Josefina Cruz Villadón, the Minister of Public Works and Housing, has informed the Government Council of a decree her department is preparing, which is indented to regulate the situation of homes built on not urban land. After a thorough analysis of the physical and legal circumstances of each case, the new legislation will explore the possibilities for the legalization of the buildings. Cruz Villadón emphasized that the aim of this procedure is “to address the issue while respecting the law and the sustainable growth model”.  Furthermore she stressed the fact that in order for this new process to work, the political commitment of the municipalities is required, in spite of the great planning effort the procedure will entail.

Roughly, the decree distinguishes three different cases: individual townhouses,urban townships (with sufficient authority to require public utilities) and the so-called “Habitat Rural Diseminado” (buildings with uses and activities related to the rural environment that also require public utilities).

In the case of the townhouses, the decree differentiates between buildings that are legal or can be legalized and illegal ones. In the latter case, the legislation distinguishes those in which legal actions are prescribed due to the time elapsed to be taken from the ones where this possibility does not exist, due to the fact that they were built on protected land or flood zones. Thus, the new legislation will treat each case individually, so that, depending on the circumstances, the houses will be able to either obtain an occupational license or maintain their current status as building on illegal territory, which will grant residents access to electricity and water.

In the case of the other two categories, the conditions and procedures needed for the legalization are to be determined in the decree. It also states that the homeowners will have to bear the development costs of the basic infrastructure.

During her speech the Cruz Villadón stressed the fact that this decree is to be considered a measure that allows dealing with each situation individually and that it is not a final legislation that is still open for further adjustments.

The future decree is to be supported by the Board of Municipalities. In fact, the board has already signed agreements with a number municipalities in eight andalusian provinces, which are cooperating in the development of inventories of the existing buildings on illegal territory and the realization of the respective municipal inspection plans.

In 32 municipalities in the regions of Valle del Almanzora (Almería) and the Axarquia (Málaga) the first phase of this inventory has already been completed.  According to the analysis conducted by the Ministry of Public Works and Housing, 25,000 buildings on illegal territory have been identified. The new legislation would apply to almost 90% of these buildings.

Source: juntadeandalucia.es