Legislative framework. Necessity. Conditions. Main stages in its development and approval.

What is the legislative framework for the Zoning Urban Plan (PUZ)?

The legislative framework for the preparation and approval of a Zoning Urban Plan (PUZ) is provided by the provisions in the following acts:

Law 350/2001 regarding territorial planning and urbanism
Order no. 233/2016 for the approval of the Methodological Norms for applying Law no. 350/2001 regarding territorial planning and urbanism and for the preparation and updating of urban planning documentation
Order 2701/2010 – Methodology for informing and consulting the public regarding the preparation or revision of territorial planning and urbanism plans, dated 30.12.2010
Technical regulation – Guide regarding the methodology for developing and the framework content of the zoning urban plan

Therefore, if you wish to prepare a PUZ project and later obtain its approval, you should consider the legislation mentioned above. At least theoretically, it will answer most of your questions related to the competent person to prepare the project, the aspects that must be included in the project, the modifications you can make to the regulations in the General Urban Plan (the limits of these modifications), and the procedure you must follow to obtain project approval.

In an attempt to facilitate your access to the information contained in the legislation, we will address the most important practical issues related to PUZ.

Why is a PUZ necessary?

By definition, the PUZ analyzes the existing situation on the ground, the applicable regulations, and includes specific regulations that establish how a particular area of a locality should develop, covering all aspects related to urbanism – housing, traffic, green spaces, public institutions, etc.

In concrete terms, according to the Guide regarding the methodology for developing and the framework content of the PUZ, the PUZ performs an analysis of the existing situation on the ground and establishes objectives, actions, priorities, and urban planning regulations – permissions and restrictions – to be applied to land use and the conformance of constructions in the studied area.

What does the PUZ regulate?

Based on the critical analysis of the existing situation, the provisions of the General Urban Plan (PUG), the conclusions of the foundation studies, and the opinions of the initiators, the PUZ usually addresses the following general categories of issues:

Organization of the street network – specifically, it establishes the guiding rules that will govern the future execution of streets, pedestrian paths, access roads, etc., in the area studied by the PUZ.
Functional zoning of the land – we draw attention to the fact that although Article 32, paragraph (3), letter a of Law 350/2001 specifies that the PUZ can establish new regulations regarding the function of the area, these potential new regulations regarding the function of the area do not represent and cannot be assimilated as a change in functional zoning. In the case of PUZ, the functional zoning remains that established in the PUG, but it is specifically complemented by new functions within the same functional zoning. In this sense, we also refer to the provisions of Article 47 of Law 350/2001, which explicitly states that the PUZ ensures the correlation of the integrated urban development programs of the area with the General Urban Plan, and that the PUZ includes regulations regarding land use.
Urbanistic-architectural organization based on the characteristics of the urban structure;
Urban planning indicators (alignment regime, height regime, POT, CUT, etc.);
Development of utility infrastructure;
Legal status and circulation of land;
Delimitation and protection of architectural-urban heritage of exceptional value (if any);
Measures for delimiting or eliminating the effects of natural and anthropogenic risks (if any);
Mentioning public utility objectives;
Environmental protection measures, as a result of specific programs;
Detailed specific regulations – permissions and restrictions – included in the local urbanism regulation for the PUZ.

See how long you can be penalized for building without a construction permit.

What derogations are possible from the regulations included in the General Urban Plan (PUG)?

The importance of the PUZ is determined by the specific regulations it addresses, but especially by the possibility of instituting a derogation from the general regulations established by the General Urban Plan (see Article 32, paragraph 1, letter b and paragraph 5 of Law 350/2001). We emphasize that the Zoning Urban Plan is the only urban planning documentation that can independently institute modifications to the regulations in the General Urban Plan.

What regulations can the PUZ change?

In concrete terms, through the PUZ, you will be able to derogate from the following urban planning regulations established by the PUG:

Land Occupancy Percentage (POT);
Land Use Coefficient (CUT), with the note that the new CUT indicator will not exceed the initially approved one by more than 20%, only once. By exception, the CUT can be increased by a percentage greater than 20% in the case of industrial parks, technological parks, supermarkets, hypermarkets, commercial parks, and service areas.
Height regime; the maximum permitted height and the height at the cornice of the future investment;
Setbacks from property boundaries;
The alignment of the future construction in relation to neighboring plots;
Creation of mixed or complementary functions for the studied area;
Removing from the rural area and introducing into the urban area and/or changing the function of the area;
Access roads and the method of connection to the road (urban, county, national, European, express road, highway);

Regarding all these, you can institute derogations from the general provisions already included in the PUG.

What are the practical requirements for developing a PUZ?

We draw attention to the fact that the Guide regarding the methodology for developing and the framework content of the PUZ specifies the following conditions for the preparation of a quality PUZ:

Assigning the work to a design unit with experience in the field;
Correlating the regulations with the provisions resulting from the General Urban Plan and with the conclusions of specialized studies;
Drafting on an updated topographic or cadastral support;
Thorough research both on the ground and based on the database;
An integrated multicriteria analysis, in a multidisciplinary team, by sectors involved in the development of the area;
Issuing proposals that respond to the proposals initiated by local councils;
Cooperation between the beneficiary, the developer, and the relevant local and central administrative bodies.

What are the stages of developing a PUZ?

The main stages you must follow if you wish to develop and obtain the approval of a PUZ project are as follows:

Preparing the documentation to obtain the urbanism certificate for the approval of the PUZ – see Articles 30-31 of Law 350/2001.
Issuing the Urbanism Certificate for preparing the PUZ – see Articles 28 and following of Law 350/2001;
Conducting specialized studies, such as geotechnical study, topographic study, sunlight study, etc.;
Obtaining the Opportunity Opinion in cases when the Urbanism Certificate specifies that this opinion is required – see Article 32 of Law 350/2001;
Informing the population about the intention to develop the PUZ project – Articles 4, 9, 30-41 of Order 2701/2010;
Preparing the Zoning Urban Plan, including drawn parts and the corresponding local urbanism regulation, as a written document in the form of a general report – see Article 18 of Order 233/2016;
Submitting documentation for technical approvals in the specialized technical committees of each relevant authority (historical monuments, environment, traffic, etc.);
Obtaining the technical approvals specified in the urbanism certificate;
Submitting the PUZ documentation by the project owner to the Technical Urbanism and Territorial Planning Commission (CTUAT) in the municipality or county council area where the investment land is located – see Article 26 of Order 233/2016;
Making changes and/or additions to the documentation according to the commission’s opinion;
Final submission of the PUZ documentation and approval by the CTUAT;
Promotion of the PUZ project by the Mayor for approval by the Local Council Resolution;
Discussion and approval of the PUZ in the Local Council meeting within a maximum of 45 days from the submission of the project by the Mayor.

Zonal Urbanism Plan (PUZ)