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The works on the draft Study of conditions and directions for the spatial development of the City of Szczecin, the most important planning document of Szczecin, has been completed. At the forthcoming March session of the City Council, the document will be put to a vote.

The work of planners, experts and analysts on the content of the Study, which will indicate the most important directions of development and challenges in the perspective of the next 30 years for our city, lasted almost 3 years. Residents were also keen to use the opportunity to submit their comments. They were particularly interested in topics related to greenery in the city, the future of the city’s markets and the go-kart track.

“The document has been presented to residents and thoroughly consulted,” said Zofia Fiuk-Dymek, Director of the City Spatial Planning Office. “We have received a total of 761 applications collected since the previous study had been passed, 451 consulting remarks and 136 remarks on the draft Study put out for public scrutiny in December 2021. Residents were also keen to take part in meetings and discussions on the subject.”

Following the consultations, the city also organised a series of strategy workshops to help better understand the ambitions, expectations and concerns of residents. The draft document was also reviewed by external specialists, e.g. the Committee on Architectural and Urban Planning and a number of higher-level institutions.

The amendment of the document is a consequence of the periodic examination of the Study’s validity. It is a declaration of the development directions of Szczecin, which is a response to dynamic changes taking place within city borders and in immediate and more distant functional surroundings of Szczecin that occurred after 2012. Based on the Study’s findings, the local government is obliged to draw up local plans; they are also an element of the spatial policy in the municipality.

The Study sets out the vision of creating a compact, efficient and citizen-friendly city. The planned metropolis is intended to be resilient to demographic, economic and environmental changes, aiming for economic strengthening and supporting development of higher education. Szczecin is intended to develop and strengthen the functional and spatial system associated with an increase in the concentration of institutions and entities essential for the city and the region, within the area covering the Old Town, the City Centre and Łasztownia. The Study is intended to help better manage money allocated for reurbanisation, revitalisation and strengthening of high-density areas with the development of local service centres. It is also intended to strengthen the development of communication systems and support public, cycling and pedestrian transport.

Until 2050, the biggest challenges for Szczecin are population processes with far-reaching social consequences, the pace of economic development, changes to the economy conditioned by climate change and implementation of the European Green Deal and metropolisation of urban space.

It is estimated that in 2050 there will be around 380,000 residents in Szczecin. Budget outlays for technical, communication and social infrastructure serving the emerging residential, service and production and storage buildings will amount to around PLN 12 billion.

Land reserves covering a total of approximately 5.8% of the city’s administrative area available throughout the city will ensure further development of services (strengthening of local service centres, introduction of citywide and metropolitan services and services for business entities).

The main principle of the spatial policy is to manage natural, spatial and infrastructural resources economically in the sense of spatial cohesion and formation of socio-environmental determinants of the quality of life in the place of residence. The Study indicates the development of high-density areas and transport accessibility, minimising residents’ cost of accessing jobs and the urban social infrastructure.