Urban Planning in Austria

The URBSPANDENS project provided an overview of the urban planning system in Austria, which is here below synthesised.

In Austria there are 2.359 municipalities (status 2001), 48% have a population between 1.000 and 2.500 inhabitants.

According to the constitutional law the municipalities are responsible for: local police, local street administration, local building inspection, local spatial planning (local development schemes, land use plans) etc. The main task of the municipalities (90% of all expenditures) is to provide public services for the population (schools, kindergarten, leisure infrastructure, waste disposal etc.).

The municipal tax is of a particular relevance, because it is an exclusive public charge for the municipalities (3% of the total wage sum of every firm). The other important tax is the property tax which is a taxation of the ownership of real estates.

Fiscal Compensation system

Source: Reference: URBSPANDENS project illustration on base of: Land Niederösterreich

http://www.noe.gv.at/service/lad/lad1/er/english/Landesfinanzen.htm (23.7.2003)

Concerning fiscal capacity it is necessary to underline that the relationship between the city-province of Vienna and the neighbouring province of Lower Austria is unequal considering transfers and municipal taxes.

Organisation of Urban Planning in Austria

Source: URBSPANDEN project illustration on base of  ÖROK,

Österreiches Raumplanungskonzept 2001, p 154. 

The ÖROK (Austrian Conference on Regional Planning) was founded in 1977. The ÖROK is a national council on spatial planning with representatives of the federal state, the federal provinces and the Austrian Association of Cities and Towns. This institution has only advisory functions.

The “Austrian Regional Planning Concept” is a non-binding guideline for public planning bodies, published every 10 years.