Tag: expropriation

Colau Creates Register of Empty Plots to Expropriate them in Two Years time

21 August 2018 – Eje Prime

Ada Colau has laid down the law regarding a topic that is affecting the real estate market in Barcelona. The mayor of the Catalan capital has signed a decree to create a municipal register of the empty plots in the city so that they may be expropriated in the event that no activity is undertaken on them in the next two years. The decision was announced on Tuesday by the Deputy Mayor for Urban Planning, Janet Sanz.

The measure could start to be executed during the second half of 2020 or the beginning of 2021, following the definitive approval of the modifications to the General Metropolitan Plan (Mpgm), scheduled for the end of this year.

The main objective of this decree is “to activate the plots” for the generation of housing, explained Sanz. For this, the Town Hall will prepare a map of the city, which it will use to verify the vacant plots, and that should be ready within a few months.

The councillor for Urban Planning argues that “it is not acceptable that unused empty private plots in Barcelona are being used for speculation”. She maintains that other cities, such as the case of Valencia, have already taken similar measures. “We want to stop private owners from holding onto plots for speculative purposes. We want homes to be built and if the private sector won’t do it then the Town Hall will”, said Sanz.

In addition, Barcelona is also going to penalise the breach of orders for the execution of works for the renovation and conservation of buildings with safety problems or those that are protected due to their architectural or cultural heritage. In these properties, if the building work is not undertaken, then the Town Hall will also be able to expropriate the building in two years time or charge the owners for the expenses.

The new decree from the Town Hall of Barcelona relating to the Catalan capital’s residential market comes two months after Colau said that 30% of all new homes must be allocated to social housing following her decision to renounce the moratorium on new construction.

Original story: Eje Prime

Translation: Carmel Drake

Sacyr Claims €518.5M from Government of Murcia for its Ghost Airport

23 April 2018 – El Confidencial

Sacyr wants to take the conflict with the Region of Murcia over the private airport in Corvera to its logical conclusion. The construction company chaired by Manuel Manrique is claiming €518.5 million from the Regional (Partido Popular) government for the suspension of the concession to operate the airport infrastructure, which has ended up in the hands of the public entity Aena. The company in which the Murcian owner of El Pozo also owns a stake is demanding twice the amount that it cost it to construct the property.

According to an internal document from Sacyr, the ‘Concessionaire Company of the Airport for the Region of Murcia’ (‘Sociedad Concesionaria del Aeropuerto de la Región de Murcia’ or SCAM) filed a report on 17 January urging the autonomous government to issue a resolution to award the concessionaire a settlement of €518.5 million. That petition comes almost five years after the Government, now chaired by Fernando López Miras, terminated the contract for an alleged breach and a month after the Murican Executive agreed the management of the private airport with Aena – which is controlled by the State – for the next 25 years.

The claim is based on three concepts. The first relates to the investments and costs incurred by SCAM, in which Sacyr holds an 80% stake, for the development and execution of the concession contract. That sum amounted to €256.69 million as at 22 March 2016, the date immediately prior to when the Region of Murcia took ownership of the asset, plus an additional €1.97 million for the maintenance work carried out by the construction company until 30 September last year.

Sacyr and its shareholders, which include Banco Sabadell and Grupo Fuertes (El Pozo), the largest industrial group in Murcia, are also claiming €35.1 million in extra costs borne by the company resulting from the early termination of the concession contract, amounts that “must also be updated at the date of their reimbursement and/or settlement”. Finally, the company is demanding €224.82 million for the profit forgone or forecast loss, as assessed by an independent expert, whose identity has not been revealed by Sacyr.

The Corvera airport was awarded to Sacyr in 2007 (…). Nevertheless, after construction was completed in 2012, it could not be opened due to insurmountable differences that were so great they even led to the intervention of the Guardia Civil.

After long disputes (…) and some unsuccessful negotiations, the regional Government expropriated the airport and awarded it again at the end of last year. The winner was Aena (…), which undertook to manage the airport in exchange for closing the San Javier military airfield, closer to the Mar Menor and just 30 km from Corvera.

