It is claimed that several articles pose a risk to the local economy and access to housing. brajković
The debate over the new Territorial Planning Plan (POT) has caused concern among urban developers and businessmen in the real estate sector, as well as private landowners in La Plata who feel that the value of their land is threatened without regulation.
Developers acknowledge that the ordinance includes valuable advances in heritage management, planned development of new areas, and protection of wetlands and drainage channels, but argue that some provisions that apply to urban areas create “risks” to economic activity and access to housing.
Unit limits
They point out that the most important point is the introduction of CUF (Land Use Factor) in urban areas. The immediate effect, they explained, would be to reduce the number of apartments that can be built per site, even if regulations allow for a certain height. In Argentina, as in most countries around the world, trends reflecting an increase in the number of people living alone and couples without children are becoming more pronounced. In La Plata, you have to add to this the demand from students. Therefore, the need for small units is rapidly increasing. However, they point out that the new regulations impose restrictions on this type of unit, giving examples such as 25 one-bedroom units being able to be built on a 10 x 30 plot between 57 and 58 in Calle 2. The proposed ordinance would only allow for 10 levels to be built, even though eight levels are allowed.
The situation is already critical for the government agencies responsible for managing rentals in the city. 90% of the properties we manage are small, with rotations of less than a month and guaranteed no vacancies. They argue that even in areas where POT allows for increased height, such as Avenida 7, 13, 44 and Circunvaracion, POT can only be exploited by building very large units that are not in great demand today.
sale risk
Another aspect they observe is the overall height reduction in urban areas and the removal of premiums for increasing density. For businessmen, this not only “disincentivizes adventure” but also contradicts the already integrated urban landscape. They cite the example of 46th Street between 18th and 19th Street, which currently has at least eight 10-storey buildings, although only six storeys are permitted, although CUF still prohibits building above three storeys.
“In such circumstances, no development can be compactly integrated with the existing physiognomy,” they argue.
The department is also calling for clarity on the destination of files entered before the new plan comes into force, many of which present significant investments that have already been made based on current metrics.
“We personally plan and purchase sites based on the number of meters that can be built,” they point out.
According to them, due to the purchasing power of the population, there is virtually no demand for houses larger than 80 square meters, and if demand increases, not just in La Plata, the prices of small houses, both new and used, will inevitably rise significantly due to a decrease in supply.
The businessmen emphasized that in flood-prone cities, heritage preservation and attention to water risks can address these issues without imposing restrictions that would drive up apartment prices.
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