The developer will build the apartment building, but will no longer be required to provide parking. This will be the responsibility of the municipality.

• Under current regulations, the developer is obliged to provide a minimum number of parking spaces next to a new building.
• However, this will soon change. Parliamentary committees have already given positive opinions on the government's draft amendment to the so-called Special Housing Act.
• If the change comes into force, the obligation to create, cover the costs of construction and maintenance of parking spaces at developer buildings will be taken over by municipalities.
• The planned change sparked heated debate at parliamentary committee meetings. It was positively received by local governments.
• However, some MPs believed that the amendment would make life more difficult for residents because the number of parking spaces would drop drastically.

During Tuesday's (8 July) joint session of the parliamentary committees on infrastructure and local government, members of parliament – ​​as part of the first reading – adopted a motion for the Sejm to adopt an amendment to the Act on social forms of housing development and certain other acts.

One of the more controversial and emotive changes concerns the planned amendment to the Act on Facilitating the Preparation and Implementation of Housing Investments and Accompanying Investments of 2018, commonly known as the lex developer or the special housing act .

According to the government's proposal, when constructing a new residential building, developers will no longer be required to provide the minimum number of parking spaces specified in the regulations . Their number and location will depend solely on the municipality's decision, which determines local urban planning standards.

Under the currently applicable provisions of the special act, the investor/developer of a residential building is obliged to provide a minimum number of parking spaces equal to 1.5 times the number of apartments planned for the residential investment (outside the city centre zone).

However, in the city centre zone, the developer must provide at least one parking space per apartment .

As Krzysztof Paszyk, Minister of Development and Technology, informed at the earlier joint meeting of the above-mentioned committees on Monday (7 July), the government draft amendment abandons such a top-down definition of the minimum number of parking spaces to be implemented as part of a housing investment carried out on the basis of the special housing act.

This change sparked heated debate at parliamentary committee meetings. It was very positively received by local governments.

However, some MPs – both from the opposition and the ruling coalition – believed that removing the current obligation on investors would allow development companies to earn additional money because they would not have to create parking spaces for residents.

Local government officials have a completely different opinion. "As local government officials, we have long been requesting the removal of the parking rate established in the Act on Facilitating the Preparation and Implementation of Housing Investments," said Renata Kaznowska, Deputy Mayor of Warsaw.

First of all, each municipality has local urban planning standards that establish parking requirements appropriate to its needs. However, the special housing act provides an exception to this rule.

- explained Renata Kaznowska.

She emphasized that from the level of this central regulation, local governments must decide, according to the statutory coefficient, how many parking spaces are to be created - regardless of the size of the commune, its communication situation, public transport, etc.

"At the same time, the 1.5 parking space requirement (per apartment - ed.) is often at odds with many of our urban planning standards. For example, in Warsaw's Śródmieście district, we have a 0.3 parking space requirement, but on the outskirts of the capital, sometimes 2 spaces, depending on actual needs," Kaznowska said.

She emphasized that the parking space quota adopted in the so-called "lex developer" act significantly hinders the development of residential space in many cities, including Warsaw. She stated that currently, due to the need to maintain the statutory parking space quota, the implementation of 40 investor applications in the capital is suspended.

- This involves as many as 22,000 apartments and 1.2 million square meters of usable residential area (PUM), added Renata Kaznowska.

Marek Wójcik, representative of the board of the Association of Polish Cities, also pointed out that local governments know best how many and where to allocate parking spaces in their municipalities.

Therefore, we eagerly await parliament's adoption and implementation of this amendment. As local governments , we want to be autonomous in maintaining a balance between residents' needs regarding parking spaces and the protection of spatial order.

- described the ZMP representative.

- It really doesn't make sense to always have one and a half parking spaces (per apartment - ed.), even in buildings that are, for example, located around a metro station or a transport hub - said Marek Wójcik.

However, MP Mirosław Suchoń from Poland 2050, chairman of the parliamentary infrastructure committee, is strongly opposed to removing the obligation for developers to create the statutory minimum number of parking spaces.

I am incredibly surprised that the draft amendment includes an article that de facto eliminates standards regarding the number of parking spaces.

- admitted the MP.

He noted that "development companies are generally doing a really good job because they build many apartments, thanks to which Poles can fulfill their dreams of owning an apartment."

However, this proposed regulation is like a real developer's lex, thanks to which these companies will earn extra money by simply not offering parking spaces to residents in many locations.

- said MP Suchoń.

"What will happen as a result of this type of activity? These cars will end up on the streets of our cities and in this way, on the one hand, we will see privatized profits, but on the other hand, as residents, we will have to deal with these vehicles taking up road space so that drivers can park somewhere, " warned the Poland 2050 politician about the effects of the planned amendment.

"I consider retaining this provision (on the parking space ratio - ed.) to be extremely important, even necessary. Maintaining these indicators will prevent us from repeating the mistakes that have already been made, including in new housing investments," concluded Mirosław Suchoń.

Law and Justice (PiS) MPs, including Włodzimierz Tomaszewski (PiS), also expressed strong opposition to the planned amendment. "The proposed change clearly shifts the responsibility for providing parking spaces at residential buildings from developers to local governments," he emphasized.

The support of this amendment by representatives of large cities is a submissive action by local governments at the behest of developers . It should be noted that the act, known as lex developer, primarily served to facilitate the rapid construction of apartments.

- noted Włodzimierz Tomaszewski.

He noted that after the amended special housing act comes into force, "the commune will freely determine the number of parking spaces, and may even not create any conditions for their creation."

Deputy Minister of Development and Technology Tomasz Lewandowski cooled the emotions of MPs and local government officials during a meeting of parliamentary committees. "Firstly, I would like to emphasize that this provision was introduced at the request of local governments themselves, so it's hard to say they will be harmed, " Lewandowski emphasized.

Secondly, the provision in question does not concern the management of parking spaces in the city in general, but refers only to new residential investments and only those implemented on the basis of a special act called lex developer

- reminded the deputy head of the Ministry of Development.

He added that on average, approximately 3,000 decisions on development conditions for multi-apartment buildings are issued in Poland each year, and approximately the same number are issued based on building permits.

"We therefore have approximately 6,000 decisions per year, thanks to which we implement such investments. Meanwhile, only about 80 buildings are built annually under the lex developer act, which in reality represents only about 1.5% of new residential investments, " the deputy minister stated.

"I would also like to point out that local government officials are responsible for spatial governance within cities. Therefore, the government strongly supports the proposed change in regulations," concluded Tomasz Lewandowski.