Revision of the Lucerne Development Plan

The coming into force of the revised Swiss Spatial Planning Act (SPA) on 1 May 2014 has led to new requirements that will need to be taken account of by the various cantonal development plans. For instance, the Spatial Planning Act calls for a sound economic approach to land management, the curtailment of suburban sprawl, the promotion of urban concentration and an improved coordination of settlement development and traffic control measures. The cantons now have five years to adapt their cantonal development plans to the new federal legislation. Moreover, they will not be able to expand their development activities beyond the total area comprised by their currently approved development zones until their respective cantonal development plans have been approved by the Swiss Federal Council. In response, the Canton of Lucerne has moved to complete a swift revision of its development plan so as to establish a secure legal basis for future development.

EBP has been commissioned by the Canton of Lucerne to handle the revision of its cantonal development plan in the capacity of an external project manager:

• Definition of areas that will need revision so as to reflect the draft implentation measures for the new SPA specifications
• Definition of the suburban area and mechanisms for determining development zone dimensions
• Textual revision of the development plan and coordination of the substantive adaptations to be undertaken by the relevant municipal offices
• Drafting and evaluation of the responses gathered in the context of internal cantonal reviews, public disclosure processes and preliminary federal-level reviews
• Drafting of contribution report
• Process and communication support

The Cantonal Governing Council issued the revised development plan and submitted it to the Cantonal Council President in June 2015 for approval. Federal approval is expected to be issued at the beginning of 2016.