On 9 June 2022, Law No. 2254-IX of 12 May 2022 on Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine on the Priority Measures for Reforming Urban Planning Activities (the "Law") came into force in Ukraine, which aims to reform urban-construction regulations applicable within the martial law period and thereafter for overcoming the consequences of the Russian invasion and war.
Settlement renovations
The Law provides for the primary conceptual steps for the reconstruction of settlements and territories destroyed as a result of Russian armed aggression. In particular, a new special type of urban planning programme, the "Programme for Comprehensive Reconstruction of Settlements (Territories)", has been introduced, which defines essential spatial and socio-economic priorities as well as priority measures to ensure reconstruction of settlements and territories of the victims of hostilities, terrorist acts, etc. This programme includes the following:
- the general description of the settlement or territory;
- the damage caused by military, terrorist, subversive actions or emergency situations;
- the general approach on how to renovate the territory;
- information on the technical capacities and economic viability of renovation, capital or current repair as well as of the new construction;
- suggestions as to the change of the designated purpose of the land;
- suggestions as to relocation of industrial objects;
- a preliminary feasibility study; and
- sources to finance the renovation.
The Law anticipates that the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine will adopt a regulation stipulating the procedure for drafting this document. The responsibility for preparing and approving the programme falls with local councils.
Once approved, the programme should be considered and used along with other local urban-planning documentation.
Planning documents for temporary housing
The Law also sets out regulatory procedures for the placement of temporary facilities, complexes designed for livelihoods (e.g. temporary residences and service facilities) of internally displaced persons, and engineering networks necessary for the functioning of such facilities. These structures are not regarded as buildings or real property. These temporary residence and service facilities can be located on land plots of any category (except for lands of the natural reserve fund and other nature conservation lands of historical and cultural designation and lands under forestry designation) without changing their designated purpose within the legal regime of martial law, state of emergency in Ukraine. Furthermore, the regulations also include procedures for developing a layout of temporary facilities for residential accommodation.
The head of a settlement council or military administration is the authority empowered to initiate the development of the layout for locating temporary facilities. The layout should be approved by the relevant local architecture and urban planning authority and passed by a decision of the head of the local council or the head of the military administration.
In order to speed the completion of temporary housing, the Law allows local authorities to start construction works immediately after adopting the decision on layout development. If the result differs from the approved scheme, the location of the set structures should be aligned with the layout.
Changing public land designations
To enable relocation and construction of critical infrastructure, the Law simplifies the rules for establishing or changing the designated purpose of state and municipal land.
The Ukrainian regulation provides exhaustive lists for the designation of land that correspond and can be established within a particular type of functional planning zone defined by urban planning documentation. However, the Law establishes that during the legal regime of martial law in a respective territory, establishing and changing a land plot's designation are allowed without observing those rules (except for nature conservation and landscape and recreational areas, historical and cultural land, water fund land) for the following:
- construction (both new construction and reconstruction) of buildings for temporary accommodation of internally displaced persons;
- accommodation of production facilities of enterprises relocated (i.e. evacuated) from the combat zones;
- construction of river ports or terminals on the Danube River;
- location of objects of road and transport infrastructure (except for road-service facilities), power supply networks, gas distribution, water supply, heating, sewage, electronic communication networks, objects of main gas pipelines;
- placement of temporary storage of wastes resulting from destruction caused by military operations, terrorist acts, diversions or for demolitions of badly destroyed facilities;
- placement of multimodal terminals, and production and reloading complexes.
Local urban-planning authorities should confirm the requested designated purpose by issuing a relevant conclusion. Such a conclusion is regarded as a special type of urban-planning condition and limitation, which exempts developers from certain mandatory steps within a standard design and construction procedure. The exemptions allow:
- developers to draw up design documentation and arrange construction works without technical conditions for grid and other connections (these conditions must be obtained before commissioning); and
- developers to draw up design documentation before completing and approving land management documentation for establishing or changing the land purpose.
In addition, the Law improves the procedures for inspection of damaged real estate by giving the Ministry of Regional Development and Construction of Ukraine the authority for developing a methodology for inspecting damaged buildings and structures and registering the results.
Legislation: Law of Ukraine No. 2254-IX dated 12 May 2022 "On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine on the Priority Measures for Reforming Urban Planning Activities"
