Mission impossible
Jan Maciej Chmielewski, Warsaw's newly-appointed chief architect, has the best view in town. From his office perched high up in the Palace of Culture, he can survey the task that awaits him. Not only does he want to see the spatial plan for the adjoining vast Plac Defilad accepted and brought to life but also he wants to oversee the passing of a new generation spatial plan for the entire city centre. Although it's a task that has already seen many attempt it and fail, Chmielewski seems optimistic that he will be the one to meet the challenge.
This quiet, unassuming man was previously chair of the Warsaw University of Technology's urban planning and city management department, and is responsible for the master plan of an entire city centre in Espoo, Finland. Talk about adequate qualifications.
Asked about his judgement of the developments that are scattered across Warsaw's city centre and the chaos in its spatial planning that is a consequence of the construction boom of the 1990s, Chmielewski is cautious with his response.
"The current urban planning situation in Warsaw does not look very good because the binding zoning plan for the city dates back to 1992, while the zoning plan for the centre is from 1993, and it is very general and its stipulations are neither clear nor correct," he said.
According to the general zoning law from 1994, the city authorities should pass a new generation zoning plan for the entire city, consisting of 80 sub-plans. But of these, only a few have so far been realised, covering very small areas of the city. Chmielewski is hesitant to implicate anyone in particular, but comments that his job would be made much easier if competent laws were passed.
"Such setbacks are the culprit behind the fact that a significant part of the investments in Warsaw are prepared based on the law from 1992," he said. "The general nature of that plan gives extensive freedom to investors in terms of the concept as well as the form of the architecture they deliver."
The problem is further complicated by the land ownership structure in Warsaw, where the so-called Warsaw decree placed land in the city under state ownership. This decision, taken in 1945, has today led to an avalanche of land restitution claims from previous owners.
But there is a silver lining, he points out, as Warsaw is in a unique situation, because it still has empty plots in the centre, such as the area surrounding the Palace of Culture.
How can the city work with investors, one wonders.
"The thing is that we don't want to act against investors; instead we want to create a better Warsaw with them," responded Chmielewski. "On the one hand we should help them in their investment activities, on the other we should limit investment where it can harm the city.
"Warsaw is expanding in an uneconomic fashion. We have a surplus of space that plays only an isolating role, separating one building from another and not acting as public space. We should put more care into the development of Warsaw city centre."
Refreshingly, Chmielewski perceives the binding construction laws from the point of view of an architect and not a civil servant.
"There are many plots of land in the city centre that can still be built upon, but the problem lies in the fact that our law forces investors to construct stand-alone buildings," he said of the central developments. "While European construction tradition calls for adjoined buildings, our construction law stipulates that buildings should be a certain distance from one another. This system is typical of the Eastern European tradition and such tendencies are currently present in our legal structure. We are persistently unable to create attractive public spaces in Warsaw that would be open to all and could serve as symbols of the modern city."
This, cynics would say, is particularly apparent when looking at the Plac Defilad, a centrally-located plot that has been awaiting development for nearly a decade.
"There is a spatial plan for Plac Defilad and I would like to have this plan accepted as soon as possible," explained Chmielewski. "The concept itself has been altered slightly but will still keep the trademark promenade around the Palace of Culture. The plan also allows for the construction of buildings that would equal the height of the Palace of Culture. But the plan's most important aspect is that it allows for the creation of an entire street front for both Aleje Jerozolimskie and Marszałkowska street."
This monumental task aside, what does Chmielewski envisage for Warsaw's development in the coming years?
"My main task is to ensure that Warsaw will develop according to the plans," he replies calmly. "However the law, which at times is less than perfect, limits my competences."
The law's shortcomings become more apparent when Chmielewski reveals his office is already facing a situation where they encounter protests against urban plans made only year or two ago. If the situation does not improve, he warns, Warsaw may soon lose its European identity altogether.
"Dealing with the spatial planning problem in a European manner would give Warsaw a chance to become a better-managed city," he said. "If the spatial planning of Warsaw will be devoid of control mechanisms and laws that govern the form of construction, as well as the manner in which Warsaw land is managed, then the capital will start to resemble spontaneously developing cities, such as those in the third world."
