Selection of Heerim Architects for Yongsan Presidential Office Design in Central District Prosecutors' Office Annex Expansion (Comprehensive)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] The Ministry of Justice announced on the 4th through its website that the design proposal submitted by Jung Young-gyun, CEO of Heerim Architects & Planners (Heerim Architecture), was selected as the final winning entry in the general public competition for the extension design service of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office.

Since June, the Ministry of Justice held a design competition for the annex extension to increase the space for viewing and copying criminal evidence records and other documents, as well as office space. According to the competition guidelines, the current five-story annex of the Central Prosecutors' Office will be expanded to a building with two basement floors and 15 above-ground floors by 2025. The total construction cost is set at 77.43 billion KRW, with a design fee of 3.51721 billion KRW.

The Ministry of Justice plans to entrust Heerim with the design service for the Central Prosecutors' Office extension, valued at approximately 3.5 billion KRW. Heerim Architecture previously undertook the design and supervision services for the remodeling of the Yongsan Presidential Office building, commissioned by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety in April. This led to controversy over preferential treatment after claims surfaced that the company had sponsored three exhibitions organized by Kobana Contents, where First Lady Kim Keon-hee served as CEO, between 2015 and 2018.

The Ministry of Justice described Heerim Architecture as "the top domestic construction management (CM) company, responsible for designing major buildings such as the Sejong National Assembly Building, Government Complex Sejong, and numerous courts and prosecutors' offices. Recently, the company was also in charge of the design service for the new construction of the Seoul Immigration Office in December 2020."

It added, "The selection was made by the Legal Facilities Construction Council, composed of private members including university professors, who comprehensively considered the rationality, economy, functionality, and design of the proposals. The Ministry of Justice reflected the evaluation results of the judging committee as is in making the final decision."