The Urban Planning Committee (CPU) approved on Wednesday the Urban Conditions Plan (PCU) for a residential building to be constructed at the Nam Van Lake area in the plot identified as C7 of Nam Van.
The land, with a total area of 4,669 square meters, will be able to host a residential tower with a maximum height of 46.7 meters, as noted by the opinion issued by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC), which noted the area as being part of the protected heritage area that includes, among others, the Penha Hill Chapel.
According to information from the staff of the Land and Urban Construction Bureau (DSSCU), the plot has already had a PCU dating from September 2016 with the new one, now issued, only involving minor changes to the height and width of the project.
Contrary to what is common in other projects that gather little to no interest from the public, this PCU has gathered a total of 17 opinions from the public during the period of public consultation, mostly regarding the purpose of the building as well as the area and maximum height.
Commenting on the PCU, the member of CPU and Civil Engineer, Sio Chi Veng took the opportunity to call on the government, namely on the DSSCU, to pay closer attention to the projects and to have a “forward thinking” approach to them.
Sio noted that the occupation of the land is total and that there are no plans or space for, for example, a future installation of pedestrian flyovers or other structures of this kind to facilitate pedestrian access.
“We need to have sustainable development and prepare for the future. This is not restricted to the C7 plot but also in general,” Sio said, noting that in most projects approved recently both the government and owners or developers seem to fail to consider the future needs of the people who will live or use those spaces.
Commenting on other requirements made by IC for the project that lacked clarity, the president of IC, Deland Leong said that, besides height, the IC wants the building to “be merged into the architecture of this area,” she said while trying to explain the requirements of the IC opinion that state that the façade, color, and materials should integrate with the surrounding area.
CPU wants to adopt New Zealand rules for protected zones
During the discussion of several private projects and namely one located at Rua do Cunha in Taipa and another at the Avenida de Almeida Ribeiro, CPU member Teng Kai On, said that the government should call for the owners to state more clearly the purpose of the building they want to have in certain land plots and describe the extent of the changes to be made.
Teng said that this is a requirement used in places like New Zealand and aims to give the CPU (and equivalent bodies) more information on the project and intention of the owner, especially when these are located in protected zones of cultural interest.
In response, the representatives of the DSSCU noted that such a statement is not a requirement of local laws and the DSSCU cannot force owners to state their intentions beyond what is legally required.
