The State Duma has approved a law granting St. Petersburg, Moscow, Sevastopol and other cities of federal significance greater control over housing placement in exchange for housing vacated during integrated development projects. This federal bill, sometimes referred to as the “Khrushchev-era renovation law”, aims to streamline urban redevelopment.

The new law empowers authorities in these cities to independently determine the geography of resettlement and procedures for including houses in redevelopment programs, even if general meetings regarding the program have not been held.

Originally, the bill proposed defining resettlement boundaries by municipality and adjacent municipal districts. However, an amendment introduced by the second reading allows regional authorities to independently determine these boundaries.

Denis Chetyrbok, a deputy of the Legislative Assembly of St. Petersburg, explained that the territorial structure of cities varies, with Moscow municipalities comparable in area to entire districts of St. Petersburg. The specific resettlement geography for tenants will be determined separately for each integrated development project.