On August 19, the Executive Office of the Damascus Governorate issued Decision No. 985, allowing the allocation of residential building plots in Basilia City to start. This is the second development zone established within Damascus, in accordance with the provisions of Legislative Decree No. 66 of 2012, and covers an area of 954 hectares.

Allocation refers to an agreement between the Damascus Governorate and the holders of shares, regarding the allocation of specific, ready-to-build plots, with known locations and specifications. This agreement outlines the conditions and obligations of all parties involved.

Legislative Decree No. 66 of 2012 created two development zones in Damascus: the first is Marota City, and the second, located south of the Southern Ring road, is Basilia City. The Damascus Governorate manages both zones through the Directorate for the Implementation of Decree No. 66 and the Damascus Cham Holding Company, which is owned by the governorate. A large number of committees worked on implementing the provisions of Decree No. 66 in Basilia, and the results of their work were gradually issued as decisions by the Damascus Governorate, starting in 2021 – after a delay of nearly nine years in implementing the decree.

In February 2021, the Damascus Governorate released the estimated values for 4,200 properties that existed in the area before 2012. After that, the entire zoned area became jointly owned by the rights holders. Subsequently, in line with the area’s zoning plan, the values of the residential building plots were calculated. Each of these plots is referred to as a “zoning plot” to distinguish them from service or investment plots, which the governorate is entitled to develop on land deducted for free from the zoned area.

Afterward, the zoning plots were distributed among the rights holders based on their shares, which were themselves based on the value of their ownership in the  4,200 properties that existed in the area before 2012. Based on this division, each rights holder received shares, referred to as “zoning shares.” Those entitled to these zoning shares are property owners who have proven ownership through documents and records, meaning owners of licensed properties located in zoned areas, and therefore registered in the Directorate of Cadastral Affairs. However, those who built unlicensed homes on public land or on private agricultural land where construction is prohibited, may be allocated alternative housing but are not entitled to zoning shares.

In July 2021, the governorate released the values of the zoning shares owed to property owners, as well as the share values of the residential zoning plots in Basilia City. According to the zoning plan, Basilia includes 567 zoning plots, divided into three categories: 312 residential plots, 64 residential/commercial plots, and the rest are investment plots, in which the governorate has the right to invest in, including selling or renting it for commercial or service purposes.

At the end of 2021, the governorate began distributing ownership deeds for zoning shares to the rights holders. Under Decree No. 66, a shareholder has three options: to convert their shares into a zoning plot, to sell the shares at a public auction, or to form or join a joint-stock company. In any case, the process of distributing the shares has been slow, and by the end of 2023, the Damascus Governorate announced that only 47,438 ownership deeds for zoning shares had been issued, out of 93,829 rights holders. This means that there are 93,829 rights holders for the 4,200 properties that previously existed in the area before it was zoned. To explain this large number of rights holders, it is important to note that a single property may consist of a building with several floors and many residential units. Additionally, many properties have not been subdivided in the Directorate of Cadastral Affairs, meaning that a single property may have a large number of heirs among the rights holders.

The governorate authorised the trading of shares in Basilia City, starting from May 15, 2023, for a period of one year only. Trading shares means that ownership of the shares can be transferred between owners or to others, either partially or fully. The purpose of trading is to consolidate zoning shares in the hands of a few owners, which would facilitate their allocation of ready-to-build zoning plots. It was expected that once the share trading period ended in May 2024, the allocation of zoning plots would begin.

Accordingly, the recent Damascus Executive Council’s Decision No. 985 of 2024 outlined the provisions for how holders of zoning shares can apply for allocation of specific zoning plots, within a one-year period ending in September 2025. Upon registering their application, the applicant receives a notice known as the “queue system.” If more than one application is submitted for the same plot after the one-year period, a draw will be held to decide. It is not allowed to apply for more than one plot in a single application, but shareholders can submit multiple applications for different plots.

There is a specific format for the application, attached to Decision No. 985, which includes details about the applicants, such as the serial number of applications, zoning share ownership deed numbers, names of the owners, the number of shares applied with, the signatures of the owners or their representatives, the total number of shares applied with, confirmation that there are no legal impediments to obtaining a construction permit, and the designation of up to three owners or their representatives to attend the allocation committee meetings. These representatives will also be present for the draw, sign its record, reclaim ownership deeds if no allocation is made for any reason, and agree to the procedures set by the governorate. Additionally, they are prohibited from taking any actions that would affect the ownership rights of the other shareholders in the application.