The international public organization Ecology-Law-Human Rights (EPL) is demanding in court to cancel the decision of the Lviv City Council to allow the expansion of the Emily Resort in Vynnyky near Lviv due to the lack of permits for deforestation.
This was reported by the portal Espresso.Zakhid. Its journalist attended the court hearing, spoke with representatives of the NGO EPL and tried to get a comment from representatives of the city authorities and Emily Resort.
The NGO considers the decision of the Lviv City Council of September 12, 2024 “On Approval of the Detailed Plan of the Territory in the Area of Zabava Street, B. Khmelnytsky Street in Vynnyky” to be illegal. The court has now accepted the claim, and preparatory hearings are underway. During them, the parties to the case involve the participants they need, provide the court with protocols and other documents necessary for the proceedings. According to Olha Melen, a lawyer at the NGO, this is a rather lengthy process that can take a month or more.
The essence of the conflict
In September 2024, the city authorities of Lviv approved the expansion of the Emily Resort in Vynnyky, which includes the construction of a hotel and recreation complex with tennis courts.
However, after public discussions of this project, residents of Vynnyky filed complaints with EPL. Local residents were alarmed by the fact that the presented detailed plan of the territory provided for the development of not only the territory of Emily Resort LLC, but also the Vynnyky forest. According to the project, part of it is planned to be cut down.
Residents opposed such intentions of the developer, as they involve a serious reduction of green areas due to deforestation. At the same time, the detailed territory plan (DTP), which was presented at the public hearings, did not indicate the extent of this deforestation.
What Emily Resort LLC plans to build
The detailed territory plan, which was approved by the Lviv City Council in September, covers an area of 118.8 hectares. It is planned to build a hotel and recreation complex with commercial premises, underground parking, and tennis courts. The project also includes a bicycle path that will connect Lviv and Vynnyky.
According to the project, the recreational complex will consist of three buildings.
Espresso.Zakhid says that the entire territory consists of 21 land plots. For 8 of them, which have an agricultural purpose, they plan to change the designated purpose to “public development areas classified as recreational land.”
They want to build an apartment hotel in the Vynnyky forest on the plots that the deputies allowed to be withdrawn from forestry land. The project also envisages the construction of a 400-seat kindergarten and school buildings in the future.
Scheme of the current use of the territory
What are the complaints of the NGO to the city council?
EPL activists believe that the Lviv City Council's issuance of urban planning conditions and restrictions (PCR) to Emily Resort LLC is premature and poses a threat to the environment and the rights of Vynnyky residents. That is why they sued the local government. The CSOs stated the following 3 reasons for their position:
1. The PCR is based on urban planning documentation, which is currently being challenged in court. Its developers “did not see” planning restrictions, such as coastal and sanitary protection zones, on the two land plots planned for construction. However, the NGO claims that they do exist.
2. The construction of the hotel and recreation complex cannot take place along rivers, around water bodies and on islands, as this is a violation of Article 61 of the Land Code.
3. Two land plots that appear in the PCR are not within the scope of the Detailed Territory Plan.
Therefore, EPL asks to conduct an internal audit and take measures against the officials of the Department of Architecture and Spatial Development for improper performance of their duties and making an illegal and unreasonable decision.
What is the position of the defendant and Emily Resort?
The journalists of Espresso.Zakhid contacted the press service of the Lviv City Council and the Deputy Mayor for Urban Development Liubomyr Zubach for comment on the situation, but the officials refused to provide any explanations before a written response to the complaint was prepared.
The publication has not yet received a response to the request for comment from Emily Resort LLC.
The other day, EcoPolitic talked about how the state and communities are losing land of illegally built-up forests, coastal protection strips and green areas due to the scandalous draft law No. 12089 adopted by the parliament.
