Bulgaria's regional development ministry is working on changes to the territorial planning law to make it easier to get "tolerance certificates" for buildings. Minister Ivan Shishkov announced the plan at a forum held by the Chamber of Builders in Bulgaria, the ministry's press office said.
Besides the rules on building tolerance, the law will also ease road construction, especially when unexpected problems come up during work. The way documents get approved will change too, and all design and record-keeping will gradually move fully online. To make that happen, data on underground infrastructure will need to be filled in and cadastral maps updated.
Shishkov spoke at the Chamber of Builders' eleventh round table, titled "Prospects, challenges and vision for the construction sector."
The minister said the first big infrastructure projects to go ahead as public-private partnerships will run north to south — the Ruse-Makaza and Black Sea motorways, plus the tunnel under Petrohan. "We haven't forgotten the Shipka tunnel or the Rila motorway either," Shishkov said, adding that these projects have built up problems over the years that need to be sorted out first.
The state will sign contracts with construction firms for the big infrastructure projects, the minister explained. Funding will come over the next five years, and the projects should be finished within that time. Once they're done, work will start on the public-private partnership projects.
On energy upgrades for homes, Shishkov said the work will continue and will be paid for from the state budget, but only when there's money for it. He said upgrades shouldn't happen in one-off waves but should become a steady, ongoing government policy.
"We need simpler laws and to work together. We're all on the same side, we're one society, and we all need to work together," the minister said. "Governing means working in partnership with business. We'll make things predictable, with clear rules and clear laws. From here on, you can feel at ease — let's do this together," he added.
Shishkov told the builders that the only way a business can grow is if things are predictable. The second condition, he said, is clear rules: "When the state is the client, there need to be clear rules, clear competitions, clear tenders and good projects."
The minister added that work on the laws will continue so business feels secure rather than dependent. "Every rule tied to design and construction needs to be so clear that no one thinks they can read it a different way," he said.
The third condition for the construction business to run smoothly is the local council, the minister said. No local government, he said, can afford to treat construction as something on the side. "The construction industry is what can grow our towns and cities. So if we want to grow the country, we have to do it together with business. Construction is one of the main engines of Bulgaria's economy," Shishkov said.
The draft law amending the territorial planning act has already been published for public feedback on the government's consultation portal. It includes proposals in three main areas, one of which sets a legal basis for a "tolerance" status for buildings, or parts of them, that count as technical infrastructure under Article 64(1) of the planning act. These are buildings without construction permits that were nonetheless allowed under the rules in force when they were built, or under the current law. The people behind the changes say the text also tightens up and clarifies the existing rules.