Boletín Oficial del Territorio Histórico de Álava · 28 Aug 2026 · 7 vistas
Special plan for the rural nuclei of Aramaio approved
Por FactBox Admin
The Provincial Council of Álava has definitively approved, with conditions, the Special Plan for the organization of the rural nuclei of Arexola, Barajuen, Suña, Uribarri, and Zabola in the municipality of Aramaio. The decision was adopted through Provincial Order 409/2026, dated August 20, signed by the Deputy for Territorial Balance and Land Use Planning, Laura Pérez Borinaga, and published in the Official Gazette of the Historical Territory of Álava (BOTHA) number 98, dated August 28, 2026.
The plan, promoted by the Aramaio City Council, develops the detailed organization of these rural nuclei, which were already structurally organized in the General Urban Development Plan (PGOU) of Aramaio, definitively approved by Provincial Order 357/2017, dated December 14, 2017. The general planning adapts to Law 2/2006, of June 30, on Land and Urbanism (LvSU) and Decree 105/2008, and respects the Inventory of Rural Nuclei of the Historical Territory of Álava, approved by Provincial Decree 79/2009.
A file restarted after the environmental report expired
The current processing is the second for the plan, as the first was restarted due to the expiration of the Strategic Environmental Report formulated by Provincial Order 8/2019. The new procedure began with the initial approval by Mayoral Decree on January 22, 2025, followed by a public information period, and continued with the incorporation of the Strategic Environmental Document and a second 20-business-day period for allegations.
The definitive Strategic Environmental Report was issued favorably, subject to conditions, through Provincial Order 281/2025, dated August 28, 2025. During the public exhibition, three allegations were presented, of which two were upheld and the third was partially upheld. The City Council Plenary provisionally approved the file on December 11, 2025, and the Land Use Planning Commission of the Basque Country (COTPV) reported favorably on May 4, 2026, with favorable reports from the DFA Agriculture Directorate and the Basque Water Agency (URA).
Up to 23 new homes in six nuclei
The plan sets the maximum number of new homes that each nucleus can accommodate, in coherence with the PGOU:
- Arexola: 4 homes
- Arriola: 4 homes
- Barajuen: 2 homes
- Suña: 5 homes
- Uribarri: 3 homes
- Zabola: 5 homes
- Total: 23 homes
Regarding existing residential buildings, their expansion is not permitted, but the horizontal division of farmhouses (caseríos) is allowed to create a maximum of two homes when there was originally one, or a maximum of four when there were originally two.
Conditions for rectification and enforceability
Final approval is conditional upon the rectification of a series of aspects detailed in the seventh ground of the order, including the updating of regulatory references, the review of the land-use regime for the plots, and the correction of plans. On July 30, 2026, the DFA Roads Service issued a conditional favorable report, which includes, for the nucleus of Uribarri, replacing the term “Provincial road easement” with “building limit line.”
The indicated conditions are not substantial; therefore, once rectified, the file will be submitted to the Provincial Council of Álava to declare its enforceability and proceed with its processing and publication, without the need for a new public information process. An appeal may be filed against the resolution, which exhausts administrative remedies, via a contentious-administrative appeal within two months before the Contentious-Administrative Chamber of the High Court of Justice of the Basque Country.
The approval of this special plan represents a key step for urban development and rural housing in Aramaio, by unlocking the detailed planning of its nuclei and allowing the construction of new homes in rural areas, within a context of housing demand and population retention in the small nuclei of the historical territory.
Source: Official Gazette of the Historical Territory of Álava (BOTHA), no. 98, August 28, 2026, section I (official reference: Provincial Order 409/2026, of August 20).