Plan de uso y gestión de suelo 2021-2033 del Distrito Metropolitano de Quito

The Land Use and Land Management Plan 2021-2033 (PUGS) determines the city model for Quito that is aimed to be implemented in the next 12 years: a compact and polycentric city model with an efficient system of mobility and connectivity that is articulated to the system of sustainable rural micro-regions. It seeks to promote principles of equity through the strengthening of centralities and their neighbourhoods. It further aims to protect and recover the natural, historical and cultural heritage and to reduce social vulnerability in a transversal way in all components. The plan defines the urban-rural structure of the district through the classification and sub-classification of land, which is valid for 12 years, in order to guarantee control over the disproportionate and disorderly growth of the city.

Overview

Type of instrument:

Legislative, regulatory and strategic instruments›Dedicated strategy, plan, or law

Challenges addressed

Ecologic connectivity
Soil quality
Green space management (e.g. accessibility)
Watershed restoration/water quality
Flood risk: pluvial and fluvial / soil permeability
Landslide risk
Social cohesion
Social equity
Human health, comfort and well-being

Consideration of nature-based solutions:

The plan incorporates the concept of Green and Blue Infrastructure to establish the Green Urban Network to include the various urban and rural ecosystems and to take care of the natural heritage. For this, the proposal contemplates two main actions: the recovery of streams and the consolidation of green corridors. To account for sustainable agricultural use of the land, the plan will define the general and specific land uses for different usage zones (e.g. to address agroecological purposes and community tourism).

Targeted (peri-)urban areas:

Parks and (semi)natural urban green areas

Allotments, community gardens or agricultural areas

Blue areas

Green areas for water management

External building greens

Urban green space connected to grey infrastructure

Good practice characteristics:

Effective

Sustainable in the long-term

Locally appropriate

Potential to be replicated / upscaled

Innovative

Inclusivity

Governance

Government body/bodies

Initiating body:

City Institute

Instrument design:

Details about how the instrument was designed:

The plan was discussed and approved by the Quito Metropolitan Council in September 2021 after two days of debate. In addition to this debate and approval, the dialogues about the PUGS proposal began in December 2019 with the participatory construction of this instrument. Civil society actors, individually and collectively, and representatives of district governments, production associations, academia, and the industrial and real estate sectors took part in the process of citizen participation. It carried out in several stages, simultaneously with all the phases of construction of this management tool. The participatory process included inter-institutional working groups, excursions, expert exchanges, the reception of citizen proposals through the office of Metropolitan Councillors, and other formats. Part of this participation programme was implemented in the COVID-19 pandemic environment. In general, the Government of the Metropolitan District of Quito has a historical tradition of participation that has evolved until it was formalised in the System of Citizen Participation and Social Control, approved by Metropolitan Ordinance in 2016.

Involvement of non-governmental actors:

Public sector institution (e.g. school or hospital)

Private sector, corporate, business

Researchers, university

Citizens or community groups / NGOs

Type of actor involvement:

Co-planning or co-design of instrument (e.g. boards, advisory role)

Civil society consultation through e.g. workshops, surveys

Instrument implementation:

Type of involvement:

The ordinance 102 regulates the Metropolitan System of Citizen Participation and Social Control and Social Control in Quito. The mechanisms of citizen participation included, described and regulated in the ordinance are, among others: The Assembly of the Metropolitan District of Quito, the neighbourhood, district and zonal assemblies, the Metropolitan Planning Council, consultative councils, public hearings, pre-legislative, pre-legislative and environmental consultation.

Type of non-governmental actors involved:

Citizen councils or consultation for co-planning (e.g. workshops, surveys)

Implementation of NBS (e.g. with government funds)

Citizen monitoring and review

Targeted actors:

Public sector institution (e.g. school or hospital)

Private: household, real estate developer, business , financial

Citizens or community groups (CBOs), NGOs

Financing

Sources of funding:

Public local authority’s budget

Corporate investment

Details about instrument financing:

As one financing mechanism, the Onerous Concession of Rights ("COD") is the instrument for financing urban development that, as a mechanism for capturing capital gains, guarantees the participation of society in the economic benefits produced by urban planning and urban development in general.

Monitoring, evaluation and impacts

Is a monitoring framework in place?:

Yes

In a separate document, the plan details the standards and indicators to monitor the process of the plan. The logic is based on the devision of two main areas: urban and rural. For each area, two types of standards shall be applied: urban/rural standards and urban/rural sustainability standards. For each of these standards, a multitude of specific indicators are defined.

Achieved outcomes and impacts:

So far, no achieved outcomes and impacts are available.

Success factors and lessons learned:

One of the main components of the plan is the elaborated participation process, in the planning and projected implementation phase of the plan. The construction of the PUGS included four main phases: (1) Preparatory phase, (2) Phase of construction of the Territorial Diagnosis, (3) Proposal phase, (4) Debate and approval phase. The first phase started between August and December 2019 through the formation of an interdisciplinary working team. In addition, inter-institutional working groups were held, which meant establishing articulations between the Secretariat of Territory, Habitat and Housing and other entities of the Municipality of the Metropolitan District of Quito. After further content related work in the second and third phase, two days of discussions in the Metropolitan Council were held on the proposal in August 2021 before its approval in September 2021. However, open debates and intervention processes were also conducted throughout the elaboration of the PUGS, with the participation of civil society actors, individually and collectively, and representatives of parishes, production guilds, academia, and the industrial and real estate sectors. Regarding the experience with the participation process, a detailed documentation was published.

Sources and further information

References

List of references:

Instituto de la Ciudad (2021). Plan de uso y gestión de suelo 2021-2033 del Distrito Metropolitano de Quito. Experiencia técnica y mecanismos de participación. Quito, Ecuador.

Secretaria de Territorio Hábitat y Vivienda de Quito (2021): Plan de uso y gestión de suelo. Quito, Ecuador.

Photos

@Ricardo Velasquez auf Unsplash