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Tailor-made laws in the Western Balkans and Turkey

Belgrade Waterfront - Tailor-made laws in the Western Balkans and Turkey

Belgrade Waterfront

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Introduction

In April 2015, Law No. 34/2015 establishing special rules for expropriation, building permits, taxation and land lease for the realisation of the Belgrade Waterfront project was adopted as lex specialis by urgent procedure. Belgrade Waterfront is a construction project headed by the Government of Serbia to develop approximately 170 hectares of the right bank of the Sava river in Belgrade.

Country
Serbia
Sector
Construction and urbanism
Type of Law
Capturing a market, an industry or public resources

Description of the law

In April 2015, Law No. 34/2015 establishing special rules for expropriation, building permits, taxation and land lease for the realisation of the Belgrade Waterfront project was adopted as lex specialis by urgent procedure. Belgrade Waterfront is a construction project headed by the Government of Serbia to develop approximately 170 hectares of the right bank of the Sava river in Belgrade. The law provides the right to expropriate private land and objects to build residential apartments and offices for commercial purpose (Articles 2 to 14). This would not be allowed under the Law on Expropriation (Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia numbers 53/1995, 23/2001–SUS, 20/2009 and 55/2013).

The new law has rules for procurement procedures and taxation (Article 16 on the possibility of waiving taxation for building in the area), and special rules for construction permits (Article 15) and land lease (Article 17). The Law on Expropriation does not allow expropriation of private property to construct commercial or residential buildings, or buildings for tourism and catering. Law No. 34/2015 grants this right. To overcome the limitations of the Law on Expropriation, the Serbian government presented Law No. 34/2015 as lex specialis. The accuracy of this legal denomination has been contested. The government defined Belgrade Waterfront as a project of “national interest” to justify the need for the law.

Law No. 34/2015 makes it possible to avoid public procurement procedures in this area. The investor is Eagle Hills. This company is based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and is behind Waterfront Capital Investment LLC, created for the development of the project. The competition for the project design took place in Abu Dhabi. Apparently, no Serbian architects were invited. The design was made without public participation. The Waterfront project contract between the Serbian government and the UAE illustrates the increasing closeness between the two countries: the UAE brings money to the country and Serbia provides expansion opportunities for the UAE (see here and here).

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