Acta Polytechnica Vo!. 43 No. 2/2003

Tendencies in Spatial Planning in
Austria
K. Hladká

In Austria tkere is afederal system, where tke power is shared between national (Bund) and regional (Land) governments, with each having
autonomy in some spheres, and able to pass laws. Power resides with the national government, although certain responsibilities may be
delegated to regional governments. ln Austria tke national government has no competence in spatial planning, but planning at the
nationallevel is undertaken through a joint Jorum which has advisory powers, and in which the national government and the !.Jinder
Austrian are equal partners. At regionallevel the Austrian Uinder play tke primary role in spatial planning. The Austrian national
government has only limited responsibilities.

Keywords: Austria Conference on Regional Planning (OROK), Bund, Land/Ldnder, OSTAT (Austrian Central Statistical Office).

1 Introduction
With Austrian accession to the EU (1995) and integra­

tion into the West European Single Market, changes have
also taken place in the institutional framework conditions.
The new regional structures in Europe, liberalisation of the
reformed Lánder, their newly defined political and social
orientation, together with the progressive integration of the
West European states, are also relevant for the orientation of
national spatial planning. The new Europe requires a new
political level of aetion, spatial planning on an European
scale.

2 Spatial planning in Austria
The terms Raumordnung (space arrangement) and

Raumplanung (spaee planning) are not used in an uniform
way in Austria. These terms were developed and have been
used differently in eaeh Land. The term Raumplanung (spaee
planning) was established by article No. 118 ofthe Constitu­
tional aet 1929 as a term in loeal and supraloeal planning.
The term Raumordnung (spaee arrangement) is defined as
an aetivity or aim and result of this aetivity. The aim of
Raumordnung (spaee arrangement) is not only planning of
land use but also includes all measures which innuence the
kind of space development. The term Raumordnung (spaee
arrangement) should be used as a description for the aim of
an aetivity, and the term Raumplanung (space planning) as
the result of this aetivity.

The federal and nationallevels

The Federal government does not have the constitutional
right to treat spatial planning on the nationalleve! as a task of
the Bund (federal authorities). That is why, in the narrower
sense, there are no binding plans or medium term eoncepts at
the national leve!. In individual ministries there is seetoral
planning with spatial planning aspeets.

Planning by the Uinder or the communities has to take
federal plans into account. Because of the strict division of
competences between the territorial administrative author­
ities, and the lack ofany body with competence at the national
leve!, co-ordination between the Federation and the Provinees
has been neeessary.

10

The Austrian Development Concept oj1991 [1]

The Austrian Regiona! Planning Coneept represents
planning policy at Land level providing guidance for relevant
regional planning measures earried out at federal, Land
and loeal leve\. This pIan serves as a model for the Bund,
the Lander and communities. This pian provides recom­
mendations, and is primarily a set of guide!ines for the
administration, but also serves as a souree of information for
members of the public ioterested in spatial development.
Seetion I
• deals with the ehanged conditions for Austrian spatial

planning and regiona! development

Section II

• the economical use of space and the environment

• regional development policy

Sectioo III
• deals with major spatial problem areas in seleeted sectors

and proposes conerete goals and intensifieation of protect­
ive measures

• the setting of limits on areas developed for tourism
• promotion of appropriate agriculture and forestry c10se to

nature
• the introduction of enviroomental impact assessments

Section IV
• summary of aH short-term measures that can be started or

implemented to implement the concept quiekly

3 The land level
The Lander have enaeted spatial planning legislation. In

general, these laws eoDtain no speeifie regional plans, but
define the goals of such planning. In formal terms, the Land
laws determine the planning instruments of eaeh Land and,
in much greater detail, the obligations of the communities to
carry out local planning.

The leve! of planning relating to the regions is covered
by the Land in question, since there is no territorial ad­
ministrative authority at this level, and hence no political
interest in institutional formo



Acta Polytechnica Vol. 43 No. 212003

State Deuelopmcnt Plnns

The plans envisaged in spatial planning laws for the entire
territory of a [,and are comprehensive in content and are
issued by the governments of the Linder as offrcial decrees.
These are binding for the authorities themselves in imple-
menting sectoral and regional planning, for carrying out
their supervisory functions over the municipalities, and
finally also for the local spatial planning activities of the
municipalities. The validity of the Developmenr Plans of the
L'dnder is not limited. The plan defines in part the regions for
regional planning as well as the subject fields for the sectoral
plans, and lay down the minimum content requirements.

