Facts
In the spring of 1990, a popular initiative "For an environmentally sound development in Hochbord/Stettbach" was submitted in the city of Dübendorf. The initiative aimed to rezone the Hochbord/Stettbach area, which had previously been designated as an industrial and commercial zone, into a reserve zone in order to create a period of reflection for careful and environmentally sound planning.
The Municipal Council of Dübendorf declared the initiative valid. However, Friedrich Beerstecher and other participants, as well as the Canton of Zurich, filed a complaint against this declaration of validity. The Cantonal Government of Zurich revoked the validity of the initiative, as it violated the Cantonal Planning and Building Act (PBG).
Thereupon, Martin Bäumle and co-participants challenged the decision of the Cantonal Government with a constitutional complaint to the Federal Supreme Court.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court dismissed the complaint. It stated that the interpretation of the Cantonal PBG by the Cantonal Government was not arbitrary. The reserve zone under the PBG primarily serves the redimensioning and long-term securing of the building zones in accordance with the Cantonal Structure Plan, but not the purpose of temporarily excluding an area from development for environmental protection reasons.
The instruments of the planning zone and building freeze are also provided for in Cantonal law as a means of securing plans, so that the Cantonal Government could not consider the reserve zone as suitable for…