The application of CSBU: notes on the spatial-temporal strategy behind the instrument’s notification

Abstract

This paper contributes to the debate on the outreach of Compulsory Subdivision, Building and Utilization (CSBU) of land and progressive property taxes over time when these instruments are effectively applied. As such, the paper is focussed on issues of effectiveness, that is, the spatialtemporal strategy behind the instrument’s notification. The starting assumption is that, whatever its goals, the implementation of CSBU should be embedded within an urban strategy that establishes a direct dialogue with the guidelines and the objectives of local urban policies as well as the concept of the social function of urban property as established in the Master Plan, aimed at the definition of the universe to be notified within the overall stock of existing properties that can be notified in the municipality. On the basis of an analysis of eight experiences where the CSBU was effectively used in the country, our aim was to understand the territorial logic that was driving the implementation of the instruments, to identify the limits of existing strategies and to explore issues related to the regulation of CSBU. The experiences reveal that the theme of spatial-temporal strategy has hardly been debated. Moreover, the definition of the universe of notified areas, their spatial representation and distribution over time can compromise the outreach of the instrument and its results. Or, alternatively, the impacts associated with the instrument’s implementation might prove either ineffective or contrary to the goals it was expected to achieve.