The Regional Council of Faro of the Bar Association (CRF/OA), in partnership with the Institute of Legal-Political Sciences (ICJP) of the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon (FDUL) and the Regional Coordination and Development Commission (CCDR) of the Algarve, organized a conference dedicated to “the amendment to the legal regime of the territorial management instruments (Decree-Law No. 117/2024 of 30 December)”.
The opening session was attended by Sophie Matias, councilor of Faro City Council, José Pacheco, Vice President of CCDR Algarve, Cristina Seruca Salgado, president of CRF/OA, and João Miranda, vice president of ICJP.
Given an audience of about two hundred participants, who filled the largest auditorium of the University of Algarve Penha Campus, the challenges that result from the ongoing legislative process were addressed.
In his speech, CCDR Algarve vice president stressed the importance of conferences like this to discuss essential topics such as access to housing. He also highlighted the role of CCDRs, which since 1986 have been attributions and competences in the area of territory planning, recently reinforced with the integration of other services in CCDR IP.
José Pacheco took advantage of the occasion to remember that “the Algarve region was the first to elaborate a Regional Plan of Territory Planning (Prot), published in 1991, where the main concern was the proposal of an urban system for the region, safeguard natural resources and contain the dispersed building. With the review of the 2007 Prot, in addition to the objectives already mentioned, others were placed on the agenda as is the restriction of building in the coastal range and establishing regional territorial cohesion, among others. The National Program for Territory Policies (PNPOT), approved by the Assembly of the Republic in 2019, has been plasma many of the options taken by this Prot ”.
CCDR Algarve has maintained a close collaboration with the municipalities of the region, regardless of the successive changes to the legal regime of Territorial Management Instruments (RJIGT).
Regarding these changes, José Pacheco recalled that “the amendment made to the Legal Regime of the Territorial Management Instruments (RJIGT) through Decree-Law No. 10/2024 of 8 January, included a simplification regarding the reclassification of Rural soil in urban soil, through the amendment of article 72 and the introduction of Articles 72-A and 72-B giving greater autonomy and responsibility to municipalities ”. He also added that “recently, Decree-Law No. 117/2024 of 30 December has reinforced this municipal autonomy.”
One of the concerns pointed out by the vice president of arresting the fact that “with the changes that have been made to RJIGT if he continues to ‘make a city’ and not just make the act of ‘urbanizing’ for the building of fireworks, Whether they are moderate or affordable or lease prices. Decisioners have to promote duly residential areas that provide good living conditions. ”
He also stressed that “for good cities, planning, planning and execution of the plans is required. And it is in execution that land can be made available at affordable prices through the mechanisms in the legal regime of territorial management instruments. It is also necessary that for this execution to become fairer than the Expropiation Code to be reviewed in line with the General Basis of Soil Policy, Planning of Territory and Urbanism Policy ”.
For José Pacheco, “the elaboration of urbanization plans and detail plans is therefore essential for the availability of land and establishing an integrated development of cities”.
The conference also featured two discussion panels. The first, moderated by Joaquim Martins Cabrita (Member of the Regional Council of Faro), was attended by teachers of the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon Carlos Lobo, Claudio Monteiro (also a member of the Supreme Administrative Court) and Diogo Calado, who approached the Reclassification of urban soil and its relationship with special land protection regimes, such as the National Ecological Reserve (REN) and the National Agricultural Reserve (RAN).
The second panel, focused on “reclassification as urban soil and its articulation with the public housing policy”, was moderated by Afonso Ribeiro Café, vice president of CRF/OA, and had interventions by João Miranda (FDUL), Gonçalo Kingdom Pires (Uría Menéndez Advogados) and António Gil Leitão (former president of the Board of Directors of the Institute of Urban Housing and Rehabilitation). The speakers discussed existing legal limitations and challenges to improve access to housing.
Both panels generated an intense debate among participants, resulting in the commitment by organizing entities to hold a new meeting after the completion of the legislative process underway in the Assembly of the Republic.
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