The new airport, which is expected to begin operation in December, is going to be called Juan de la Cierva, in honour of the Murcian man who invented the gyroplane. The infrastructure is expected to receive 800,000 international tourists during its first four years and will be able to handle 3.5 million passengers per year. Initial forecasts indicate sales of €495.8 million during the 25-year concession. Its largest competitor will continue to be the airport in Alicante, which handles more than 12 million users per year.

Original story: El Confidencial (by Agustín Marco)

Translation: Carmel Drake

Constitutional Court Temporarily Supends Basque Housing Law

18 April 2016 – Cinco Días

The Constitutional Court (TC) has admitted the appeal filed by the central Government against the Basque Housing Law, which provides for the temporary expropriation of homes by banks, amongst other measures, and has suspended it as a precautionary measure whilst it decides whether or not it complies with the Constitution.

The Government filed an appeal of unconstitutionality against the Basque Housing Law, which, in addition to the aforementioned measure, makes provisions for other initiatives, such as the imposition of a fee on empty homes and the recognition of the subjective right to a home, which will be enforceable in court.

The Basque Parliament approved the Housing Law in June 2015, following lobbying by PSE and with the support of EH Bildu and UPyD. It was rejected by the PP and the PNV. In its appeal, Mariano Rajoy’s Government requested that the admission procedure for the law be temporarily suspended until the substance of the matter has been resolved, as it is allowed to do under the Organic Law of the TC.

The court of guarantees issued a ruling in which it declared the appeal admissible and suspended the law, which does not determine the final outcome, but rather grants a period of five months, which may be renewed, during which time the aforementioned law will not apply and a decision can be taken regarding its future.

In its acceptance and suspension ruling, the TC announced that it will transfer the file “to the Congress of Representatives and the Senate, through their respective Presidents, as well as the Basque Government and Basque Parliament, through their respective Presidents, so that they can make an appearance and formulate the allegations that they deem appropriate, within a period of fifteen days.

Original story: Cinco Días

Translation: Carmel Drake

High Court Repeals Andalucían Anti-Eviction Law

27 May 2015 – Expansión

The temporary expropriation by banks of homes in the process of eviction is unconstitutional. That was the ruling issued by the High Court (HC) following its in-depth analysis of the controversial decree law governing the Social Function of Housing, approved by the Government of Andalucía in June 2013, which was challenged by the Central Government.

Until the HC suspended this law, as a precautionary measure, 121 expropriation demands were filed, over a three-year period. The law was later reissued, although without any significant changes

According to the ruling, articles 1.3 and 53.1 of the regional law have been annulled. Previously, those articles imposed on the owner of houses “the duty to effectively use property for the residential purposes provided for by the law”, since the essential content of the rights of ownership pervade; an area “prohibited” for the decree law of the autonomous community. This law does not affect individuals.

For the same reason, the ruling issued by the HC declares the imposition of fines on financial entities that own uninhabited homes to be unconstitutional. To date, the Andalucían Government has imposed fines on various banks – including Popular for €5.8 million and BBVA for €1.6 million – for not putting empty subsidised (VPO) homes at the disposal of the municipal registries for claimants.

Encroachment of competencies

Alongside this ruling, the HC considers that the regional legislation deals with the state duties provided for by the Constitution, such as “coordinating the planning of economic activity”, whereby nullifying the second additional provision of the decree law “aimed at ensuring the right to adequate housing”.

The ruling also explains that “it constitutes a significant obstacle for the effectiveness of the measures taken by the central Government”, which issued legislation that provided for the possibility of suspending the introduction and promoting the creation of a social fund containing the properties owned by the entities to facilitate their lease to evicted persons.

In this sense, it is worth noting the agreement of disparate legal figures regarding the same reality – the suspension of the introduction of state legislation and the expropriation of the use under the regional legislation – “makes the joint application difficult”.

The HC also advises all of the regions that the State should determine “the extent of the public intervention” and indicate “certain guidelines in the mortgage market”, and should do so in such a way that “it is compatible with the proper functioning of that sector”.

As a result, this “prevents” the regions from “adopting provisions that affect this market in a more intense way”.

Original story: Expansión (by Lidia Velasco)

Translation: Carmel Drake