SANTO DOMINGO.- The approval of land use for the construction of a private cemetery park in the municipality of Santo Domingo Este has generated questions within the municipal and urban planning sphere, after the Council of Aldermen approved the initiative amid criticism for alleged irregularities in the administrative procedure and the absence of prior technical reports.
The resolution was adopted during a session of the Santo Domingo East City and included an amendment presented by councilman Luis Flores that establishes that the construction of another cemetery in the municipality cannot be authorized for the next five years, a measure that has aroused concern in sectors linked to territorial planning and urban development due to its possible impact on free competition.
According to information obtained through documents related to the municipal process and testimonies from actors present at the session, the approval would have occurred without the file having the technical certification of land use issued by the Directorate of Urban Planning of the city council, the department responsible for evaluating the territorial and urban viability of the projects before their knowledge by the Council of Aldermen.
Specialists in administrative law and urban planning point out that, according to Dominican municipal regulations, urban planning offices must conduct a prior technical evaluation of land use applications before they are submitted to the decision of the municipal legislative body.
Limited debate during the session
The voting procedure has also drawn criticism. During the session, several council members requested to speak to discuss the resolution's content; however, according to participants in the meeting, they were not given the floor before the final vote.
Councilor Aileen Decamps described the event as a limitation on the deliberative process that should characterize the decisions of the Council of Aldermen, noting that open debate is a fundamental element to guarantee transparency in municipal management.
In that same context, the jurist Anyelina Olivo warned that this type of action could violate principles established in Law 107-13 on the Rights of Persons in their Relations with the Public Administration, regulations that require that administrative decisions be adopted under criteria of legality, transparency, procedural coherence and equity.
Implications for land-use planning
The controversy has reopened the debate on the procedures for approving territorial impact projects in municipalities with strong urban growth such as Santo Domingo Este.
In Dominican urban planning practice, land use analysis is a key step in determining whether a project is compatible with territorial planning, the community environment, and current environmental and urban regulations. Therefore, the role of urban planning departments within municipalities is crucial in ensuring that the City Council's decisions are based on sound technical criteria.
The municipality of Santo Domingo Este, one of the most populated in the country and with an accelerated process of urban expansion, faces growing challenges in terms of territorial planning, regulation of land uses and organization of real estate development.
Official silence following the approval
Following the approval of the resolution, the president of the Council of Aldermen, Miguel Fortuna, avoided making any public statements about the process by which the initiative was approved and left the city hall building without answering questions from journalists present.
So far, municipal authorities have not offered additional details about the technical, environmental or urban planning studies that would support the authorization of the project.
The information was compiled using documents related to the municipal process, statements from actors participating in the Council of Aldermen session, and references to urban planning and public administration regulations in force in the Dominican Republic.
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