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Justification

2.1. – JUSTIFICATION OF THE TITLE*:

Land regulation, its use and transformation, constitutes the most controversial issue facing the Canary Islands, even more significant than the water dispute. Evidence of this reality is the succession of territorial, urban and environmental planning regulations since the creation of the Autonomous Community (Law 3/1985, on the deferred urbanization system, Law 1/1987, on Island Planning Plans, Law 5/1987, on rural land, Law 12/1987, on the declaration of natural areas, Law 7/1990, on urban planning discipline, Law 11/1990, on ecological impact assessment, Law 12/1994, on natural areas of the Canary Islands, Law 9/1999, on territorial planning, Legislative Decree 1/2000, Consolidated Text of the Law on Territorial Planning and Natural Areas of the Canary Islands, Law 6/2001, on the “tourist moratorium”, Law 19/2003, approving the General Planning and Tourism Guidelines, which are accompanied by a a good number of regulations).

Land use is the problem; not only for the same reasons as in other territories (the effect caused by the resounding affirmation of the exclusive jurisdiction of the Autonomous Communities in matters of urban planning, STC. 61/1997), but also because of the peculiarities of island land (almost half of the land is part of a protected natural area, ravines reduce the land suitable for building cities, the island's condition and limited space condition planning, and the social aspect explains modalities of occupation such as self-construction).

The law must address this problem by regulating the public and private interests that concur, ensuring reasonable land use. This is the role that the aforementioned laws attempted to play, with varying degrees of success, and which is currently played by the Consolidated Text of the Law on Territorial Planning and Natural Areas of the Canary Islands, and the General Planning and Tourism Guidelines (for an explanation of these regulations, see FJ Villar Rojas (). Urban Planning Law of the Canary Islands, IEC and Tenerife Council, 2003).

However, to understand this regulation, it is not enough to simply study these laws; they are the rules that head a complex set of regulations, which include development regulations and territorial planning instruments (guidelines, island plans) and urban planning instruments (general plans, partial and special plans), which implement their provisions. To these are added the mechanisms for implementing the plans' provisions and the administrative intervention instruments to ensure compliance or, where appropriate, restore the reality and infringed legality. At this point, knowledge is broad but incomplete. A proper understanding of the regulations that regulate land requires even approximate knowledge of the values, assets, and competing interests. Hence the need for a practical approach to these regulations and the requirement for an understanding of values—that which gives material, not just formal, content to the regulations and plans.

It is clear that land regulation is broad, diverse, and complex. Its study requires dedication and specialization that is impossible to achieve in the Administrative Law I and II courses of the Law Degree, even if a general approach is provided. The justification for specialized academic training seems clear, given its complexity and breadth.

The social and professional needs that this Master's in Urban Planning Law aims to address are supported by public institutions directly related to the field: the Island Council of Tenerife, responsible for island plans, natural areas, and rural land control; the Ministry of Environment and Territorial Policy, responsible for territorial planning (guidelines and special and partial territorial plans) and the final approval of island and urban plans; the Urban Planning Departments of Santa Cruz and La Laguna, responsible for implementing municipal urban planning; and the College of Architects of the Canary Islands, many of whose professionals work in or for Urban Planning Administrations. It seems clear that this is not simply a matter of supporting a university initiative, but rather a specialized training project of particular value for those who must develop and apply, from diverse perspectives, the regulations governing land use: the development and approval of plans, their management and implementation, and compliance with the regulatory framework. For this system to function properly, qualified professionals are needed, both in the administration and primarily among lawyers and architects who advise citizens. The demand and need for specialized training are real and urgent.

The stated objectives were confirmed with the completion of the first edition of the Master's program, taught during the 2005-2007 period; therefore, all collaborating entities have expressed interest in a new edition of these courses.

2.2 – ANALYSIS OF SOCIAL, ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL DEMAND

In the first edition of the Master's program, the number of applications submitted within the initially planned deadline far exceeded the number of places offered (50 places), without requiring an additional enrollment. During the two years of the Master's program, requests for information about a second edition have also been numerous and constant, with great excitement among law and architecture graduates. Collaborating institutions have also expressed their willingness to contribute to a new edition of these programs.

2.3. – INFORMATION ON THE SITUATION OF SIMILAR OR RELATED DEGREES IN EUROPE AND SPAIN, AND CONSISTENCY WITH UNDERGRADUATE OR POSTGRADUATE DEGREES*:

SPAIN, AND CONSISTENCY WITH UNDERGRADUATE OR POSTGRADUATE DEGREES*:

Postgraduate degrees in urban planning law are available at numerous European universities, in line with a widespread concern about the legal issues arising from land use and urban planning. A second edition is planned for the University of the Basque Country.

These studies constitute specialized training consistent with the ULL's undergraduate program (Bachelor of Law), which does not overlap with any other undergraduate or postgraduate degree offered at the ULL.

REPORTS FROM PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS OR COLLEGES, NATIONAL, EUROPEAN, FROM OTHER COUNTRIES OR INTERNATIONAL:

In the first edition of the Master's in Urban Planning, we enjoyed the collaboration of various public institutions, including the Canary Islands College of Architects (through its offices in Tenerife, La Palma, La Gomera, and El Hierro), the two Urban Planning Offices of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and La Laguna, the Tenerife Island Council, and the Department of Territorial Policy and Environment of the Canary Islands Government. All of these institutions expressed their satisfaction with the results obtained and continued to support the second edition of this postgraduate degree.

With these precedents, the institutions, despite the current situation, continue to support this master's program and have been one of the most important incentives for launching this third edition.

2.4. – OTHERS*:

2.5. – DESCRIPTION OF THE INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL CONSULTATION PROCEDURES USED TO PREPARE THE CURRICULUM. THESE MAY HAVE BEEN WITH PROFESSIONALS, STUDENTS, OR OTHER GROUPS:

In developing the Curriculum for the first edition, the programs corresponding to the Master's degrees in Urban Planning Law offered at the Universities of Zaragoza, Carlos III University of Madrid, and Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, all of which already have extensive experience, were consulted. The organizers of the ULL Master's program had previously participated in some of these postgraduate programs as lecturers, and have accumulated experience in the field. Consultations were also held with national and international professors and professionals. A draft of the Curriculum for the first edition was sent to the collaborating institutions for their proposals.

The second edition maintained the same program, although some adjustments were made based on feedback from the teachers themselves and the results of surveys conducted among students from the first edition.

For the third edition, adjustments have had to be made to the course schedule to adapt it to the regulations governing the University's Postgraduate Degrees.