Institute for Physical Planning of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County marks its 40th anniversary

Today in Rijeka State Secretary Tonči Glavinić participated in a formal celebration of 40 years of operation of the Institute for Physical Planning of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County.

In his opening speech, State Secretary Tonči Glavinić congratulated the Institute’s Director, Adam Butigan, and his associates on this important anniversary.

The Institute for Physical Planning of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County has been in operation since 1984, and since 2008 it has operated as a public institution, based on the Physical Planning and Building Act. Today there are 20 employees across three services and one section, which makes it the second largest institute in Croatia, following the Institute of the City of Zagreb.

The celebration offered the opportunity to emphasise the challenges of contemporary physical planning, from climate change and demographic movements to adaptation to new European regulations, digitisation and implementation of new generation spatial plans. This has also been recognised by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, which further encourages digitising the physical planning system and currently finances the transformation of over 500 spatial plans. Developing new generation spatial plans represents a step forward towards a sustainable, safe and rational space use.

State Secretary Glavinić presented the Proposal of the Physical Planning Act to the audience. “This new Act elevates spatial plans to a higher professional level and defines their content in more detail in order to preserve space, prevent its devastation and establish a system of long-term sustainable planning,” he pointed out. Moreover, shortages and problems detected in the existing system will me removed, and it will be possible to achieve a unified spatial development in line with economic and social circumstances, to modernise the system and improve efficiency, quality and transparency of the procedures in the field of physical planning. Another novelty is the acceleration of procedures for infrastructural projects of state significance, together with the introduction of an urban project concept which consolidates the procedures of a spatial plan and location permit. Such planning will lead to accelerating the implementation of affordable housing projects, which is one of the priorities of the National Housing Policy Plan.

State Secretary Glavinić also commented on the Proposal of the Spatial Plan of the Exclusive Economic Zone, currently open for public consultation. The Plan is a strategic document which, for the first time, comprehensively defines maritime spatial planning of Croatia, with an emphasis on natural resources management, marine ecosystem protection and economic activity development in accordance with European and international standards. All of this will significantly contribute to protecting the space of the Republic of Croatia as a particularly valuable and limited national asset, especially from inappropriate and devastating human actions, and it will also have a favourable effect on economic investment in the field of construction and other economy branches. “The cooperation between the Ministry and the Institute of Primorje-Gorski Kotar County is systematic and effective, and I am confident that it will continue in the future,” State Secretary Tonči Glavinić said, highlighting the importance of investing in human resources in order to prepare the physical planning system for all challenges ahead of us.

Among other distinguished guests, the ceremony was also attended by Director of the Ministry’s Institute for Spatial Development Bojan Linardić.

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