Although Chmielewski knows better than to name any examples, he admits the previous decentralised system of awarding construction permits was very corruptive.
He concludes with a shy smile, "Currently Warsaw authorities are trying to fight it. I hope they'll succeed."
This quiet, unassuming man was previously chair of the Warsaw University of Technology's urban planning and city management department, and is responsible for the master plan of an entire city centre in Espoo, Finland. Talk about adequate qualifications.
Asked about his judgement of the developments that are scattered across Warsaw's city centre and the chaos in its spatial planning that is a consequence of the construction boom of the 1990s, Chmielewski is cautious with his response.
"The current urban planning situation in Warsaw does not look very good because the binding zoning plan for the city dates back to 1992, while the zoning plan for the centre is from 1993, and it is very general and its stipulations are neither clear nor correct," he said.
According to the general zoning law from 1994, the city authorities should pass a new generation zoning plan for the entire city, consisting of 80 sub-plans. But of these, only a few have so far been realised, covering very small areas of the city. Chmielewski is hesitant to implicate anyone in particular, but comments that his job would be made much easier if competent laws were passed.
"Such setbacks are the culprit behind the fact that a significant part of the investments in Warsaw are prepared based on the law from 1992," he said. "The general nature of that plan gives extensive freedom to investors in terms of the concept as well as the form of the architecture they deliver."
The problem is further complicated by the land ownership structure in Warsaw, where the so-called Warsaw decree placed land in the city under state ownership. This decision, taken in 1945, has today led to an avalanche of land restitution claims from previous owners.
But there is a silver lining, he points out, as Warsaw is in a unique situation, because it still has empty plots in the centre, such as the area surrounding the Palace of Culture.
How can the city work with investors, one wonders.
"The thing is that we don't want to act against investors; instead we want to create a better Warsaw with them," responded Chmielewski. "On the one hand we should help them in their investment activities, on the other we should limit investment where it can harm the city.
"Warsaw is expanding in an uneconomic fashion. We have a surplus of space that plays only an isolating role, separating one building from another and not acting as public space. We should put more care into the development of Warsaw city centre."
Refreshingly, Chmielewski perceives the binding construction laws from the point of view of an architect and not a civil servant.
"There are many plots of land in the city centre that can still be built upon, but the problem lies in the fact that our law forces investors to construct stand-alone buildings," he said of the central developments. "While European construction tradition calls for adjoined buildings, our construction law stipulates that buildings should be a certain distance from one another. This system is typical of the Eastern European tradition and such tendencies are currently present in our legal structure. We are persistently unable to create attractive public spaces in Warsaw that would be open to all and could serve as symbols of the modern city."
This, cynics would say, is particularly apparent when looking at the Plac Defilad, a centrally-located plot that has been awaiting development for nearly a decade.
"There is a spatial plan for Plac Defilad and I would like to have this plan accepted as soon as possible," explained Chmielewski. "The concept itself has been altered slightly but will still keep the trademark promenade around the Palace of Culture. The plan also allows for the construction of buildings that would equal the height of the Palace of Culture. But the plan's most important aspect is that it allows for the creation of an entire street front for both Aleje Jerozolimskie and Marszałkowska street."
This monumental task aside, what does Chmielewski envisage for Warsaw's development in the coming years?
"My main task is to ensure that Warsaw will develop according to the plans," he replies calmly. "However the law, which at times is less than perfect, limits my competences."
The law's shortcomings become more apparent when Chmielewski reveals his office is already facing a situation where they encounter protests against urban plans made only year or two ago. If the situation does not improve, he warns, Warsaw may soon lose its European identity altogether.
"Dealing with the spatial planning problem in a European manner would give Warsaw a chance to become a better-managed city," he said. "If the spatial planning of Warsaw will be devoid of control mechanisms and laws that govern the form of construction, as well as the manner in which Warsaw land is managed, then the capital will start to resemble spontaneously developing cities, such as those in the third world."
Although Chmielewski knows better than to name any examples, he admits the previous decentralised system of awarding construction permits was very corruptive.
He concludes with a shy smile, "Currently Warsaw authorities are trying to fight it. I hope they'll succeed."