Re gional Dnelopment Plarn

Regional Development Plans are set up in the form of
decrees issued by the governmenrs of the Liinder. They are
binding for spatial planning on local level municipalities.
'fhese plans are not limited in duration. Regional Develop-
ment Plans usually contain goals in several sectors for a

region. These are general goals depending on the Land and
on the plan, but may sometimes be formulated quite specific-
ally. Responsibility for Regional Development Plans lies with
the spatial planning departments of the governments of the
L:inder. According to their conrenr or level of detail, they
represent guidance or limitations on local authority planning.
The regional spatial development plans also cover specific
measures. Mostly areas of suitability are identified, for agri-
culture, tourism or industrial use. The degree of detail can be
seen from the scale, which ranges from l:25 000 to l:200 000.

Sector Plnnnzng of thz kindcr

This plan deals with spatial planning measures in a limit-
ed sector. As decrees, these are binding on the administration
of the Land and municipality. As government resolutions they
are only binding on the administration of the Land. Sectoral
plans are usually only valid for a certain period of time.

4 The communal level
All the communal level spatial planning covers the whole

area administred by communities. The communities have
a legal obligation to engage in spatial planning, and are
subject to conrol by the supervising authority ofthe govern-
ment of the Land. Given strong finance, which is the case

with many communities, there is considerable scope for an
independently determined policy for spatial development at
the communal level.

Communities are independent territorial authorities with
the right of self-administration. Local planning is a major
part of their area of independent action. With responsibility

for land use and building plans, the communities play a key

role in the overall planning system. The land use plan ad-

mittedly has to be approved by the Government of the Land,
but approval may only be denied if it conflicts with the Spatial
Planning Act or with the supralocal regional development
programmes of the tand.

The Spatial Planning Acts of the Linder oblige the com-

munities to employ three planning instruments:

o the spatial develoPment concePt

o land use plans

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Acta Polytechnica Vol. 43 No. 2/2002

o building regulation plans

l^anduse plnn

This plan is drawn up for rhe entire territory of the
community and divides it into various categories, i.e. build_
ing plots, green land, trafiic areas. The land use plan is
binding on site owners, but there is no obligation actually to
implement the provisions. The State Government acts as the
supervisory authority and approves the land use plan. This
must be in accordance with the goals of the spatiai planning
programme and supralocal spatial planning of the l,and,
corresponding to the spatial developmenr scheme, and may
have to take planning at the federal level into account. The
population has to be informed within a given period of time
about the intention to draw up a land use plan, and the plan
must be available for public inspection before it is finalised, so
that everyone has an opportunity to express an opinion.

Building re gulnti.an plnn

The building regulation plan is subsidiary to the land use
plan. It takes the form of regulations passed by the municipal
council, binding on the building authorities and landownirs.
The minimum content is laid down in the Spatial planning
Acts of the l;iinder.

Spa,tialplnnning lnws

Spatial planning laws are promulgared by the state
government of the Land as the legislative body of the Linder.
In recent years there have been extensive changes in nearly all
Ldndeg triggered by Austrian accession ro rhe EU.

5 Conclusion
The instruments of spatial planning in Austria are deter-

mined in the Spatial Planning Acrs of the L.dnder, Thereby
a distinction must be made between instruments of supralocal

spatial planning, relating to the entire Land or parts of it, and
drawn up by the Governments of the Lindit and rhose
instrumenrs relating to local spatial planning, which refer to a
community and which are drawn up by the local authorities
with respect to their area of competence.

The laws oblige the Ldnder to set up Land development
programmes for the Land, regional programmes and iector_
al development programmes. The terminology used in the
various Liinder differs according to the local authorities, that
are responsible for local spatial planning.

The Land development programmes of the Liinder re_
present a higher level for the regional development and
sectoral development programmes. They define, to an
extent, the regions for regional planning, and the subjects
covered in sectoral development, determining their minim_
um content. The Land development plans of the L.jnder are
thus mostly a mixture of the concrete goals, spatial plans and
general directives of the Ldnder for further planning.

References

I I I 0 sterrebhisches Raumordnungshunzeptl 991. OROK, I gg2.

l2l oSf,qf lustrlnn Cmtral Stntistiral Omce.6STN|, 1991.

Ing. Kateiina Hladkd
email: katerina.hladka@cenrrum.cz

Na Cihelnd l33l
28 201 eesky Brod, Czech Republic

I2


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