Won Hee-ryong Meets 1st Generation New Town Mayors: "1st Generation New Town Reconstruction, Life Reconstruction Project"

Special Bill on 1st Phase New Towns Proposed in February 2023

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Min-young] Won Hee-ryong, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, met with local government heads of the first-generation new towns to discuss redevelopment plans.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on the 8th that Minister Won held the "Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and First-Generation New Town Local Government Heads Meeting" at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul, to discuss cooperation plans for the redevelopment of the first-generation new towns with local government heads.

At the meeting, Bucheon Mayor Jo Yong-ik, Goyang Mayor Lee Dong-hwan, Seongnam Mayor Shin Sang-jin, Anyang Mayor Choi Dae-ho, and Gunpo Mayor Ha Eun-ho attended. They discussed the need for urban function development and redevelopment of the five new towns and agreed to establish redevelopment plans reflecting residents' opinions.

At the meeting, Minister Won said, "The redevelopment of the first-generation new towns is not simply a project to rebuild concrete structures," adding, "It is a life reconstruction project that redesigns the lives of the older generation and seeks the future of local residents' lives."

He explained, "All cities nationwide with aging apartments, such as Mok-dong, Sangye, and Apgujeong, face the same issues, including single-family houses and multi-family villas with semi-basements."

He reiterated, "The redevelopment of the first-generation new towns concerns 300,000 households and the livelihoods of one million Koreans."

Minister Won presented the project principles at the meeting as △speed △active deregulation △parallel housing revolution. Considering various legal and institutional constraints, it was decided to promote public redevelopment through cooperation between the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the first-generation new town local governments. To ensure rapid progress, the ministry will establish the basic redevelopment policy, and each local government will concurrently develop the basic redevelopment plan in a two-track approach to prepare the master plan within 2024.

Seongnam Mayor Shin Sang-jin said, "(The government) said it would present the master plan by 2024, but new town residents might think, 'Is two years from now reasonable?'" and requested shortening of administrative procedures.

The local government heads also proposed measures such as △relaxation of safety inspection standards △resolution of traffic issues △flexible floor area ratio increases △relief of infrastructure burdens △strengthening resident communication.

The basic redevelopment policy established by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport will serve as a common redevelopment guideline for the first-generation new towns, including urban function growth plans, metropolitan transportation and infrastructure installation plans, special cases and application standards linked to local government redevelopment plans, and matters related to the designation of pilot districts.

The basic redevelopment plans established by each local government will include the basic direction of redevelopment projects, residential area and land use management plans, infrastructure installation plans, designation of redevelopment zones, density plans such as floor area ratio and building coverage ratio, relocation measures, and residential stability.

The meeting participants also agreed on the need to simultaneously promote the enactment of a special law to guarantee legal support for smooth redevelopment of new towns and execution of the master plan. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport plans to expedite related schedules and propose the special law bill by February 2023.

Furthermore, to ensure redevelopment of the first-generation new towns based on communication and participation, a master planner (MP) system will be operated for each new town, and each local government will establish and operate an MP support team and resident participation organizations to collect residents' opinions.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Gyeonggi Province, and the five new town local governments will form and operate a permanent consultative body at the director-general level to oversee urban redevelopment policies, ensuring rapid and effective policy and administrative support. The Director of the Urban Housing Office of Gyeonggi Province attended the meeting, and Gyeonggi Province also participates in the permanent consultative body.

Accordingly, detailed measures to implement the agreed matters, such as appointing master planners and commissioning master plan research projects within this month, will be steadily promoted.

Minister Won emphasized, "The owners of the master plan are the local governments and the residents living in the new towns," adding, "We will proceed swiftly with the two-track approach to meet residents' expectations and use the enhanced communication system to timely, frequently, and sufficiently explain policy progress to the first-generation new town residents."