The decision of the Prime Minister approving continued high-rise projects in the inner city is warmly welcomed by many investors, but they remain concerned because the general planning of Hanoi has not yet been approved by the Government.
Many building specialists also said that the construction of high-rise projects is creating pressure on the technical and social infrastructure of the capital. This must be considered first when planning urban architecture.
Many projects await planning approvalAccording to the Department of Planning and Architecture of Hanoi, among the 223 high-rise projects reviewed in four districts of Hanoi and submitted for the Prime Minister’s approval of further development, only 57 projects of the 1st category are implemented immediately, the rest will be subject to further consideration for compatibility with planning.
Thus, pursuant to the spirit of the written notice 202/TB-VPCP informing the conclusion of the Prime Minister, these projects will be implemented immediately since they are suitable with the planning, and have completed legal procedures and been recognized as urgent for the socio-economic development of the city. A number of other projects have been approved in terms of investment policy, and approved under regulations prior to 9 December 2009. The Prime Minister asked Hanoi People's Committee for consideration and decision by competent authorities.
However, many investors are quite disturbed when their projects are not among the 57 projects mentioned above; the city People's Committee has approved the investment policy, but it is difficult to know when to expect the approval of the general planning. Because previously, the approval of city planning was based on the urban spatial organization planning of old Hanoi, not expanded to the current area, enterprises cannot be expected to further implement their projects before they know if amendments are needed to comply with current planning.
A company director said that he has already spent billions on his project, but now he feels like a "fish on cutting board," because he is worried about the change of purpose of use, in case it fails to meet Hanoi general planning, which has yet to be approved. This is a "knot" hindering decisions to consider approval or agreement with project owners of the Hanoi People's Committee for lack of legal grounds.
To be based on detailed planning
According to experts in urban construction and planning, in principle, the granting of permits for construction projects (regardless of high or low-rise) must be in compliance with the construction plan standard 2008-01 promulgated by the Ministry of Construction; the Regulation on management of urban architecture planning; the detailed planning of urban area with 1/ 2,000 ratio; and in accordance with the conditions of technical and social infrastructure of the concerned area.
However, when a decision is made to approve continued high-rise projects after a period of suspension - which is often, according to experts, in part a result of pressure from project owners and to ensure their benefits –the basis for allowing implementation or agreement on changing purpose of use must still be consistent with the urban appearance planning and the regulation of urban management.
This is the reason that earlier, in a document sent to the Government Office for comments on the proposal of the Hanoi People's Committee on 31.12.2009 to take the time to continue to implement high-rise building projects in central areas, the Ministry of Construction said that the planned construction projects of the capital to 2030 with a vision of 2050 is completed to report the US Congress and Government approval, and its basis should not be reviewed for this proposal.
The Ministry requests Hanoi to coordinate with the Ministry of Construction for agreement on zoned planning orientation and centre space development control (density, floor height) as the basis for management to ensure conformity with the orientation of the master plan of capital building which is being submitted for approval. The Ministry of Construction offers one opinion, but when there are no specific grounds for determination, it is difficult to select appropriate projects.
Permitting the construction of high buildings is also creating great pressure on the transportation and social infrastructure of the capital. Hanoi’s current population density is already very high, and building more high-rises will further increase population density. It will also put more pressure on technical infrastructure such as electricity and water supply, and the environment. Unplanned development could overload transportation and social infrastructure, and lead to unbalanced urban architecture. Therefore, planning must be completed first in a unified and transparent way to guide businesses and people, according to the idea of experienced planning engineers.
P.V
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