Os instrumentos constitucionais de política urbana e o aproveitamento dos imóveis urbanos, à luz da função socioambiental da cidade e da propriedade

Abstract

The application of constitutional instruments of urban policy, especially the use of compulsory subdivision, construction or use; the taxation on urban building and land property that is progressive over time; and the expropriation through the payment of government securities, aim at fostering the appropriate use of urban real estate, so as to develop the socioenvironmental functions of the city and of the urban property. Based on these considerations, a research problem was formulated to investigate if, or to what extent, the municipalities of the Serra region in the State of Rio Grande do Sul, with population over 20,000 inhabitants or that are part of the Metropolitan Region of Serra, whose laws require a master plan, use these instruments as management tools capable of regulating the use of urban property to benefit the common good, the safety and well-being of citizens, as well as environmental balance. Within this context, the objective of this study is to analyze these governmental norms, to find out whether such mechanisms constitute a municipal government power, or a power-duty based on the principle of the socioenvironmental function of property, as well as to verify whether the municipalities of the Serra region are using such tools to the effectiveness of the socioenvironmental function in urban real estate, thus providing human dignity to its inhabitants. The study was developed following the inductive method, starting from the experience of the municipalities from Serra Gaúcha, adopting a quantitative and qualitative perspective, based on statistical data on the cities that used or did not use the constitutional instruments of urban policy as a management model, as well as on the reasons why such tools were or were not used. At the same time, this study used direct and indirect documentary analysis as a technique, based on the study of the City Statute and the master plans of the municipalities within the scope of the study, as well as on direct extensive observation, reached by means of primary data obtained through structured interviews conducted in the same municipalities. A bibliographical review was carried out to support the research, based on the study of scientific, legal and cross-disciplinary publications. The study concluded that the Federal Constitution of Brazil and the City Statute provide the municipalities with the possibility of using compulsory subdivision, construction or use as a way to require the appropriate use of urban land that is unconstructed, underused, or not used. Therefore, it is an option of the municipal government and not an obligation. Thus, in spite of the importance that these tools represent for urban planning, none of the municipalities located in the Serra region have used such mechanisms as management tools, as a way to require from the owners of urban real estate its appropriate use based on the socioenvironmental function of the city and of property, to benefit the common good, the safety and well-being of citizens, as well as environmental balance. Some of the major reasons that explain why the municipalities within the scope of this study have not used urban policy instruments are related to: the lack of a municipal master plan; the omission of these instruments in the master plan; the inexistence of a specific law about such tools and the inexistence of housing deficit in the urban areas of the studied municipalities. [resumo fornecido pelo autor]