Greater Baku project to be laid for final discussion in Sept.

Source: AzerNews

The final, third public hearing on Greater Baku Regional Development Plan will be held in September and October, deputy chairman of Azerbaijan's State Committee for Urban Planning and Architecture Dovletkhan Dovletkhanov said on June 27.

The Plan envisions future development of the city with its 11 surrounding areas, Sumgayit, the country's third largest city, and the entire Absheron Peninsula until 2030.

According to Dovletkhanov, the project is ready and is in the stage of discussion with the central executive power bodies. The project should be approved before the end of this year.

The main purpose of the project is to create an effective system of control over urban development of Greater Baku and then all other cities and towns of Azerbaijan.

In April the State Committee for Urban Planning and Architecture completed the development of a preliminary version of the concept of the Plan of Greater Baku Land Use.

Novruz Eldarli, head of the group executing the Greater Baku development project, says this document forms the basis of the Draft Plan of Greater Baku Regional Development.

After its coordination with all the interested government agencies the Plan will be developed while considering all submitted comments and supplements, and then the Greater Baku Land Use Plan will be developed within the Greater Baku project. Over the past two years the State Committee for Urban Planning and Architecture has done a great deal of work on drafting the basic urban planning document. After its approval at the highest state level, it should become the basic urban development plan for drawing up future detailed urban planning documents, according to Eldarli.

Azerbaijan and the World Bank signed a credit agreement in 2007 to develop the Greater Baku Regional Development Plan.

The plan has been developed through coordination with Baku State Design Institute.

The project sketches are being prepared jointly with consultants on issues of economic development (US specialist Kay Miller), environmental issues (the Spanish company Eptisa) and urban planning (Italian Angelo de Urso).

According to preliminary estimates, the average cost of the Greater Baku Regional Development Plan may reach 4-5 billion manats (up to over $6.3 billion).

Experts say initial studies covered the dynamics of the growth of these areas for 20 years and possible population growth in the region. It is estimated that by 2030, the population in the area will increase to 3.5 million people.

Azerbaijan's total population is currently more than 9.3 million.

Under the plan, the street and road network of the city will increase by hundreds of kilometers, the number of polluted lakes and urban pollution will be significantly reduced; parks and public gardens will be created in an area of 34,000 hectares.