There were passed also the Mandatory Regulations No.4 “The Land Use and Development Regulations and Graphical Chapter of Koknese Region Land Use Plan 2013–2024.” Earlier, the local government had approved Koknese Region Sustainable Development Strategy 2013–2037, and Koknese Region Development Program 2013–2019. Elaboration of the regional planning documents was started in May 2011, and it was conducted by the local government of Koknese Region in cooperation with the Head Office of the land surveying and spatial planning company METRUM.In the face of the downward demographic development trends over the recent years, the regional long-term development priority is the current and prospective residents of the Region. The solutions adopted in the Land Use Plan are aimed at the goal so as the existing residents would not leave the Region, and to create preconditions for the prospective residents to prefer it as their place of residence and work.Unlike the earlier planning documents passed in the Region, the latest land use plan provides for eased regulations for landowners regarding land subdivision and permitted use. For example, the plan states that it is permitted to subdivide the existing farmsteads into 0.5 hectares in the former summer cottage areas along the bank of the Daugava River. This would create preconditions for urban residents to buy residential houses which can serve as summer cottages, and, probably, become the permanent place of residence over time.“The conditions of the land use plan are developed so that not to restrict land owners in their development, leaving economic development directions up to them. The Land Use Plan includes favourable conditions for business development, thus the local government positions itself as a reliable partner to the existing and the prospective investors right in Koknese Region,” explains Ilze Circene, spatial planner of the company “METRUM”.Since 2010, “METRUM” has been supporting development of the Garden of Destiny, and the company annually updates the information on the objects established therein and the supporters thereof through production of a virtual map which is a present of the company to the Garden of Destiny.“The Garden of Destiny is a strategically significant object for development of Koknese Region, and it puts the tourism sector as the region’s economic specialization on the national scale along with other tourist attractions such as the ruins of the Koknese castle, and the memorial museum of the writer Rudolfs Blaumanis. The local government of Koknese Region intends to invest resources in the development of the tourism sector, including plans to establish Koknese Region Tourist information center on a better accessible place for tourists. It is envisaged to construct a pedestrian bridge across the Daugava River, which would provide more convenient access for visitors to reach the Garden of Destiny. A common vision on the future development of the island and the adjoining areas was reached in close cooperation with the Koknese Foundation, which is the developer of the Garden of Destiny, and through bringing together the Garden of Destiny and the landowners of the adjacent areas during the elaboration of the land use plan,” says I. Circene.
