As reported by ERR News early on this year, OÜ Albatrek had constructed a two-storey building as a residence and in a residential area called Saialille, Tõrvandi, Kambja municipality.

The building stood out, partly because it arose in a neighbourhood consisting mostly of single-storey semi-detached houses, dispersed across several streets.

The purpose of land use also raised questions. In May, the development got its occupancy permit as a two-family dwelling.
According to the detailed plan, however, the building has five possible uses: It could serve as a single-family house, a school or auxiliary building, a preschool institution, or another building related to education and science, in addition to a family residence.

Then, at the start of this month, Kambja municipality initiated an open procedure for issuing design conditions which would specify the parameters of the detailed plan for the plot at Saialille 37.

As a result, the developer is currently seeking permission from the local authority to additionally purpose the building as office space.

This is permissible under current planning law.

"Indeed, paragraph 27 of the Building Code allows for the issuing of design conditions even when a detailed plan already exists, when, for example, more than five years have elapsed since the plan was established. That condition has been met, and the developer has requested permission to additionally designate the building's use as an office," Timo Varik, head of Kambja municipality's land and construction department, told ERR.

The developer submitted the application to add the additional use — as an office — to the municipality in September. ERR was unable to reach the developer by phone or email during working hours on Wednesday. According to the cover letter submitted to the municipality, the developer's desire to add an office use stems from a demand for office space in the area.

However, the building reportedly has not yet started functioning as a two-family dwelling either. According to Varik, the draft has been prepared in such a way that, once the design conditions are granted, repurposing the building's purpose to an office would invalidate all other currently approved uses. Consequently, and after the change, letting apartments short-term in the building would no longer be viable, Varik added.

"The municipal government's current position, which has been agreed with the applicant, is that upon issuing the design conditions we would exclude all other possible uses, leaving only the office designation. An office means activities would primarily take place during regular working hours, while the space could be used mainly by residents of the surrounding area — providing them with a small workspace alternative to a home office," the municipal official stated.

Changing the land use of the building at Saialille 37 to an office does not involve any reconstruction work, while the building's layout will remain the same, it is reported. Parking spaces are already set up on the property too.

According to Varik, the municipal government is prepared to consider repurposing the building's planning attention to an office, though no final decisions have been made yet, he said.

"We will wait for opinions submitted during the public consultation process, then review and weigh them up. The law does allow for specification of a detailed plan through design conditions in this way, provided the essence of the planning application is not fundamentally altered," Varik said.

The 400-square-meter duplex in Tõrvandi, significantly larger than neighboring homes, was granted a usage permit as a duplex in May 2023. However, a January 2024 report revealed that 16 co-owned apartments were being sold inside, raising concerns about whether the building complies with local regulations.

Tõrvandi, just south of Tartu city limits, has expanded rapidly in recent years and now features schools, industrial parks, and small residential developments such as that at Saialille.

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