Issues of urban overdevelopment in post-socialist Bulgaria

Slaev, Aleksandar D., Shahab, Sina ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3788-2564, Nozharova, Boriana and Nikolov, Peter 2026. Issues of urban overdevelopment in post-socialist Bulgaria. Presented at: 11th World Summit: Civil Engineering - Architecture - Urban Planning Congress, Sofia, Bulgaria, 31 August - 4 September 2026. Published in: Yilmaz, Isik, Drusa, Marian, Antova, Gergana, Cheirchanteri, Georgia and Mickrenska, Christina eds. Proceedings CAUSummit 2026. ARPHA Proceedings. , vol.12 Pensoft Publishers, pp. 274-282. 10.3897/ap.12.e0274

Preview

PDF - Published Version Available under License Creative Commons Attribution. Download (409kB) | Preview

Abstract

Urban overdevelopment has become one of the most controversial issues of contemporary urban development in Bulgaria and other post-socialist countries. While extensive research has examined urban sprawl and low-density expansion in Western Europe and North America, considerably less attention has been paid to high-intensity urban overdevelopment within already urbanised areas. This paper examines the characteristics of urban overdevelopment in post-socialist Bulgaria and explores its relationship with development rights and the institutional functioning of urban development. The central thesis is that urban overdevelopment results from the inappropriate allocation of development rights rather than from excessive development intensity alone. Consequently, the benefits generated by intensive development are largely captured by private landowners, whereas many environmental, social, and infrastructure costs are transferred to local communities. Drawing on the Theory of Complex Property Rights, the paper treats development rights as a principal institutional resource whose allocation fundamentally shapes urban development outcomes. The analysis argues that development rights are created through municipal planning and supported by public investment in infrastructure and urban services. Consequently, local communities have a legitimate claim to part of the value generated by these rights. Urban overdevelopment is therefore interpreted as an institutional consequence of the improper allocation of development rights and the resulting imbalance between private and public interests. The paper concludes that urban overdevelopment cannot be addressed solely through traditional planning regulation. It argues that market-based instruments founded on the beneficiary pays and user pays principles—including betterment levies, transferable development rights, and charges on development rights—provide promising mechanisms for improving the allocation of development rights and promoting more sustainable and equitable urban development.

Item Type:	Conference or Workshop Item - published (Paper)
Date Type:	Published Online
Status:	Published
Schools:	Schools > Geography and Planning (GEOPL) Schools > School of Social and Spatial Sciences
Publisher:	Pensoft Publishers
ISBN:	978-619-248-168-1
ISSN:	3134-2442
Related URLs:	Publisher
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	15 October 2026
Date of Acceptance:	10 July 2026
Last Modified:	16 Oct 2026 09:50
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/190252

Actions (repository staff only)

Edit Item