On the Possibility and Necessessity of Returning Land Surveyors to Urban Lands through State Operators of Integrated Territorial Development

Following the collapse of the USSR, urban development became dominated by the principle of Highest and Best Use (HBU) (НЭИ), focused on developers» maximization of shortterm profit. The institutional response to these issues was the introduction of the mechanism of Comprehensive Territory Development (KRT) and the establishment of the State Operator of KRT (GO KRT), which is essentially a «state land surveyor». GO KRT, vested with broad authority, created unique prerequisites for rejecting the dictates of HBU and transitioning to sustainable development, taking into account ESG factors. The analysis of KRT implementation in 77 subjects of the Russian Federation (December 2024) shows that operators (including FRT and DOM. RF) continue to adhere to the HBU concept. KRT effectiveness assessment methods are focused on financial indicators (such as positive Net Present Value, NPV [ЧДД]), which contradicts the principles of sustainable development. Concentration on HBU results in the cessation of housing construction in 771 Russian cities, affecting 21.2 million people. To solve this problem, it is proposed that GO KRT transition to a new methodology — Carbon Land Use Planning (CLUP) (КЗ), developed at the State University of Land Use Planning (GUZ), which replaces the HBU principle with the Principle of Rational and Most Effective Use (RMEU) (РНЭИ). RMEU requires a long-term balance between economic, environmental, and social agendas, based on the Value of the Territory.