The Macau SAR 2020-2040 Urban Master Plan – which provides for about three square kilometres of new land gained from the sea, new housing, commercial, tourism, green areas or public spaces – will come into force on February 15, the Land, Public Works and Transport Bureau (DSSOPT) indicated.
Based on the Master Plan, the Macau SAR Government will begin work on drawing up detailed plans for the various areas, divided into Planning and Management Operating Units, and define and regulate in detail, the purposes of the land, the construction conditions and the distribution of public infrastructures and equipment for collective use.
“The Master Plan Project foresees, in the long term, a new landfill as spaces for urban development and land reserve, to respond to future population growth and meeting future social and economic demands,” as well as landfills along the coast and another for airport expansion, it reads.
The blueprint draft estimates that by 2040 the SARs local population will reach 808,000 and will have a total land area of 36.8 square kilometers.
It also divides the city into clearly defined areas for residential, tourism, green leisure, industrial, diversified industries purposes, with habitation and public infrastructure developments having priority.
The total area of the non-urban zone will represent around 18 per cent of the total area to preserve hills, waters and wetlands.
The remaining 82 per cent should be used for new commercial and economic activity zones in various parts of the city “to promote regional cooperation and the development of the economy in the border posts.
The area reserved for tourism and casinos will be lower than the 18 per cent provided for ecological conservation areas, but higher than the space reserved for green leisure areas (8 per cent), collective use infrastructures, such as hospitals (10 per cent), commercial areas (4 per cent) and industrial areas (2 per cent).
According to the authorities, the plan also aims to create conditions to “encourage people to work in the areas where they live and promote a balance between professional and residential functions”.
In April 2021 the final report on the public consultation held for Master Plan for the Macau SAR urban development for 2020-2040 was released, with the opinions of the Urban Planning Council collected in June.
The plan is considered crucial for defining the city’s future urban construction and renewal, including future land auctions for private housing and the development of the New Area Zone A.
In accordance with the master plan, the Macau SAR will also start planning public auctions of land plots for private residential buildings that could offer 7,000 to 10,000 units, the 2022 policy address document revealed.
According to the plan, the land plots reclaimed by authorities near Nam Vam Lake – known as Zone C and D will be used to build government and administration buildings.
Meanwhile, large sports areas are planned for the Canidrome area and Zone A and D of the newly reclaimed areas, while new cultural installations will be developed on the south side of Zone A – and Lai Chi Vun village.
The framework also includes plans for the development of a future 41 hectares reclamation area between Areia Preta and New Area Zone A, where green and leisure areas will be developed to complement the offerings in the region.
Other projects include revitalization plans for the Inner Harbour area, with some docks – known as Pontes – to be transformed into commercial areas in the future, while a natural disaster prevention system will be established to prevent flooding in the low-lying area.
