Hanoi to stop licensing high-rise construction

Laws - Hanoi authorities will stop granting licenses for multistory buildings in the capital’s central area and will instead give priority to creating more public spaces there, said Nguyen The Thao, chairman of the Hanoi People’s Committee.

He made the statement at a conference held yesterday to launch a master plan for Hanoi’s social and economic development by 2030, with a vision towards 2050.

More public spaces, especially green ones, will be made available after a number of agencies, hospitals, schools and polluting plants are relocated to the city’s outskirts, he said.

Works on multistory buildings that have been licensed will be adjusted reasonably, Thao added.

The city’s development philosophy is that economic development must go hand in hand with cultural and social development, he said.

Under the plan, city authorities will mobilize all resources to improve technical and urban infrastructure in the suburban areas to ensure the quality of life of people there and encourage more people in the city’s inner districts to move outside of central Hanoi.

In addition, the city will restore and upgrade cultural works of high value.

The overall plan also includes detailed designs for the re-arrangement of major routes and rural districts, and the reconstruction of dilapidated apartment buildings.

Hanoi Party Committee Secretary Pham Quang Nghi asked all local districts and towns to strictly implement their duties specified in the master plan.