Bill 232.

Summary.

The bill amends Law 6 of February 1, 2006 with the stated aim of guiding urban growth. It adds definitions of territorial interventions, territorial carrying capacity, citizen consultation, and territorial planning plans, and revises the definition of a territorial planning scheme. It distinguishes national, regional, local, and partial plans. Municipalities would approve schemes meeting legal requirements and coordinate research on territorial conditions. Their Territorial Planning and Land Use Administrative Unit (Unidad Administrativa de Planificación y Ordenamiento Territorial) would perform these functions.

A new chapter requires schemes to conform to the land use set by a previously approved local or partial plan, the classification of land, and existing or planned carrying capacity. A municipality would approve schemes once it has the administrative unit and an established Municipal Planning Board (Junta de Planificación Municipal). Municipalities without such a unit would have a non-extendable period of 3 years from promulgation to establish one. During that period, the Ministry of Housing and Territorial Planning (Ministerio de Vivienda y Ordenamiento Territorial) would approve schemes after considering their justification, territorial context, disaster risks, conservation, urban character, and infrastructure capacity. Public and private entities, or mixed associations, could develop schemes. Public service providers would coordinate infrastructure and community facilities with the applicant; the developer would prioritize climate adaptation measures.

The Ministry of Housing and Territorial Planning would prepare national and regional plans with the competent entities. The municipal administrative unit would prepare the local plan, while the municipality would prepare partial plans. Municipalities without a local plan would submit one to the Municipal Council (Consejo Municipal) before the third year of their term. Municipalities with shared interests could jointly prepare and implement local plans, subject to approval by their respective councils. National and regional plans would be approved by executive decree, and local and partial plans by municipal agreement; all would be published in the Official Gazette. Where a municipality lacks capacity to act as the local urban planning authority, the ministry would prepare its local and partial plans for approval by the Municipal Council. Approved plans would undergo mandatory review after 20 years, 15 years, or 10 years, depending on whether they are national, regional, or local and partial. Changes would require approval by the competent authority; local development boards in the affected corregimientos (districts) would be notified and taken into account for changes to local and partial plans.

The local urban planning authority would establish an implementation unit to monitor compliance, coordinate implementation, exercise financial control, and publicize the plan, including an updated digital version. If a municipality cannot establish the unit, its administrative planning unit would perform those tasks. For changes in zoning or land use, the Municipal Planning Board would issue a binding technical report, and the authority would issue a reasoned decision within the following thirty days. Changes would require consistency with the local plan, technical studies, a community public consultation, and available or budgeted public services. Otherwise, the applicant would provide those services.

Developers would transfer green areas, parks, public use areas, and easements to municipalities before completing a development or the relevant phase. Permits affecting those areas would be prohibited until transfer; common areas in developments under the Horizontal Property Regime are excepted. Failure to transfer, unjustified delay, and changes to the designated use would constitute urban planning violations. Authorities would allow affected groups to participate under ley 6 de 2002 and ensure citizen consultation during the preparation, implementation, and amendment of plans. The bill also repeals Article 21 of Law 6 of February 1, 2006, as amended by Law 14 of April 21, 2015. Its provisions concern municipalities, community boards, local development boards, public service providers, real estate developers, and affected communities.