Proposals for change, presented by PM Ewa Kopacz, are supposed to limit chaotic construction and ensure smart investments. According to Agnieszka Durlik-Khouri of the National Chamber of Commerce, the Government should introduce changes that will facilitate the life of entrepreneurs and citizens.
‘Polish municipalities and cities do not have spatial plans. This situation interferes with conducting investments. Entrepreneurs have a huge problem with the implementation of their investments’, stressed Agnieszka Durlik-Khouri.
According to Maciej Bukowski from the Warsaw Institute for Economic Studies, there is a need for a compromise between investment costs and spatial management. ‘In countries such as the United Kingdom or Italy, spatial planning functions in such a way – putting rather considerable restrictions on what can be built, and what cannot – that real property prices are exorbitant and thus only accessible to billionaires. This is a problem for the average Joe, who cannot afford a house. Such spatial planning undoubtedly improves the landscape, that said only a few are able to enjoy it. There is, of course, the other extreme – no limits as to where and how fast houses can be built, what reduces real property prices so that they are affordable for everyone. There is a distinct possibility, however, of e.g. a butcher emerging right outside our window. Therefore, a compromise must be found. Sensible, well thought out and adopted well in advance spacial development plans are such a compromise. Then we also have to reconcile with the fact that not everywhere the investment process will run smoothly and in a coordinated way, and that Poland will be truly well-organized only in 100 years time.
Meanwhile, James Kurasz from PwC stressed that cities should make use of the EU funds intended for investments. He believes that we should also remember the objectives of spatial planning.
