Failure and opportunities of public value capture and developer obligations in Polish urban development

Abstract

Abstract As many countries pursue private financing for urban public infrastructure, the tools for public value capture (PVC) gain prominence. This paper analyses Polish PVC tools in general, and spotlights a specific type: developer obligations (DOs). The authors conclude that the tools are ineffective for a series of reasons: negligence in the elaboration of pragmatic rationales (to mitigate the negative impacts of urban development), a lack of feasible (affordable) coercive land policy tools, and legislation (which puts Poland in sharp contrast to other countries) that prohibits municipalities from requiring DOs in exchange for approval of a land-use plan or planning permit, as well as the general ban on securing such obligations in a planning agreement (except for specific situations introduced by recent laws that have not yet been applied). As a consequence, new urban development in Poland neither includes sufficient urban public infrastructure, nor does it provide for social/affordable housing.