This was the headline in the NZZ on July 8, 2024 (Wohnungsknappheit: Die Raumplanung ist gescheitert (nzz.ch)). Thank you, Jürg Zulliger, for the valuable exchange and for addressing the topic of spatial planning and gathering additional perspectives. It is encouraging to see that this important but often underestimated issue is receiving the attention it deserves.
Summary: Spatial planning continues to show significant deficiencies. 📉
🔍 Main Problems:
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Misdevelopments such as urban sprawl and disproportionate increases in traffic persist despite the revised spatial planning law.
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People have to move to peripheral locations and accept long commuting times.
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Housing in central areas is becoming scarcer, and gentrification is increasing: Many people who wish to live centrally are being displaced.
📉 Causes:
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Cantons lack clearly formulated strategies for high-quality inward urban development.
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Important requirements such as townscape and noise protection are often inadequately reviewed by cantons and municipalities.
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Cantons like Zurich delegate important tasks to regional authorities, reducing the pressure for inward urban development.
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Some cantons, such as Bern and Aargau, base their density requirements on ineffective median values.
🔨 Consequences:
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Projects frequently fail as a result of inadequate spatial planning.
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Investors lose time and money when projects are delayed or prevented.
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When construction is possible in central locations, it often results in no or far too little housing.
💡 Proposed Solutions:
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The federal government should no longer approve inadequate cantonal master plans. ❌
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Clear, strategic guidelines need to be developed at the cantonal level. 🎯
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Better balancing of interests in spatial planning by cantons and municipalities is required. 🏗️
