documentation. Zoning plans approved between July 1, 1992, and December 31, 2006, were to be replaced by new documents within five years according to the current building law. The Ministry of Regional Development proposes extending this deadline to nine years, so that municipalities would at least have some valid zoning plan and thus be able to draw funds from the EU.
    The minister wants to propose the discussion of changes to parliament in an expedited procedure. The amendment could then take effect from the end of this year.
    The new building law was supposed to simplify administrative processes for builders by expanding the number of small constructions that only require a notification of the place of the building permit. Experts have previously criticized that the law has not reduced the workload for people or authorities and that it will be necessary to amend it.
    Another proposal from the Ministry of Regional Development concerning the disbursement of grants for owners of brick buildings with tenants was postponed indefinitely by the government today. The ministry proposed that owners of apartment buildings should also be able to obtain a grant for the repair of buildings in a state of disrepair. Thus far, only panel buildings have been repaired with state funds.